Escapism

I know there is a lot off evil stuff going on in the world, but I'm doing my best to recover from an ugly illness, so I'm escaping the evilness by watching completely apolitical uplifting TV programs. I've seen a collection of wonderful old movies that are light and fun ranging from Roman Holiday to My Fair Lady to The Sound of Music to Topper and many more in-between. 

On my morning 30 minute walk, I look at "Waiting for God" on Brit-Box, I watched the show in the 90s and found it funny then, and it's still funny 30 years later. The two main characters are cranky old Diana and kind, loving Tom who are living their final days in a retirement home in England. The chemistry between these 2 characters is fun. I walk around with a smile on my face as they go about their "merry" way.

Just recently I found "The Donna Reed Show" on Prime. I remember this 1959 sit-com from my youth. My family liked it then, and I'm liking it now. It's a time capsule of life in the late 50s. The roles of each character are definite: Dad is a doctor and head of the house; mom is a housewife; the daughter is pretty and perfect and the young son is a mischievous but lovable BOY. Each episode teaches a little "life lesson" in a charming way (now it would be considered a sappy way). The stories are predictable and enjoyable once you realize that  MOM is the glue that holds the family together. Unlike some sit-coms in the 50s where the father was a a bit of a punching bag, the father character in TDRS is thoughtful, tough, loving, and a decision maker too.  Again, complete escapism.

While scanning the offerings that Netflix has, I stumbled upon "Sweet Magnolias." A chick-flick that celebrates a decades-old friendship of 3 women. Much more complex in plot than the other two series, the viewer gets involved with the everyday life of the friends, their families and their hometown. The stories are heartwarming, have a teachable moment, are somewhat predictable, yet there are enough plot twists to keep them interesting. Yep, pure escapism.

Don't get me wrong. I know there is a war in Ukraine, I know the President gave the State of the Union Address yesterday; I'm informed about Covid. Daily, I deal with inflation, supply line problems and a myriad of other things that make modern life what it is...but I'm recovering from an illness that temporarily disabled me. I'm on the road to recovery. A long time ago, I read it's important to see funny, lighthearted, uplifting and heartwarming stories when recovering from a disaster. These programs are part of my "medicine" for recovery. They give me positive images to look at rather than the real-life images I see on the daily news.