It’s no surprise that The Little Mermaid was my favorite movie growing up. Ariel, the main character and underwater mermaid princess, is rebellious and adventurous. She has an offset fascination with the human world, but her father and King of the kingdom lays down strict rules forbidding Ariel to travel amidst. Ariel disobeys her father and takes it upon herself to explore her captivity with the human realm. Ariel was stubborn, but she had a dream and she followed it. Growing up, I was one in the same with Ariel (minus the part about having a tail for legs). I always found myself exploring in places where I shouldn’t. For example, when I was seven, my friend Connor and I would pretend we were Power Rangers on our bicycles. We would bike all around our neighborhood in search of trouble and try to fight crime. One time, we found a stray cat stuck in a tree and decided to rescue it. Fortunately for the cat, we managed to retrieve it. Unfortunately for us, we forgot to tell our moms where we were going and when we returned home four hours later, three cop cars surrounded our houses. We were a little too adventurous for our own good sometimes.

Most princesses get handed what they want in life and never look back. Although Ariel was given the princess title, she was different. She wanted to leave her kingdom and find a place where she belonged, even if that meant she had to break a few rules along the way. Her ambition drove her to swim after her curiosity and find what she wanted. But throughout Ariel’s exploration, there was one sea creature that supported her through it all: Flounder, the tropical fish.

So for my eighth Halloween, I wobbled off my front patio, my pumpkin candy basket in hand, glitter covering my face, and a neon yellow body suit with brilliant blue fins that kept my body warm. I was determined to be the best dang Flounder out there. My family had seen it as slightly odd, considering most eight year old girls want to dress up as a beautiful princess, and not a stinky fish.
“Are you sure you don’t want to be Ariel, instead?” they would ask.

But, I knew. I wanted to be Ariel’s noble companion, Flounder the tropical fish.

Behind every main character, hero/heroine or prince/princess, there is a best friend or sidekick for the protagonist to count on in rough situations. Everyone always wants to be the hero or heroine, but someone has to be the sidekick. Someone has to be the shoulder the hero can cry on. Someone to give courage to the hero when they’re feeling down. I wanted to be that shoulder when I was eight and now, when I’m twenty. Flounder may scare easily in situations involving sharks, but he is always there to help out his best friend, Ariel.
As I have grown from age eight to twenty, Flounder has been a constant role model for me. He reminds me to stay humble, selfless and supporting. When a friend is in need, I want it to be clear that I will be their crying shoulder or their hand to hold. Everyone needs a friend they can rely on.

On the other hand, Ariel has taught me to be independent. Although it is nice to have a friend to fall back on, life does not hand us happiness. It is our job to go out and find it on our own. A friend will push you in the right direction when needed, but ultimately we are the captains of our own ship and the determiners of our lives.

Ariel and Flounder were not only characters in a movie to me, they were role models and life lessons to everyone they touched. So as I wobbled off my front patio on that chilly October Halloween when I was eight years old, I started becoming the person I am today. I am reminded to be part Arial, curious and independent, and part Flounder, supporting and selfless. Swimming through this ocean we call life, I will continue to take on the waves with the characteristics my favorite childhood movie taught me.