When I read that Rue McClanahan died yesterday, it stirred something up in me.
Maybe some of you haven’t heard the news yet, and maybe some of you don’t know who she was.
She was the actress who played Blanche on the television series “The Golden Girls.” It aired for 7 years from 1985 until 1992. It was a comedy show about 4 “seasoned” women who live together in Miami Beach, Florida.
Here’s the excerpt I read that got me thinking about a few ideas I’d like to share with you.
To Ms. McClanahan, “The Golden Girls” was special for allowing its women to be funny and many-sided, not stock figures, recognizing “that when people mature, they add layers,” as she told The New York Times in 1985. “They don’t turn into other creatures,” she added. “The truth is, we all still have our child, our adolescent and our young woman living in us.”
The show put smart funny lines in the mouths of well-seasoned women.
I went back in my memory to the time when I first watched “The Golden Girls.”
In the mid to late 80’s I was taking care of my aunt, who was undergoing cancer treatment. She would take breaks from work, often months at a time.
During these times we would watch “The Golden Girls.” It was funny, it was smart, and it felt like us!
Only one thing didn’t fit.
My aunt was surely a “golden girl” but I was in my mid 30’s wondering if I’d ever get to be a “golden girl”.
Would I age to be anything like Blanche, Dorothy, Rose or Sophia? Only time would tell.
I thought about that quote all day yesterday.
I just loved the part about adding layers and how we still have all those layers living in us.
Of course we do, though sometimes we forget that we can call upon that experience and wisdom whenever we need to.
Now I’m well-seasoned and catch glimpses of each of those golden girls inside me.
I’ll admit to being sexy and sassy like Blanche if you will.
I’ll admit to being dominant and bossy like Dorothy if you will.
And ditsy and naive like Rose, I’m still inclined to give people the benefit of the doubt.
Sophia used to talk to her dead husband, Sal. Sadly, I’m at the point of talking to my deceased relatives too, but I digress!
Heck, I’ll even admit to loving ice cream as much as the golden girls did.
This past year a friend and I caught a few rerun episodes of the show. Sure the clothes may have been dated, and those hairstyles were amazing, but you know what never goes out of style?
Well-seasoned women who are willing to share laughter, life and words of wisdom with us.
NOW we who watched “The Golden Girls” ARE those well-seasoned women. So let’s keep learning together, adding layers, and laughing together.
Thanks Rue, for fond memories and for not taking yourself too seriously!
shelli
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