thoughts on the news of the day: john boy

hmmm…..

            Remember “The Walton’s of television fame?  They recently came together and held their 40^th year anniversary of the show being broadcast in prime time.  The Waltons  were a mythical family who lived in the country in the early 1940's days and survived mostly off the land.  There was a passel of kids ranging from almost adult to little almost toddlers.  And a Mom and Dad who deeply loved them and wanted the best for them.

            We all wanted to be like the Waltons, didn’t we?  We wanted to have siblings who annoyed us but loved us and stood up for us too.  And we wanted a Mom and a Dad who were like the Walton parents, strict but kind, generous but thrifty, honest but forgiving. 

            I wanted a Walton family as much as the next guy.  When she was born, we even named my daughter Mary Ellen – a name she rebels against even to this day.   But instead I got a broken family as a single, divorced Mom raising one child by myself.  Life works that way sometimes; we think we know what we want but it turns out to be something completely different.  In spite of my disappointment, I learned to be a a strong and independent woman, a trait which I have passed on to my daughter.

            Every evening, at the close of the show, the family would snuggle under their covers.  A litany of siblings would say “good night” in the order of their birth.  It was a ritual that was a hallmark of the show.  And it was always comforting and reassuring to hear the concluding refrain. it's one that some of us still say today:  “Good night, John Boy.” 

            hmmm…..