Preempted TV

For her it was just an ordinary day like all others as she came home from Homestead Primary School.

 But it was not.

As she sat on the couch and turned the television on, each channel featured the same special news report.

And so, in frustration over her preempted viewing options, the six year old little girl asked her mother why this was so.

To which her mother gently said There was a very bad explosion today on the space shuttle. Everyone, including the astronauts and an elementary school teacher, died in the crash. It’s a terrible sad thing.

And so the little girl thought about it for a few sorrowful seconds and then earnestly replied I know it’s sad Mommy but what are little kids like me supposed to do?

Which leads to this: My discovering as I shuffled down the steps and turned on my television set this past Friday morning that Nelson Mandela was still dead.

A full 24 hours later and it was still the only reported news.

And while I accept that Mandela was a great leader and represented an exemplary life path, I must admit in all honesty that  I was over his death in less than 10 minutes.

In fact it was probably less than 2.

I really wanted to watch and hear about something else.

I really wanted to watch and hear about something that impacted me—like the weather.

And all I could think was Yes, Mandela’s death is sad, but what are 53 year old white suburban housewives like me supposed to do in the meantime?