Dad Brief: Agustín Madrigal

By Brandon Troxell

Agustín married into a family with exceptional gifts, and he and his wife, Julietta, had three remarkable daughters. Isabela has the ability to make plants grow, and flowers bloom, while Luisa possesses superhuman strength. Their youngest daughter, Mirabel, is uniquely "un-ceptional," much like Agustín himself. Julietta has the power to heal through baking, which is especially helpful since Agustín often finds himself getting stung by swarms of bees.

At the end of the day, Agustín loves his family more than anything else, and this devotion is reflected in his custom navy 3-piece suit. It features a pink flower representing Isabela, one sock adorned with a dumbbell for Luisa and the other sock embroidered for Mirabel.

Although they live in a town that recognizes Mirabel as the "Madrigal with no gift," Abuela Alma often dismisses her, preferring to overlook Mirabel’s contributions instead of accepting her help. Agustín comforts Mirabel when she struggles with her lack of a gift or Abuela Alma’s unreasonable expectations. He defends Mirabel’s character when it is criticized by Abuela Alma, especially after the Encanto falls apart. Despite being scolded for not considering the family's reputation, Agustín firmly replies, "I was thinking about my daughter!"

At their core, our kids’ wants are relatively straightforward. They simply want us to have their backs, to give them the benefit of the doubt before taking someone else’s word over their own. To trust them. Mirabel was only trying to do the right thing—the next thing she could do, the next step she could take—to protect the family she loved, even when they did not believe her.

Sure, it would have been easier for Agustín to fall in line with the rest of the Madrigals. To punish Mirabel for going to Bruno’s tower. To agree with Abuela Alma. But what kind of example would that have set for his daughters?

I am by no means saying that our kids are always right. That could not be further from the truth, but I am reluctant to think that the answer to that question is blindly following the teacher, friend, or grandparent simply because it’s the easier thing to do.

Cheers!

Brandon