Mitzi has been wanting to see the documentary that was recently released about the life and ministry of Fred Rogers. Not only did she genuinely want to see it, but I think she really loved it because there used to be a gentleman who lived down the street from her named Roger and whenever we’d pass by his house, she’d say, “See? I really do get to live in Mr. Roger’s neighborhood!”
Normally, Mitzi falls asleep in movies at some point. I think it’s really hard for a storyline to hold her attention so that she can remember what’s going on, not to mention the fact that her eyes have trouble tracking, so eventually, I think her brain kind of gives up and she dozes off. Not yesterday. She stayed awake the whole time, laughing at all the funny moments, and tearing up through a lot of it because so many of the words he spoke and stories that were told about him were so poignant. Her favorite part was when Fred Rogers was giving a commencement speech and said, “You ARE special. What that means, of course, is that you don’t ever have to do anything sensational for people to love you…”
During speeches at events, Fred would often make the audience take time to reflect on the special, important people in their lives. As cameras would pan the audience, many folks would just start crying as they sat there in silence. An excerpt from his Lifetime Achievement Award acceptance speech (https://youtu.be/Upm9LnuCBUM) went like this: “…All of us have special ones who have loved us into being. Would you just take, along with me, ten seconds to think of the people who have helped you become who you are. Those who have cared about you and wanted what was best for you in life. Ten seconds of silence. I’ll watch the time.
[10 Sec Pause]
Whomever you’ve been thinking about, how pleased they must be to know the difference you feel they’ve made…”
I know that if I, (and many of you would, too) was asked to do the same exercise, that Mitzi would be one of those special people who came to mind…
