_It’s been awhile since I’ve seen Batman Begins, the first of the newer Dark Knight movies starring Christian Bale. Last night caught about 30 minutes of the modern classic. The first time I saw it, admittedly, I never really took notice of some of the more nuanced messages. In this version, Alfred, played by Michael Caine, is a much stronger character and his transition from butler to father figure is well played out. At one point he inspires wounded and dejected Bruce with a memorable quote once used by Bruce’s own father, “Why do we fall? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.” I’ll agree that it a bit cliched, but personally, I was really moved by that line. We fall so we can learn to pick ourselves us...brilliant! Has anyone called Congress or the White House and told them this? They should because it’s exactly right. Sometimes we do need to stumble. We need to know what it feels like to be down so we know what direction to head when it’s time to get up. This isn’t a support of failure or anything against a helping hand, quite the opposite. I know the power of the human spirit and what we're capable of. There are countless tales of rags to riches throughout history and even today and these are the messages that we must pass along to our kids. At some point in their lives, they’re going to get beaten down. How they react to that adversity is the true mark of their character and that is something we can (and must) help them create today. Don’t wait until tomorrow. Be the role model you've wanted to be and the inspiration for their success today.