The Bell is Ringing: Swoon 40
I loved Little House on the Prairie. I was a Half-Pint wannabe. I had no time for Mary, she had the gorgeous blonde hair, perfect blue eyes, and tall lean figure. Mary was smart, beautiful, and always seemed to make the right decision. Nope. I wanted to be Half-Pint, she had sass, she was always ready to roll up her selves and pitch in, she defended the weak and noticed the outcasts, and she called out Nellie, yet still had empathy for her. She also made tons of mistakes, she struggled to keep her mouth shut, had trouble with school work, was stubborn and pigheaded, and she often stepped out of her place. I am Half-Pint.
My swooning of Little House was not just about Laura. I adored Walnut Grove, I loved that everyone worked together for the greater good (well, the never seen before guest star, Nellie, and Mrs. Oleson might need some convincing, but they always came around). It gave me such comfort that no matter what…fire, flu, mice, those pesky locusts…that when that church bell would ring, the town would come together and solve the problem. So soothing.
The first time I saw the movie Witness I had an aha moment… I decided if my life in NYC working as a designer and my relationship with Greg went south…so would I…to Amish country. It was the closest thing to Little House on the Prairie. Ring that bell and hundreds of men in black pants, white shirts, and wacky hats would appear over the hills ready to help. The boys would work while the women were preparing a glorious meal, and all would share in a community dinner when done. No matter the depth of the issue…a barn needing to be raised or big city crooks wielding guns in the grain silo…the community came out to help when they heard that bell.
There is a bell ringing right now, and if people would stop fighting and finger pointing we would all hear it. This bell is telling us all to stay home. Listen to scientists. Respect hospital workers and those trying to keep us safe. It is a brilliant time to catch up on the oldies, I see some Brady Bunch in my future, any guess who I wanted to be?
Swooning 
I, too, loved Little House on the Prarie. I remember I would wear a bonnet and a long calico skirt sitting on the stepstool from the kitchen and I would embroider (projects that were never finished) while watching the show. This may have really only happened once, but in my mind, it happened many times.
While I knew I was more like half-pint, I desperately wanted to be Mary. My lack of self-esteem and other societal pressures told me that she was the better choice. I have since, of course, changed my alliances.
In the mid-80s, long past the time, it was cool to watch, let alone admit to watching LHOTP, when Dean Buttler, the actor who played Alanzo, did a guest appearance at Living History Farms, I took my copy of “Farmer Boy” to the meet and greet and had him sign it. What a dork…
Oh, how I wanted Pa to be my Pa….
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Swoon!!!!!!!!!!
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So relate—loved all of these, too!
Remember the episode where the glasses made the grass catch fire?
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I was shaking in my boots as the smoke started to rise.
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I wanted to be Laura, too. I read all the books, and was especially fascinated by the later ones in the series that were more about the realistic info/history. I also loved “The Little Farmer Boy.” So many descriptions of food, especially in that one. I think that’s partly what made me want to cook!
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