THAT PICTURE

 It's a picture that's 66 years old; its impact on the viewer brings back memories of the great used to be. There's Jim, Margaret, and the children--Betty, Bud, and Kathy. They were a middle class family in Springfield, a town in the Midwest. Jim was an insurance executive who went to work everyday to support his family. Margaret was the quintessential mother, a biblical "keeper at home," for Jim and those three unforgettable children.

They comprised the family on a popular TV show ("Father Knows Best") that aired from 1954-1960, showing a total of 203 episodes. As one writer said, "Each episode was the equivalent of comfort food, as the characters dealt with the gentle humor and drama of being a family unit," bringing thirty minutes of family [biblical]values into American homes. There was no stereotypical teen-age rebellion like they constantly feed us today; no dumbed-down, clueless father; no wise-cracking, put-her-husband-down-mother; no children who were the smarter-than-their parents-repository-of-wisdom in the family that's common today.

Even the title of the show would offend the just-looking-for-something-folks today who would take umbrage at the male's being head of the house who guided his family with wisdom infused with love.  

And there they were in that picture: they're seated at a modest circular table in the kitchen. A modest meal sits on the little table; those seated around it are close together, reflecting the closeness of a family knit tightly together.

The picture is surprising. Jim is there, What surprises us are four things: they're holding hands around the circle; their eyes are closed; their heads are bowed. We're jolted: they're praying. No one is talking on a cell phone--they don't exist. No one is watching TV--there is no TV set in proximity to distract. We're seeing a family praying on national TV.

The picture was taken during a TV program that was broadcast in 1954, 66 years ago. Parents and children, teens and adults, sat in their homes enjoying all 203 programs together. "Bud," American teen-aged boys said, "is just like us." Betty, the girls said, "is just like we are." Parents and children found themselves reflected in the stable family gathered around that table. 

That's the way it was in 1954, 66 years ago.