The times they are a changing

I just adore Bob Dylan, his music and poetry is always on point. This could not be more true then with those words. Today, I actually took time out of my day to watch a Soap Opera that I haven't viewed in a long time,I did it to say farewell. See in these hard economic times, crazy political rhetoric and just ridiculousness of everyday world, we no longer seem to reach out to the same things as we did in the 60's, 70's or 80's. I do not mention the 90's because I believe collectively, we were high on our own bullshit, thinking life was just gravy. Some of us forgot what goes up, must come down; but I digress.

We had once been a society, that turned to fantasy to alleviate our troubles and get lost in the stories of Erica Kane, or going back even further the romance of Joe Martin and his wife Ruth, their son Tad the Cad, and his sister Jenny. This tribute goes out to Palmer Cortlandt, Angie and Jesse and to the Chandlers.  More importantly to the memory of those days when turning on the tube to see if JR would get over his rage, or if Erica would ever finally see that she is the reason why she is without true love and to just go with Jackson already! 

Life always felt a little better after the melodrama and visiting  the citizens of Pine valley for an hour. We cried at many weddings (most of them Erica's), saw the creation of families and frankly dysfunction at its best. We were shocked to the twists and turns, the greed and manipulation and deceit that lied in the hearts of many a character, yet to our astonishment always found they had some redeeming allure. This is why for forty one years we came back day after day, Monday through Friday, week after week, year after year, decade by decade.

For me Pine Valley and the cast of All My Children were walking talking mementos of my past.  I remember being at my babysitter's home when it was on, usually following Edge of Night, or when in high school and look to Liza, Tad, Jenny, Greg, Angie and Jesse. Always cheering for the "good" couple to overcome their obstacle. When I was getting divorced, I again stopped by the channel and let them take me away from my worries. For a time my MS forced me to a rehab to recover from a serious exacerbation, and what helped the time move between therapies and my constant pain was All My Children. 

So for me, like it is for millions of fans, today is a sad chapter in what we had assumed would always be there. I bid adieu to those characters past and present. Thank you to the writers, the actors and most of all to Ms Agnes Nixon. She thought of a town, a story, characters and brought them to life. On occasion in turn, brought us all to life, sharing a commonality, even if it was just for an hour.

Today's quote comes from the show's creator Agnes Nixon; after all who else right?:" The Great and the Least, The Rich and the Poor, The Weak and the Strong,
In Sickness and in Health, In Joy and Sorrow, In Tragedy and Triumph, You are ALL MY CHILDREN"

All My Children 1970-2011