Stranger Within
(Author Unknown)
A few months before I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our small Tennessee
town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited
him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me
into the world a few months later. As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my
young mind, he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me
the word of God, and Dad taught me to obey it.
But the stranger? He was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with
adventures, mysteries and comedies. If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or
science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed
able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league ball game. He made me
laugh and he made me cry. The stranger never stopped talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind.
Sometimes Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to
what he had to say, and she would go to her room and read her books. (I wonder now if
she ever prayed for the stranger to leave). Dad ruled our household with certain moral
convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not
allowed in our home. not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our longtime visitor, however, got
away with four-letter words that burned my ears and made my dad
squirm and my mother blush.
My Dad was a teetotaler who didn't permit alcohol in the home, not even for cooking. But the
stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and
pipes distinguished. He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments were sometimes
blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing. I now know that my early concepts
about relationships were influenced strongly by the stranger.
Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked ... and NEVER
asked to leave. More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He
has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you were to walk
into my parents' den today you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone
to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures.
His name? We just call him TV.
(Author Unknown)
A few months before I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our small Tennessee
town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited
him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me
into the world a few months later. As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my
young mind, he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me
the word of God, and Dad taught me to obey it.
But the stranger? He was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with
adventures, mysteries and comedies. If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or
science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed
able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league ball game. He made me
laugh and he made me cry. The stranger never stopped talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind.
Sometimes Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to
what he had to say, and she would go to her room and read her books. (I wonder now if
she ever prayed for the stranger to leave). Dad ruled our household with certain moral
convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not
allowed in our home. not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our longtime visitor, however, got
away with four-letter words that burned my ears and made my dad
squirm and my mother blush.
My Dad was a teetotaler who didn't permit alcohol in the home, not even for cooking. But the
stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and
pipes distinguished. He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments were sometimes
blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing. I now know that my early concepts
about relationships were influenced strongly by the stranger.
Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked ... and NEVER
asked to leave. More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He
has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you were to walk
into my parents' den today you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone
to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures.
His name? We just call him TV.
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