The Stranger

[RedDragonV]

The Stranger (excellent reading for anyone)

A few months before I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to

our small Tennessee town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with

this enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family.

The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me into the

world a few months later.

As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my young mind,

he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom

taught me the word of God, and Dad taught me to obey it. But the stranger He

was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with

adventures, mysteries and comedies.

If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or science, he always

knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed

able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league ball

game. He made me laugh, and he made me cry. The stranger never stopped

talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind.

Sometimes, Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each

other to listen to what he had to say, and she would go to her room and read

her books (I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to leave.)

Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but the stranger

never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed

in our home... not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our longtime

visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that burned my ears and

made my dad squirm and my mother blush.

My Dad was a teetotaler who didn't permit alcohol in the home, not even for

cooking. But the stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He

made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and pipes distinguished. He talked

freely (much too freely)! about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant,

sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing.

I now know that my early concepts about relationships were influenced

strongly by the stranger. Time after time, he opposed the values of my

parents, yet he was seldom rebuked... and NEVER asked to leave.

More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our

family. He has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was

at first. Still, if you were to walk into my parent's den today, you would

still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone to listen to

him talk and watch him draw his pictures. His name?....

We just call him, "TV."

**Note: This should be required reading for every household in America!**

He has a younger sister now. We call her, "computer."

[mitchFan]

Eh, IMO I wouldn't call it excellent reading. About half way through I realized, "this is about the all powerful evils of TV isn't it?" I very much doubt that this should be read by everyone in America. TV only has as much power as the owner gives to it, a TV can also be turned off

JMO of course,

mitchFan

[Mitchapalooza]

[KBT]

I second those

[Dan]

Dunno about anyone else, but I found it interesting. Cute.

[OneLife Fan]

Blech!! oh please!!

[Steveo4]

Good read, I find it interesting as well. I don't watch TV as much anymore, but i do spend alot of time on the computer. Which, sadly, I often regret so I'm trying to spend less. I completely believe that TV, computer, and other such mediums, while they do have benefits, have helped cause some of the downfall of families and interpersonal relationships in Western cultures. People do learn alot from these mediums whether they know it or not. It's also added to the extreme loss of the art of conversation. Alot of people don't know how to have real, deep, meaningful conversations face-to-face anymore. Not in the sense that people used to , anyway. It's sad, and yeah, you can always turn the TV off. But these things have a much bigger impact than we think.....

[mitchFan]

Sorry but TV doesn't have a big enough impact to stop someone from switching it off.

And for one to try and claim that TV has that big of an effect (and that it has ruined this and that for them), is just someone that is trying to shift the blame for their own short comings.

[Steveo4]

Or it's just another example of people avoiding personal responsibility..... Alot of these things have deep psychological/emotional effects that can't be seen very easily. Most of us remain ignorant to it.

[mitchFan]

Isn't that what I said in my previous post, people blaming an inanimate object for their own short comings is basically avoiding personal responsibility. An inanimate object is just that, an inanimate object

[Steveo4]

haha. gotcha. not sure how i was reading that before. i do think though that it has alot of power that we don't think. i've been limiting myself to about an hour of TV at most a day for Lent, and it's alot harder than people think. but i agree, not impossible, it does take personal responsibility.

[mitchFan]

It's all about personal responsibility, and the only power it holds, is the one the person decides to give to it

[DanTheMan]

Was this supposed to be a joke? It sounds a bit giddy with a "haha" here and there. But if you were joking, then yeah you have my vote. LOL I dunno, I skim read half the time. Don't rely on my opinion. LOL

[dimples]

I think the post is cute, though I understand why people will want to use this emoticon -----> in response. The title is a bit misleading (I honestly clicked expecting to read some news article). Thanks for posting though.