I still appreciate Nietzsche’s writings, including his prophetic foresight that a moral system severed from its theistic roots couldn’t last, but I also appreciate my mother’s sagacity in introducing me to the world of children’s classics, which provided wisdom and a wholesome break from this often bleak world.
. . ."To my surprise, my mom was perturbed by my most recent intellectual hobby horse. She wasn’t impressed with my assurances that a good Christian could still benefit from Nietzsche’s writings. After all, this was the philosopher who infamously announced, “God is dead and we have killed him.” Although this proclamation was a lament over the West’s departure from its time-honored moral system and not a battle cry, Nietzsche still proposed finding meaning in life without Christ and my dear mother had difficulty getting over that.
"It was at this point that she made up her mind that I needed some intervention. My birthday was only a couple of months after the semester ended and she presented me with the entire box set of The Little House on the Prairie series.
"Knowing full well what she was up to, I smiled, graciously accepted the gift, and went back to reading Crime and Punishment or whatever other dark and depressing literature I was into at the time. I was a scholar. I only read deep, thought-provoking stuff. While I appreciated my mother’s intentions, I only had so much time, and reading Little House books was not on the agenda." . . .
Children’s Literature, Like Little House, Can Be a Welcome Reprieve
"Sometime later, while going through a difficult period in my life, I found the box and cracked open one of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House novellas. I was hooked and read every single one. With its gently colored illustrations, simple prose, and wholesome values, I found the series the very nourishment my spirit needed. My mom was right. One cannot subsist on hardcore philosophy alone.
"So many lessons abounded in those books. The beautiful relationship between Ma and Pa Ingalls was a stellar example of sacrifice and mutual appreciation. Ma lived her stoic philosophy in times of hardship with such inspiring wisdom and perseverance, stating, “This earthly life is a battle…If it isn’t one thing to contend with, it’s another. It always has been so, and it always will be. The sooner you make up your mind to that, the better off you are, and more thankful for your pleasures.”
"Similarly, I was deeply moved by the Ingalls family’s abundant gratitude for the simple things in life. Focusing on the hard but simple tasks of planting food, doing chores, and supporting a family is a breath of fresh air in today’s world that makes life so extra, so complicated." . . .
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