Keeping up with the Kardashian's and no TV till Saturdays...

When I was little (ok not that I'm actually OLD now) my folks had a rule in the house.

No TV, except on Saturday mornings. 

Usually, the TV that WAS chosen in these stolen moments was either Loony Toons (I still love them) or old black and white films. My sister Lizzy and I loved the dancing and singing musicals from MGM, films like "Singing in the Rain" and "High Society" shaped our film education, while a steady dose of John Wayne and Gunsmoke aided in us knowing JUST how a man should act.

These movies and short moments we enjoyed the rarity of on Saturday mornings set me up for something, that later in life I will always be thankful to my parents for...and that was, to have a LIFE.

LIFE isn't TV. Plain and simple. 

Life isn't sitting inside watching drama-filled shows of fighting families and wishing we had as much money as them, because we had more than just the existence of an armchair and remote.

Instead of "Keeping up with the Kardashians" ...

We had horses, cows, the woods, the saddle shop, singing, the piano, camping, running, hiking, waterfall jumping, cave exploring, daydreaming, reading, cooking, fence building, colt riding, roping, dress-up, family time, hunting, and in my case - learning about and living full time in a 14 ft indian lodge from middle school through high school.

I am so surprised everyday living in town while attending college - how things like TV can take up so much of the "kids" around me time. They talk about what happened last night to so-and-so, they discuss their relationships and personalities in unique detail and more passion than most ever show while "engaging" in the class.

Now I have nothing against having a TV, or folks enjoying themselves relaxing - I'm just a weird old person in a 22 year old's body. I love getting to see the news ( OK so it mostly makes me mad or depressed but I must stay up-to-date on current events!) sometimes an occasional romantic comedy - western - or an old episode of friends. Mostly I take ten minutes on the weekend to draw while watching a documentary. I'm on a WWII kick and am watching basically the whole Military Channel history at the moment! But this black box does not control me. 

When I sit down, it is usually with a book. And that is because my parents gave me that love.
When I talk about my childhood, it is of camping and life experiences - not video games.
When I think of a piece of history that applies in class - it is because my folks took the time to talk to their kids at the dinner table, and to teach us about the importance of caring about the past.

When I get to school this week, talk around campus will be about some naked woman who decided to let someone take pictures of her rear-end.

Personally I don't give a damn about her. 

But because of my parents - these are the headlines from this week that I DO care about.

THESE are the people that are my superheroes.

THESE are the men and women who should be gracing our TIME MAGAZINE covers and being interviewed on the news.

THESE are the things that matter to me....what happened that changed what matters to us these days?



Maybe it doesn't matter, but this is what I wish we had more of...

• We need more Grandpas who sit and tell stories about Vietnam and Korea. And kids that care to listen. 

• We need more Eva Shockey's and Kendall Jone's who utilize their public status as advocates for conservation and passing that mindset onto the next generation.

• We need less WalMarts and more mom-and-pops. 

• We need more MADE IN AMERICA and less China.

• We need more kids who look like kids, our little girls should be able to dress and act like little girls, not 25 year olds.

• We need more reading. Davy Crockett, Robinson Crusoe and Swiss Family Robinson. 

• We need more HEADLINES that talk about WAR HERO'S like Lance Corporal William Kyle Carpenter and Pfc. Ross A. McGinnis. Men who risked, and some who gave their lives for the sake of their comrades and in the service of there country.

• We need more people like Tom Moorhouse - hard workers and ranchers who care about the land and animals that they are charged with the care of.

• We need more dinners among families around the same table, talking not texting. 

We need more REAL LIFE. More common sense. 

Less Kim K.

More God.


And no TV till Saturday. 

Love you all, 


xoxo


~Adrian