Stories from the Stringam Family Ranches of Southern Alberta

From the 50s and 60s to today . . .



Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Changing Channels


My granddaughter (hereinafter known as Little One, or LO, for short) has the occasional use of her mother’s Ipad.
On long trips or when she has been particularly active and needs some quiet time.
Said Ipad has several movies installed. Good movies. Deemed by her mother and/or me to be suitable for a child her age.
Those of us closeted with her regularly hear most of The Princess and the Frog, Wreck It Ralph, Frozen, Big Hero Six, Toy Story (1,2,and 3), Up, WallE, Brave, Monsters, Inc., and many others.
And I do mean ‘most of’.
Because LO will watch a movie closely from the opening credits through to . . . well, let me illustrate.
On a recent trip to take care of errands, she was absorbed in the colourful antics of a little, dark-haired girl with ‘race car driver’ in her genetic code; and a large, lovable troll of a man whose job was to wreck things. The movie was rolling rapidly toward its usual conclusion.
Okay, I admit it, I was absorbed as well.
And, quite suddenly, I was transported to the Deep South as Louisiana jazz filled the car.
I looked at her. “Why did you change it?”
She lifted her head and said, matter-of-factly, “It was getting scary.”
“Oh.” I said nothing more and let myself get carried into the current story: Young woman with dreams and grit and young man with charm and a penchant to idleness on a course toward things life-changing and dark and . . .
“Oooh. Scary.” And once again the program changed. This time to a couple of current enemies and future best friends on their first day of college.
See? ‘Most of’.
But she was happily engrossed and I have a strict policy of ‘never disturb a happily engrossed child’, so I left her alone.
That evening, Husby and I were watching the news just before turning in for the night. And I can think of nothing more likely to induce nightmares than a recap of yet another day in our often-scary global situation.
And, just for a moment, I found myself wishing I could just change the program.
Okay, I know that nothing is accomplished if one simply turns away from unpleasant situations or tasks.
And that if the good stop trying, the bad have free rein.
But, just for a time I wished I could do what LO does. Turn to another program when things get scary. Or better yet, make the scary things disappear entirely.
The children obviously have the right idea.


12 comments:

  1. I hear the wistfulness in this post. I agree about channel changing...

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think Little One is smart to recognize her limitations and heed them. I can think of some people who would feel better if they did the same. There is lots of good news in the world, but only the bad stuff usually makes it into the media!

    ReplyDelete
  3. You've got a smart one there.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I smiled at your smart little granddaughter! One of my favorite movies is "Steel Magnolias", and I've seen it many times. Except the end - which I've only seen once. Once Julia Roberts starts getting sick, I "turn the channel"!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have exactly the same reaction!!! I love that movie. I cry buckets at the end!

      Delete
  5. I practiced a similar policy. Unless there were blood-curdling screams and/or actual blood, I left them to it. Whatever "it " was.
    I'm a bit childish when it comes to news programs, I don't watch for weeks at a time because I've seen far too much of the bad news.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Just before I read this, the tv my husband was watching aired a commercial for a horror movie. I sang "lalalalalalalalalala" and turned my back to the tvl until the commercial was over! I would watch movies with your granddaughter!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for visiting! Drop by again!

Real Estates: All Murders Included in the Price!

Real Estates: All Murders Included in the Price!
My FIRST murder mystery!

Blessed by a Curse

Blessed by a Curse
My very first Medieval Romance!

God's Tree

God's Tree
For the Children

Third in the series

Third in the series
Deborah. Fugitive of Faith

The Long-Awaited Sequel to Daughter of Ishmael

The Long-Awaited Sequel to Daughter of Ishmael
A House Divided is now available at all fine bookstores and on Amazon.com and .ca!

Daughter of Ishmael

Daughter of Ishmael
Now available at Amazon.com and .ca and Chapters.ca and other fine bookstores.

Romance still wins!

Romance still wins!
First romance in a decade!

Hosts: Your Room's Ready

Hosts: Your Room's Ready
A fun romp through the world's most haunted hotel!

Hugs, Delivered.

Compass Book Ratings

Compass Book Ratings

Ghost of the Overlook

Ghost of the Overlook
Need a fright?

My Granddaughter is Carrying on the Legacy!

My Granddaughter is Carrying on the Legacy!
New Tween Novel!

Gnome for Christmas

Gnome for Christmas
The newest in my Christmas Series

SnowMan

SnowMan
A heart warming story of love and sacrifice.

Translate

My novel, Carving Angels

My novel, Carving Angels
Read it! You know you want to!

My Second Novel: Kris Kringle's Magic

My Second Novel: Kris Kringle's Magic
What could be better than a second Christmas story?!

Join me on Maven

Connect with me on Maven

Essence

Essence
A scientist and his son struggle to keep their earth-shattering discovery out of the wrong hands.

Essence: A Second Dose

Essence: A Second Dose
Captured and imprisoned, a scientist and his son use their amazing discovery to foil evil plans.

Looking for a Great Read?

E-Books by Diane Stringam Tolley
Available from Smashwords.com

The Babysitter

The Babysitter
A baby-kidnapping ring has its eye on J'Aime and her tiny niece.

Melissa

Melissa
Haunted by her past, Melissa must carve a future. Without Cain.

Devon

Devon
Following tragedy, Devon retreats to the solitude of the prairie. Until a girl is dropped in his lap.

Pearl, Why You Little...

Pearl, Why You Little...
Everyone should spend a little time with Pearl!

The Marketing Mentress

The Marketing Mentress
Building solid relationships with podcast and LinkedIn marketing

Coffee Row

Coffee Row
My Big Brother's Stories

Better Blogger Network

Semper Fidelis

Semper Fidelis
I've been given an award!!!

The Liebster Award

The Liebster Award
My good friend and Amazing Blogger, Marcia of Menopausal Mother awarded me . . .

Irresistibly Sweet Award

Irresistibly Sweet Award
Delores, my good friend from The Feathered Nest, has nominated me!

Sunshine Award!!!

Sunshine Award!!!
My good friend Red from Oz has nominated me!!!

My very own Humorous Blogger Award From Delores at The Feathered Nest!

Be Courageous!


Grab and Add!

Search This Blog

Ghost of the Overlook

Ghost of the Overlook
Need a fright?