How Many Hallmark Movies Can You Watch?

People have different television viewing preferences. Some like emotional relationship stories that draw you in. Some like vintage movies, like me. I’m a fan of WWII military/spy movies (Who cannot like the movie “The Great Escape” with Steve McQueen?).

I was just a young child during the era, and I still remember practicing blackouts because my father was involved with civil defense. The rules were straightforward: No lights, had to use dark window shades, or no lighting up a cigarette. One little flicker of light regardless of source would be enough of a clue to an enemy bomber. Nothing ever happened in Pennsylvania where I had been living at the time. Yet, it affected my TV viewing habits. I enjoy the battles of good and evil playing out in a story.

The challenge comes when it’s time for family TV viewing. My wife’s choices are consistent … Hallmark, news, DIY and Netflix. (I mean, how many Hallmark movies can one see?)

My choice is news, Turner Classic Movies and Netflix. Just saw the Jean Arthur movie “The More the Merrier” a comedy about housing shortages during war-time Washington. The actor Charles Coburn won an Oscar for his portrayal of a millionaire curmudgeon in this comedy.

Most nights, one or the other must compromise. A few days ago, my wife convinced me to watch Heidi on Netflix. Ugh! Even worse, the movie was all in German.

Sprechen Sie Deutsch? Not even close. It’s just part of the things we do to please our spouses! The other evening, I watched “Signed, Sealed and Delivered” on Hallmark. Truth be told, I liked the movie series!

Robert Parlante

July 2018

The Ring of Kerry

One of the most memorable vacation side-trips I’ve taken was a bus ride beginning at Killarney and proceeding around the Ring of Kerry located in Ireland. The trek was not for the faint of heart as there is just barely enough room on portions of the narrow roadway for the bus. As the narrow roads make it difficult for tour buses to pass, all buses must run in a counter-clockwise direction. But it looked like not everyone follows the rules.

The day I took the trip we encountered vehicles approaching the tour bus from the opposite direction. A bus and a car cannot safely pass unless one of them drives in reverse until the driver finds a tight parking spot carved out of the mountain side. There are rules regarding the protocol for who must park and who has the right-ot-way.

My heart still races when I think about my encounter. It felt like one vehicle was a fraction of an inch from the other. If you looked out the window toward the ocean side, your heart leaped at the sheer drop to craggy rocks below.

If there are times one should pray for protection, this one is high on my list. I thought of Matthews 7:13,14.

^“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Life is full of choices. A person’s first inclination is to pick the way that appears easier, safer and having leeway … but it is not always a good choice. No matter how frightening the Ring of Kerry might have been, at the completion it felt exhilarating!

Robert Parlante
July 18, 2018