Monday, April 22, 2013

R is for Rogers (Fred Rogers)

I loved watching Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood when I was little. My favorite bits were when Mr. Rogers would go to a factory or outside the neighborhood and show how things were made or how things were done. I wasn't a huge fan of the puppets in the Kingdom--their faces kind of creeped me out, but I always felt soothed by Mr. Rogers' gentle demeanor and calmness.

A few years ago after his death, many things were posted about Fred Rogers and his personality. And as kind and wonderful as he was on his show, it seems that he was even better than that in person. There are countless stories of his kindness and patience with people and his genuine curiosity about everyone he met. One of my favorite stories is of him going to a dinner party and being picked up by a limo service. As was typical for Fred Rogers, he got to know the driver, asking about him and his life. After Mr. Rogers found out that the driver was going to wait outside for two hours, Mr. Rogers brought the driver into the dinner party with him.

I aspire to be like Fred Rogers. To be as tolerant of others as he was. To be as curious about everyone I meet just as he was. To be patient and kind to everyone. I am brought to tears thinking about his gentle soul and his genuine love for his fellow man. And I hope to someday be the person Mr. Rogers thought I could be.


2 comments:

  1. Aww, this was beautiful. I never realized Fred Rogers was such a role model in real life. There's actually a show on now that is modeled after Mr. Roger's Neighbourhood, it's called Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. The theme song is the same and always makes me think of good ol' Fred. :)

    Have fun with a-z.

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  2. There is a really great article out there about Mr. Rogers that always brings tears to my eyes. He was truly a wonderful man. http://mentalfloss.com/article/16416/15-reasons-mister-rogers-was-best-neighbor-ever

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