(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Debating Delusions with Dad [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-06-16 Debating Delusions with Dad Little House on the Prairie My critical thinking journey began as a young girl watching Little House on the Prairie. Everyone I knew read the books, as did I, and really loved the t.v. show. I could see myself as little Laura on the American frontier, wearing a gingham dress and sitting in a one room schoolhouse. Then it began. “That guy’s wearing eyeliner,” Dad remarked, referring the Pa Ingalls. “No! They didn’t have eyeliner on the prairie!” “Your Mom wears eyeliner. Let’s see what she thinks. Is he wearing eyeliner?” “Yes,” said my Mother simply. “No! It can’t be! There’s no eyeliner back then. And he’s a man and men don’t wear eyeliner.” It was the ‘70s. “Look close at his eyes. There’s a black line around them. Look at your eyes. Do you see a black line?” I ran to the bathroom to look in the mirror, but I knew what the answer would be. “Dad! You’re ruining it!” Years later I realized later it was the illusion that was being ruined, and the critical thinking that was being awakened. “And he is wearing hair spray.” “THERE WAS NO HAIR SPRAY ON THE PRAIRIE!” I was in shock. “See all those trees moving in the background. It’s windy. His hair isn’t moving.” I stared and stared at the screen for multiple episodes, looking for moving hair. And was disappointed. The Rockford Files We raced home every day after school to watch The Rockford Files. It was my Dad’s favorite show. It’s funny how a child sees things so differently. In our eyes, living in a trailer on the beach with a cool car that you wrecked every week was the coolest thing ever. “He’s a loser.” “Dad! You love that show!” “Yup. But the guy’s still a loser. He lives in a trailer on a beach in California because it is free to park it there.” “So he can’t afford anything else!” I protested. “But he can afford a sports car that he crashes every week. He is spending all his money repairing that car. Plus the car is expensive. He could drive something else, be careful, and he could live in an apartment.” “Not EVERY week,” I resisted on the only point I thought I could win. “OK, let’s watch and find out.” He was right, of course. That car was in accidents all the time. The Christmas Tree My fourth grade math teacher created an after-school club about Christianity. It was really popular, and one day there was an event that parents could attend. I will never forget my mother’s scowling. Later, at home, my mother told me that I couldn’t keep going because the teacher was not telling the truth. “What?!?” My father explained. “Christine, the Christmas tree is part of a German holiday tradition that started a few hundred years ago. We don’t have Christmas trees because Jesus was hung on a cross. Jesus lived in a desert. They didn’t have lots of trees there. That’s how I know that having a Christmas tree wasn’t part early Christian celebrations. You’re teacher is wrong.” You know how when you are a kid and you get some idea stuck in your head? That’s what happened here. I just couldn’t believe the story wasn’t true. It just made too much sense to my young mind. For months, Dad brought home news clippings about the origins of the Christmas tree. (Before the Internet, if you couldn’t guess.) Eventually I had to admit my teacher was wrong, but it took a while. Today Today is Fathers Day, and I wanted to make the space to thank my Dad and what he did for me. He taught me that teachers are not always right, that you can’t just trust what you see on t.v. and to trust my own observations. Thanks, Dad. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/6/16/2246994/-Debating-Delusions-with-Dad?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/