People and Things We Don't Want to Lose

A while back Garrison Keillor suffered a slight stroke. We have listened to his radio show "A Prairie Home Companion" broadcast from St. Paul, Minnesota, for several years, off and on. I think the best years might have been the ones when we listened to them. The show is set in Lake Wobegone, Minnesota...a fictional place, but magical in the telling about the inhabitants. If you saw the movie it was true to the radio show, but the radio show is better. We used to listen while I was cooking dinner for us on Saturday evening. Garrison had a new story about what had happened in Lake Wobegone during the past week. They had performers who sang old songs and told stories, too.

There aren't many of us left who understand the joy of listening to the radio while stories are spun out. When I was a little girl I'd listen to some soap operas while my grandmother sewed on her treadle sewing machine. To make it even a little more difficult for her I'd be on the floor "helping" with the treadle. As I grew older I found "The Shadow", my favorite of all time. But in between there was "Amos and Andy", "Fibber McGee and Molly". But as I said "The Shadow" was my favorite and I really believed that Lamont Cranston "knew what evil lurks in the hearts of men"...and that he would do something about it. He was on the side of all that was right and good.

I guess that set me up for "The Prairie Home Companion", because it is based on the good folks who live in Lake Wobegone. There is the Lutheran Pastor Ingqvist and the Catholic Church, Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow, and the Norwegian bachelor farmers and all the neighbors. It is a rich and wonderful auditory experience to not listen to anything but the radio for a while. The stories are so real sounding the little town sort of becomes real to you. A long time ago when we only had radio for evening entertainment we would sit in front of the console radio and listen raptly to whichever show was on. We faced the radio, too. There was no tv at that time. The people who live in Lake Wobegone have the same issues to deal with as we all do, GK just gives them a little humor as he tells their story.

I was very upset when I heard he had suffered a mild stroke and have been checking the news about his condition frequently. He says it wasn't that much of a big deal. He has been resting a bit after that happened. I know I would have to just lay down for a while, pretty long while if I have ever have a small stroke. Also, I've told my husband that if I ever do, to let me lay there for a little while and not to pull the plug too quickly. My sister and I have a pact, too. We will check each other for signs of life before we allow anyone to pull the plug on us. We don't trust our husbands all that much on the life and death thing. Once after I came out of surgery my husband and my aunt came back to intensive care to check on me. They went to someone else's bed. They talked about how bad "I" looked and Jeeze who knew if "I" might make it or not. The nurse finally steered them to where I was...but I still haven't forgotten that little mistake. My HUSBAND AND MY AUNT didn't even recognize me. That is just pitiful.

The show airs from 5pm to 7pm Saturdays on National Public Radio, and really is worth a visit, even if you just stay a while. The show is rebroadcast on Sunday at 11AM. I'll be checking to see what time the sun goes down, since Saturday evening is Halloween, too. Maybe, I'll have time to get it all in before the trick or treaters come out. The website says it is CST, but Saturday night is still CDT...so just check for an hour to see if it is on.

Oh yeah...just heard on the news about getting ready for the HUGE Rainstorm that is coming, but will be gone before Halloween, so the little ghosts and goblins won't get soaked or have to wear a raincoat over their cute costume. That would be dreadful for them.