With less entertainment choices back then, the TV lineup was a big deal. It was what you did at night. We all had our favorites and planned our week around being at home for them- especially before the VCR. Before that recording wonder, if you missed your show, you’d missed it forever. The actors and actresses were beloved and we’d invite them into our homes each week just like family. Mrs. Wiggins, John Boy, Aunt Esther, Eunice, Mr. Bentley. Seems like I’m reading about stars from that era dying on a frequent basis now. But, those people, who were a big part of my weekly routine back then, would be completely unrecognized by my children. Just like I wasn’t interested in watching reruns of The Burns and Allen Show or Perry Mason with my parents, my kids haven’t shown any desire to join me in my stroll down TV memory lane. I bet either one of my kids could ride in an elevator with Sue Ellen, Flo, Ted Baxter, or Grady and have no idea that they were in the presence of anyone noteworthy. That’s ok, because I can watch an episode of their beloved The Office or some of their current shows and I’m like- “well, that’s an hour I’ll never get back.” 

Along those same lines, I was driving across town, a couple of weeks ago, and they were replaying an old American Top 40 with Casey Kasem on the radio. My Sunday afternoons belonged to Casey in the 80’s. If the preacher didn’t go too long and my parents didn’t talk excessively after church, I could make it home in time to listen to the top twenty songs, at least. Well, my trip across town to pick up Davis’ birthday cake happened to be just as the top two songs of the week of January 21, 1984 were coming on.  “Say, Say, Say“ by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson was number 2 and always a favorite and then came the drum roll to herald the big announcement of the number one song in the land, “Owner of a Lonely Heart”. Oh, that was a good one. They played it over and over on the radio back in my day and nothing can take you back in time like music can, so I turned it up as I was feeling 16 again- driving my sensible, family-sized SUV. 

My kids will never know the urgency of getting a cassette tape rewound and ready to record the number one song on a boom box. Pressing play and record at the exact same time for a clean recording and hoping no one busted up in your room halfway through it- they’ll never know that pressure. As Carson blurted out, later that night around the fire pit as the Bluetooth speaker shuffled my 70’s and 80’s stations, “What is this garbage we’re listening to?” I informed him that it was Mr. Lionel Richie followed by the legendary Bee Gees. Hello. The Commodores- do they not ring a bell? And does he not know how many Bee Gees Teen Beat posters were pinned to the walls of my friends’ bedrooms in their early teens? Not mine, of course, as my mother would never allow men in tight pants to serve as home decor. But, these people were big deals then and their hottest hit music that we were desperate to capture on cassette is just torture to young people now. Not unlike the pained half-smile I gave my mother when she had me listen to “Honeycomb” and “Chantilly Lace” while telling me how handsome Elvis was in his younger years. 

When I got married, there was a certain type of pottery that was very popular. I selected a pattern and registered for a large swath of pieces. I had gotten almost everything that was available in “my pattern” by the time is it was all said and done and it adorned our kitchen for many years. The salt and pepper shakers, the flower pot, the platters, the canisters. I used the serving pieces when company came over and had several pieces that I just displayed on my counter. And as with most collections, just about the time you’ve collected it all, the trend starts to fizzle out and something else comes along to take its place. I believe I eventually sold some of it at a garage sale as Blair certainly had no interest in it. She failed to see its allure with their 90’s jewel tones certainly not fitting today’s color palette. The colors listed on her ‘17 bridal registry bore absolutely no resemblance to the navy, emerald, and burgundy which saturated mine in ‘92. 

Likewise, I recently went to an estate sale of an old family friend. Rooms were filled with old things that her kids didn’t want. Things she’d accumulated and collected. Things that had seen their day, but that day had long passed and the next generation didn’t see the same value in them that she had. I thought that will eventually come to all of us. Somehow, I envision the same fate for most of my things except it will probably be more along the lines of a garage sale and a loaded-down truck headed to the thrift store in exchange for a tax receipt. Aside from sentimental pieces, heirloom items, and a few timeless things, there’s not much that will have the staying power to appeal to our kids and their new tastes by the time they have to clean out our house. 

The only thing we can pass on to the younger generation that will have real staying power is to leave them with the knowledge of Jesus’ saving grace. That is a treasure that will stand the test of eternity. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)  “Your faithfulness endures to all generations” (Psalm 119:90) “Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.” (Psalm 136:26) “But you are the same and your years have no end.” (Psalm 102:27) “He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.” (James 1:17) “Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23) “How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.” (Psalm 36:7) Steady, faithful, dependable, enduring, and unchanging- that is what the world is searching for right about now. To lead our children and young people to this constant and faithful source of salvation, comfort, and strength as everything else seems to be so unsteady, well, that would be the greatest gift we could give them- for now and forever. Everything else is just on its way out. 

Y’all have a great weekend!

JONI