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Hughes may be gone now, but he left us with eternal crushes, role models, an affinity for New Wave and a handful of life lessons. We tried to remember these when growing up and hope to pass them on to our own kids.
- Even dorks can land babes. In "Weird Science" the guys may have to create the woman of their dreams, but in the end, real-life ladies come around and appreciate them for who they are once they get to know the dudes inside. Samantha Baker may be a sophomore nobody in "Sixteen Candles," but she wins the heart of uber-popular jock, Jake Ryan. Even dorky Ted winds up with Jake's hot prom date. See, dreams do come true!
- People are not always what they seem. In "The Breakfast Club," the kids write a letter to the principal saying, "We think you're crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are...What do you care? You see us as you want to see us." By the film's end we discover that the popular girl is still a virgin, that the bully and the jock both have sensitive sides, that the weirdo was really just a pathological liar and that the nerd was potentially the the toughest of all. Consider all stereotypes shattered.
- Make the most of sibling rivalry. In just about every John Hughes film one sibling gets the short end of the stick. Take heed and don't be jealous or hate on your brother or sister just because they're more popular. You'd be better off teaming up.
- Parents aren’t perfect. Hughes portrays extreme circumstances where parents forget their daughter's birthday (in "Sixteen Candles") and even leave their young son behind when leaving on a family trip to Paris (in "Home Alone"). Since your folks were never that bad, maybe it's time to cut them some slack.
- Disastrous vacations are what memories are made of. Hey, remember that time your dad decided you were all going on on a road trip to Wally World, but the car got virtually destroyed, your grandma died, the dog peed on your sandwiches and when you finally got to the theme park it was not only a dump, it was closed? These are the memories you'll look back on and laugh at some day.
- Live life to the fullest. In the brilliant
words of Ferris Bueller, "Life moves pretty fast. You
don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss
it."
