Recently, the fam watched the movie Luca on Disney+. We are slightly obsessed with Disney so anytime a new movie is released, we are on it like flies on shit. Sorry for the analogy, but it’s true. Disney is just the best.
The movie was cute. It wasn’t epic…like Moana, but it was definitely worth the watch. I won’t give away the plot details or anything. This isn’t that type of blog. But one part of the movie really stood out to me and I want to share it with you because I think it’s important.
Silenzio, Bruno
In the movie, the boy Luca is afraid to try new things. He meets a friend named Alberto who is way more adventurous and laid back. In one scene, Alberto is telling Luca that he needs to silence that voice in his head that tells him he can’t do things. To silence that fear, Alberto named that voice in his head “Bruno”. So, any time he hears that fear in his mind, he says “Silenzio, Bruno.” To tell Bruno to shut up basically so he can make choices in his life and not be afraid.
This was meant to be cute and silly. A way to gain courage and shake out the nerves. But, for me, it rang a bell. This is the first time in any movie I’ve ever seen where they tell you to name your fear. Name that voice in your head that tries to limit you. And then tell that voice to shut TF up.
Remember Nancy?
We all have a Bruno in our head. My Bruno is named Nancy. I’ve talked about her before. Nancy is the voice in my head that tells me to be jealous of other people. She tells me to worry about money or to compare Evie to other kids. Nancy is the voice that tries to tell me I can’t work full time and be a good mom.
Nancy is my fear talking. Nancy isn’t me talking.
Seeing this play out in the movie was amazing to me because it might give younger kids the knowledge that they don’t have to listen to that voice in their head. That voice isn’t them. It’s separate. That voice can be named and told to be quiet because we aren’t that voice. We are the person hearing that voice. We are separate.
It’s such a powerful thing. Something I didn’t learn until I was in my late 30s. I think knowing that you can “Slienzio, Bruno” when you are much younger, could be life altering. Kids before seeing Luca might have listened to that voice that said they are worthless or that they can’t achieve something. Now, they may know they can name that voice and tell it to shut up. They don’t need to run their life based on the Bruno or Nancy.
Anxiety Monsters
This message, in another form, was advice given to Scarlett during counseling. BTW, let’s normalize this shall we? All of us should go and talk to someone. We all have the need to express ourselves freely. I don’t know why there is still some stigma about going to a therapist.
Anyways, Scarlett was dealing with some issues. Overthinking, being in her head too much, unable to make decisions. If you’ve followed my blog, you know the details. Her counselor basically told Scar that the voice inside her head was called an anxiety monster. All of us have one. It’s the thing inside us that makes us fear the future. This fear is irrational because we don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. How can we listen to this voice, then? We need to not feed the anxiety monster by listening to what it says. We have to ignore it.
Potato, potahto
This is the same message. Anxiety Monster=Bruno=Nancy. This just reinforces the idea even more to me. We need to take control of ourselves and not let these things inside of us run our lives. I think the media and the events of the past year or so have caused our Brunos and Anxiety Monsters to get louder and stronger. We need to shine a light on these voices and tell them it’s time to stop. We are in control, not them.
I don’t know if Disney meant to give that message. But it struck me hard, and I wanted to share with you. Maybe you’ve been needing to Silenzio, Bruno but didn’t realize it until now. Maybe you need to name that inner voice that’s been speaking fear into your mind and making you doubt your life or your choices – holding you back from truly living.
Name that stupid ass voice and then tell it to shut up. Silenzio, Bruno!