Radio Child

Like poached eggs and lemon meringue pie, radio was a comfort moment in my growing up. My favorite piece of furniture was an upright radio that took up one corner of the living room.  Mornings started with the New Orleans station’s program Dawn Busters, a mixture of news, weather, and a Cajun commentary by Pinky Vidacovich.  Like repeated ads, his song is still in my mind.” I’m de Charles Boyer of Kop-Kop since ma wife went to da show.  She make me kiss her big fat hand what made de crab Gumbo.” In the 40’s, school really had an hour off for lunch.  Daddy brought me home and at 12:30 we would listen to Ma Perkins before returning.  I came in from bike riding one Sunday afternoon and sat quietly to hear President Roosevelt tell about Pearl Harbor being bombed. The treat of being sick was having the radio moved to my bedside for entertainment.

We maybe had three TV’s in 56 years of marriage.  My father-in -law gave us a small black and white in 1967 because he thought our children were deprived.  The first program watched was “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”  Children and I carpooled to school together when all were a certain age.  We came home, picked up a snack, and piled on a king sized bed to watch “Mash”, maybe not the best choice, yet a good zone out time.  Yes, we saw the moon landing.  When I learned I could catch what I wanted on my computer, the box mostly sat there.  Still important though is radio on Sirius where I catch all in life I’ve missed.

That said, I didn’t watch the Emmy Awards.  I was half-listening to the summary on faithful radio as I drove to the Y.  I recognized what GoT meant though I thought Fleabag referred to a sleazy person.  Then I heard the story from Alex Borstein about her grandmother as a Holocaust survivor. No visual, only words to resonate. “My grandmother was in line to be shot into a pit. She said,’What happens if I step out of line.’ The guard replied,’I don’t have the heart to shoot you, but someone will.’ She stepped out of line.” Borstein wanted the story to be a rally cry for strength of women.  In my mind it will be a reminder that moments come when we don’t need to rush like lemmings off the cliff, but step aside and create our own path, for our good and those who come after us.

Be strong and courageous. Joshua 1:9

Choose for yourselves this day. Joshua 24:15