The Comforting Words of Mister Rogers

By Kaitlyn Affuso

Mister Rogers is one of many shows that children engage in, making the lessons taught and the details in the programming crucial. There will always be the worry that a certain character from a cartoon has an impact on a conflicting factor in today’s society. However, Mr. Rogers is one that is hard to really find a flaw in.

To remind readers of Fred Rogers’ great advice pertaining to love, friendship and life itself, five quotes from Rogers have been chosen and posted below.

 

1. “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”

2. “Did you ever hear loud, scary sounds on television? Well some television programs are loud and scary, with people shooting and hitting other people. You know, you can do something about that. When you see scary television, you can turn it off. And when you do turn it off, that will show that you’re the strongest of them all. It takes a very strong person to be able to turn off scary TV.”

3. “Part of the problem with the word 'disabilities' is that it immediately suggests an inability to see or hear or walk or do other things that many of us take for granted. But what of people who can't feel? Or talk about their feelings? Or manage their feelings in constructive ways? What of people who aren't able to form close and strong relationships? And people who cannot find fulfillment in their lives, or those who have lost hope, who live in disappointment and bitterness and find in life no joy, no love? These, it seems to me, are the real disabilities.” 

4. “If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.” 

5. “Often when you think you're at the end of something, you're at the beginning of something else.”