I grew up watching the old films. "Mary Poppins," "Bed Knobs and Broomsticks," "The Swiss Family Robinson..." Mom and Dad were careful {and still are} of what we watched, and we certainly didn't mind. I loved the oldies, and always will. Black and whites were the best; it always saddened me when an old show got colored. It just didn't seem right! Black and white just...captures the personality of our grandparents and great-grandparent's time so vividly.
One show that will never grow old for me is the "Andy Griffith Show." There's Andy Taylor, the sheriff, Barney, his clumsy and extremely comical deputy, and of course good old Aunt Bee Taylor and Andy's little cutie, Opie. They all reside in a perfect little town called "Mayberry," where gossips set the town feuding with one rumor, Floyd the Barber catches burglars, and the Diner always serves its special to Barney and his girl.
Ah...I love Mayberry. I love its innocence. I love its charm. I love its vulnerability to disaster. The '50s style storefronts, the drugstore soda fountain, the everybody-knows-your-name atmosphere. It was my dream home, back in the day. And it's characters...there isn't one I don't like. Truly.
Oh, Aunt Bee..I always felt the urge to wrap my arms around Aunt Bee's squishy body and give her a big hug. She just looks like a huggable kind of person. I love huggable people. ..And sit beside her as she knitted in the evenings...listen in while she gossiped on the phone with Clara...
Barney. Now, Barney is the type of person I would get fed up with easily. Watching him on television is a completely different matter...he cracks me up. End of story. :)
Andy, Gomer, Opie, Floyd, Clara, Ellie, Thelma Lou...I could write an entire report on each of them. But I'll stop here. :)
Do you remember Mayberry? I do. I always will. But I think a part of America's heritage was lost when towns started becoming less like Mayberry, and more like mini-New Yorks. People are getting so caught up in technology and "change," that they are beginning to lose even the simplest joys of life. Like sitting on the porch drinking ice cold cherry coke...
Sometimes it feels like this world is spinning faster
Than it did in the old days
So naturally we have more natural disasters
From the strain of a fast pace
Sunday was the day of rest
Now its one more day for progress
And we can't slow down
Cause more is best
It's all an endless process
Well I miss Mayberry
Sitting on the porch drinking ice cold Cherry --- Coke
Where everything is black & white
Picking on a Six String
Where people pass by and you call them by their first name
Watching the clouds roll by...
("Mayberry," by Rascal Flatts)
::sigh::
..I miss Mayberry.
p.s. (last post from me for a while...the beach is coming up! i am now handing you over to my guest posters. and...new look? you like?)
