It’s Father’s Day and I can’t help thinking about how often I get a little “God from Mayberry.”
The older I get the more I appreciate the TV Land channel and all the memories of my childhood it evokes. Most specifically, all the shows I watched as a kid because they were what my dad watched. Since there was only one television in the house (What?! said all the millennials in the world), everyone basically watched whatever Dad watched. We also functioned as his remote control…”Go change it to channel 7, please.”
That also explains why I like a few typically non-female-demo things like Star Trek, Barney Miller, Sanford & Son, and Muhammad Ali. Although I did get to watch The Brady Bunch when he wasn’t around.
My dad was predominantly Archie Bunker at times; Hawkeye Pierce some days, and a little John Wayne now and then. Definitely not a Mike Brady. When we were in trouble there were no sit-on-the-couch-to-share-feelings episodes. Just plain old run-for-your-life moments.
Those were good days with wholesome TV. I liked Andy Taylor then, but, as a parent, I have a new appreciation for his kindness, wisdom, and the way he always defused the insanity around him without taking credit for it.
Opie once got his feelings hurt because Andy had a new girlfriend and he was worried his Pa wouldn’t like him as much someday. What Pa said stuck in my head word for word because of its brevity and profoundness.
“Come here a minute. I’m gon’ tell you somethin’ Op’e and I want you to listen real carefully. You’re my young’un. And I love you more than anything or anybody in the whole world. And nothing or nobody can ever change that. You know it’s hard for me to tell you just how much you do mean to me cause you’re a part of me.”
Simple as that. You are my own and a part of me. You didn’t earn my love and affection because you didn’t have to, but they are there for you until I’m gone. I know it’s just a bunch of TV writers and a script but I get choked up every time I see that one.
Even more so the time Opie had to give up his milk money to a bully and Andy taught him to stand his ground without ever letting on that he knew his son was being mistreated.
Again, even though they were actors, the scene where Andy looks Opie in the eye before he goes to school, presumably to be punched in the eye, is a true sense of a Father loving his young’un enough to let him be a man, even if he’s only 6. Opie was so proud of his black eye and they shared a great moment.
I know life is not like TV, but I like to think that dads really do love their kids like that, even if they can’t always show it. You know, because they’re big strong men who have to just wipe the dust from their eyes when they have an emotion.
Today, I know a lot of Andy Taylors. There’s Charlie, whom I secretly believe is a baby whisperer because his children are gentle, kind, and want to please him out of love and respect. There’s Bill, who shepherds pretty much everyone he comes in contact with, from a place of Godly love and genuine compassion. And he gets a twinkle in his eye when he’s being clever, just like the good Sheriff Taylor. There’s Robert, who is a ‘father’ to hundreds of kids. He doesn’t divide his love between them, he multiplies it.
My own dad has been gone more than half my life and it’s odd to think I’m nearly as old as he was when he passed away. And while I feel confident I can love and protect my little boy like a bear and a good soldier, I hope he will always have a few good men like my dad to look up to as well.
Who else is going to share those priceless, “Don’t tell your mother we did this” moments, or slip a $20 bill in a handshake before a date or a trip? Dads are great to share the first sip of beer, the first worm on a hook, the first driving lesson, the first “girls/boys suck” conversation, and that last minute getaway offer (just in case) right before the wedding.
Dads, enjoy your special day, the comfy chair, the big piece of chicken, and sole control of the remote.
Happy Father’s Day! XXOO