There are several reasons why I blog about two wildly different subjects: wonderful things and making a difference. First and foremost, these things are both very much a part of who I am. I have always been what one friend described as “an evangelist” for things I love. But making a difference is also important to me. I believe that my purpose on earth is not to live just for myself. I’m here — we’re all here — to embody God’s love for the world.
But I also write about these subjects because I believe both are important for a balanced life. If you spend all of your time consuming culture, no matter how wonderful it is, and no time reaching out to others, you’ve wasted your life. But if you are a very earnest person who is always driven to make a difference and who can never simply relax and have fun, you are in danger of burning out or becoming self-righteous. We need to work hard to make the world a better place, and we need time to rest and play.
This post was born from that need to rest. The world seems darker lately, and it can become easy to be overwhelmed by all of the bad news. It is important to be informed. It is important to stand up for what’s right and to work toward change. But we also need to take care of ourselves. Some of that self-care involves eating right and getting exercise and spending time with loved ones. But sometimes we just need to escape.
I was reflecting on this last week, and I asked my friends on Facebook to let me know what they watched or read when they needed comfort. I hadn’t been thinking about a blog post when I asked, but as the answers came pouring in, I knew I had to share them on the blog. This is my first post that will include references to things I have not sampled at all, but I can assure readers that one or more people told me that they found comfort in these.
Light nonfiction TV
More than one person has told me that they find the old Bob Ross painting shows relaxing, but his are not the only nonfiction TV shows you can turn to. Consider The Great British Baking Show or The Great British Bake Off (the name had to be changed for American audiences), Antiques Roadshow, even car shows (one friend watches Top Gear and The Grand Tour). You might also consider watching some of Norway’s “slow TV” shows, though I wouldn’t want to watch an entire episode in one sitting. The important thing is that you choose something light — shows that are depressing or that raise your blood pressure are out.
- Sources for Bob Ross shows included PBS, Netflix, and YouTube.
- The Great British Baking Show is not currently on the air, but public television supporters can stream it online, or you can purchase it on Amazon.
- You can watch Antiques Roadshow on public television, or it can be purchased on Amazon.
- You can watch Top Gear on BBC America or Netflix, or you can purchase it from YouTube, the BBC Store, iTunes, or Amazon.
- The Grand Tour is available on Amazon.
- Eight different slow TV shows are available on Netflix, including “Train Ride Bergen to Oslo,” “National Knitting Night,” “Salmon Fishing,” and “National Firewood Night.” “National Firewood Morning” is only two hours and five minutes long, but the remaining episodes range from just under four hours to more than 11 hours.
Sitcoms and funny movies
Many people brought up sitcoms and funny movies when they talked about what they watched for comfort. The sitcoms included older shows, like Cheers (that one was mentioned more than once), and current series, like The Big Bang Theory. Among the movies mentioned, Fried Green Tomatoes, which has both comic and tragic moments, came up twice. One person mentioned Jackie Chan movies, and another brought up The Full Monty. The key is turning to things that make you laugh and that, as one friend mentioned, are worth multiple viewings.
Old favorites
Another theme among the responses from my friends was finding comfort in favorite books and movies. In some ways, the category above overlaps with this category, since in many cases my friends were returning to shows that had made them laugh before. When we feel uncertain about the future, it makes sense that we seek out things that have given us pleasure in the past. I’ve done that with the original Star Trek (one of my friends also mentioned that series), as well as with The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings (the books, not the movies, though Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings is stunning). One of my friends did mention all of Jackson’s Tolkien movies. People told me that they found comfort in Andy Griffith, The Green Mile, Return to Me, the Twilight series, Casablanca, Dirty Dancing, and Maeve Binchy’s books. One person mentioned The Chronicles of Narnia, a couple mentioned L.M. Montgomery, and someone else noted that any favorite book from childhood was comforting. Like sitcoms and funny movies, this is a very personal category. Whatever feels “comfortable” to you, like a pair of jeans worn to softness, is worth turning to in difficult times.
Jane Austen
Jane Austen came up often enough that I decided she needed her own category. My friends frequently turn to her books and to movies about her books for a comforting escape. The 1994 version of Pride and Prejudice (you know, the one with Colin Firth) came up more than once, and some of my friends also love the 1995 version of Persuasion with Amanda Root. But overall, the feeling seemed to be “anything Austen.”
Relaxing games
When my daughter was going through a difficult time at the beginning of high school, she ran across Ferry Halim’s collection of games at Orisinal. The games tend to be cute and positive; her favorite, Casanova, involves kissing giraffes. She frequently turned to these games when she was feeling anxious, and while she doesn’t play them much now, she still loves them. I’m not much of a game player, but the game Constellations, in which you use jellyfish to catch stars, brought a smile to my face. The games require Adobe Flash to play.
This week, let’s all — myself included — make a commitment to limit our exposure to the news. Consider restricting both the number of times per day that you tune into some sort of news source as well as the amount of time you spend consuming news. Take time to think of how you can respond to what bothers you; take time to take care of yourself; and make sure you take a little time this week for some sort of escapist comfort. We’re human beings with human limitations, and we need to honor those limitations by allowing ourselves time to relax.