Fred Rogers Speaks- Episode 387

Hey friends, this is Rick Lee James. I am so glad that you are listening to this podcast today, and I want to ask a favor of you. You know, this podcast is free and it's always going to be free, but we do have a lot of costs around here. Not only making podcasts, but making new music, paying for production costs, website fees, hosting fees, doing research, marketing materials, and so much more. And you can help us with that if you visit patreon.com/rickleejames. /patreon.com/RickLeeJames where, for as little as a dollar a month, or even a one-time donation, you can help me to continue doing the work that I'm doing. It would mean so much, and it takes such a very little amount of your time. So if you have a chance, go to patreon.com/RickLeeJames, and thank you in advance for any help that you can give.

Welcome to Voices in My Head, the official podcast of me, Rick Lee James. I'm a recording artist, a singer, a songwriter, an author, a worship leader, and an ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene. The Voices in My Head podcast is where I discuss music, movies, books, pop culture, theology, and more with friends, colleagues, and sometimes just by myself. Now make sure to Please let me know what you think of today's episode by leaving me a review on iTunes or by tweeting at me @RickLeeJames on Twitter. And please join my mailing list at RickLeeJames.com where you can receive an email every time a new episode is released. And by the way, in case you're interested in a daily dose of kindness and encouragement beyond this podcast, I also run the Twitter account @MrRogersSay. Where I post daily quotes from Fred Rogers, one of the voices in my head. Well, I guess that's it for the intro, so sit back, relax, and listen to the latest episode of Voices in My Head.

Hey friends, I hope you're doing well, and I hope the sound quality is All right, and what you're hearing right now, I'm actually on a short walk tonight, and I wanted to tell you this is going to be a little bit different episode. I'm going to be sharing with you an episode of one of my latest podcasts of my other show, Welcome to the Neighborhood, Mr. Rogers Tribute Podcast. The reason I'm doing that It's not because I don't have guests lined up. As a matter of fact, this week I have 2 more shows that I'm recording, but I just didn't have a chance this week to do a new episode. And I did have a chance to do one on the Fred Rogers Podcast, but I did want to tell you quickly what has happened with this past week, why I wasn't able to get a new episode produced of this show. Show, about a week ago my parents' place burned down, which was really just a mess. They were not home, thank God, they were spared. But I had to spend a lot of time just the day after trying to go through the, the remains of their place, and it was quite an ordeal on the whole family, really, not just me. By the way, I hope you can still hear me. There's a lot of traffic coming up on this walk. And then it just seemed like since then the week has gotten crazier and crazier. We had a problem this past weekend. I actually took a Sunday off, which was the first Sunday I took off leading worship in, I don't know, years. I can't remember one of the last times because if I don't work on Sunday, I don't get paid. And whether that be at my church or doing concerts and so So I just decided I'm taking a week off. I needed it. Started out having a good day, and then at my house on Sunday, we started having the worst problem. We hadn't been able to use the toilets or the showers for like 3 days now, starting Sunday, my one day off in years, and didn't get that fixed till today. We literally had, uh, well, that was just gross, um, things coming up through the basement anytime we use the shower, and, uh, sewage line coming in the house. It's just been gross. I had migraines. Online school today— during online school, we lost all power for my son. Had to literally get him on school through my phone, which I'm recording this on right now. It's just been nuts, and it may not sound like very much, but man, in this last week I have had about all I can take, and I'm in the middle of a migraine as we speak, as I walk to my church to lead music practice tonight. And there's several things that we're praying about in my family right now, so I'm just being real open and transparent, letting you know what's going on and why I wanted to share this particular episode that I'm about to share with you of Welcome to the Neighborhood and Mr. Roger's Tribute Podcast. It's really because the episode I just put out, I needed. It's one where I let several audio clips play of Fred Rogers, who's, as you know, I'm sure if you listen to me very long or listen to my other show, he's a hero of mine. And he just has a way of speaking peace into our chaotic moments of life. I didn't even mention, you know, kind of the chaos going on in our country, you know, pandemic that we're in the middle of, a very tumultuous election season, and life is just difficult in a lot of ways right now. So I hope that what you will do with this episode is what I'm doing with it. I'm listening to it. I'm doing less talking, more listening. You'll hear the intro of the show, you'll hear the whole episode, and it'll close just like I do my other podcast, Welcome to the Neighborhood. I'm hoping that it will be an encouragement to you. Maybe you'll want to listen to some of those other back episodes on there as well. Um, it's something that I, that I need. I've listened to it about 4 times now, and I know it's a show I produce, but it's mostly Fred Rogers talking, and I'm sure the audio quality is terrible right here, right now. I'm on a very busy street. So I'm gonna stop talking and allow you to hear that episode of Welcome to the Neighborhood. Maybe you need it as much as I do. Thank you as always for listening to Voices in My Head. Again, I've got two more great episodes coming to you that I'm recording later this week with some wonderful guests, and I can't wait to share those with you. But until then, I offer this humble podcast to you. God bless, and thank you for listening to Voices in My Head.

Welcome to the Neighborhood, a Mr. Rogers tribute podcast. I'm your host, Rick Lee James, of rickleejames.com, and I run the Mr. Rogers Quotes Twitter account found @MrRogersSay. As we walk again into this podcast neighborhood, I want you to know that no matter where you are from, you are welcome here. I'm glad to be your neighbor. No matter who you are. Every daughter, every son, every tribe, every tongue. In the spirit of Fred Rogers and the life of welcome that he lived, welcome to this neighborhood. Well, today I'm going to be doing something I've wanted to do for a while. As you know, because you're listening to this episode and you've seen the episode title, This is a tribute podcast to Fred Rogers, and on some of the shows we have guests. On some of the shows we have my co-host David Dalt, and we have almost a documentary-style look at the life of Fred Rogers. But today I just wanted to maybe let Fred speak for himself. I wanted to just grab a few audio clips of Mr. Rogers talking to his television neighbor. He always would speak to his audience as though it was one person, a particular neighbor, because he wanted it to be very personal in that way. And I think it might do us some good to just maybe find some time, maybe a few moments of quiet in our car, or on a walk, maybe on a run, maybe just sitting in our room, And maybe it would do us some good just to hear some of the words of Fred Rogers being spoken not by me or anybody else, but just in his own voice. So, I hope that today will just be something that is nourishing for you, something that you find helpful, and something that can maybe bring some calm, some peace, and some wisdom into this present moment that we are living in. I know it's difficult. We are living in difficult days for sure, but I don't think we are living in hopeless days. And if we can do anything at all, maybe with this episode, maybe the tribute part of this episode is just that we could give a few moments to hear Fred in his own words and allow him to speak into our moment right now through times in the past when he spoke spoke. I think there's a lot of wisdom that he has to share that is still so relevant to us in our day and time. So I hope you enjoy this episode today. Here are some words by our dear neighbor Fred Rogers.

So many people have asked me, do you ever get mad? And of course I answer, well, yes, everyone gets mad sometimes. The important thing is what we do with the mad that we feel in life. A few weeks ago, on my way home from a particularly tough day at work, I stopped to see my two grandsons. Their mom and dad weren't there, but the boys were there with the babysitter in the backyard, squirting water with hoses. I could see that they were really having fun, but I felt I needed to to let them know that I didn't want to be squirted. So I told them so. And little by little, I could feel that the older boy, Alexander, was testing the limit until finally his hose was squirting very close to where I was standing. I said to him in my harshest voice, okay, that's it, Alexander, turn off the water, you've had it. He did as I told him, said he was sorry, and looked very sad. The more I thought about it, the sadder I got. I realized that Alexander had not squirted me, and that I had stepped into his and his brother's play with a lot of feelings left over from work. So when I got home, I just called Alexander on the phone. I told him I felt awful about my visit with him, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I was taking out my anger from work on him. I told him I was really sorry. Do you know how he answered me? He said, Oh, Bubba. He calls me Bubba. Oh, Bubba, everybody makes mistakes sometimes. I nearly cried. I was so touched by his naturally generous heart. And I realized that if I hadn't called him, I might not have ever received that wonderful gift of Alexander's sweet forgiveness.

Forgiveness.

What do you do when you're angry?

What do you do with the mad that you feel?

When you feel so mad you feel like biting, when the whole wide world seems oh so wrong and nothing you do seems very right, what do you do? Do you punch a bag? Do you pound some clay or some dough? Do you round up friends for a game of tag? Or see how fast you go. It's great to be able to stop when you've planned a thing that's wrong and be able to do something else instead and think, this song, I can stop when I want to, can stop when I wish, can stop Stop, stop, stop anytime. And what a good feeling to feel like this and know that the feeling is really mine. Know that there's something deep inside that helps us become what we can. For a girl can be someday a lady. And a boy can be someday a man. And you know that's true, don't you?

When I was very young, I had a dog that I loved very much. Her name was Mitzi. Mm-hmm. And she got to be old. And she died. And I was very sad when she died because she and I were good pals.

Mm-hmm.

And when she died, I cried. My grandmother heard me crying, I remember, and she came and she She just put her arm around me because she knew I was sad. She knew how much I loved that dog. And my dad said we'd have to bury Mitzi, and I didn't want to. I didn't want to bury her because I thought I'd just pretend that she was still alive. But my dad said that her body was dead and we'd have to bury her. So we did. I remember after my dog Mitzi died, my aunt and uncle gave me a toy dog. Like this, that I used to play with. I used to make it go like this, and then make it pop up again like that. Pretending. Even now I can still remember Mitsy's prickly fur and her curly tail. She had a tail that went around like that. Would you like to see a picture of her? I think I have one in the drawer here. There she is, my dog Mitzi. I really missed her when she died. Sometimes people get sad. And they really do feel bad. But the very same people who are sad sometimes are the very same people who are glad sometimes. It's funny, but it's true. It's the same Isn't it for me? Isn't it the same for you?

There are many ways to say I love you. There are many ways to say I care about you. Many ways, many ways. Many ways to say I love you. There's the 1-4-3 way to say I love you. There's the 1-4-3 way to say I care about you. 1-4-3, 1-4-3, 1-4-3. To say I love you. Cleaning up a room can say I love you. Hanging up a coat before you're asked to do it. Drawing special pictures for the holidays and making plays. You'll find many ways to say I love you.

You.

You'll find many ways to understand what love is. Many ways, many ways, many ways to say I love you.

You know, there's a lighthouse south of the Boston Harbor called Minot's Ledge Light.

As it flashes, it flashes 1 time, then 4 times, then 3 times.

So it's always flashing its light 1, 4, 3.

I love you.

1, 4, 3.

This is a kind of code that we've just found out about 1 is I, 4, L-O-V-E, 3, Y-O-U.

I love you.

A code!

Well, I think I'll take this home and give it to Betsy.

It's all yours.

It's my delivery to Betsy today. Delivery to you and a delivery to Betsy. Well, speedy delivery. See you around the neighborhood.

Thank you again.

143.

143, Mr. McBailey.

Thank you.

We've had lots of good visits today, haven't we?

What's that sound? The sound of an airplane. I can hear it, but I can't see it. Where do you suppose the plane may be going? If you live in a city, you may be able to hear a bus coming along the street or a car blowing its horn in the distance.

Meow, meow.

What does that sound like?

Meow.

A cat meowing?

Meow.

And what about that? That's a dog barking, isn't it? Some animals are awake at night, and so they sleep a lot in the daytime. When a fire engine passes and its siren makes a loud noise, that could be scary. If there are trees near where you live, you might be able to hear the sound of the wind in the trees. In the country, in some places in the city, you might even hear this sound: crickets. But after a while, As we start to fall asleep, none of the sounds are very clear. Not the buses, or the horns, or the wind, or the cats, or the dogs, or even the footsteps in the house. And at last, when we are asleep, we might dream our own dreams.

Our world hangs like a magnificent jewel in the vastness of space. Every one of us is a part of that jewel, a facet of that jewel, and in the perspective of infinity Our differences are infinitesimal. We are intimately related. May we never even pretend that we are not. Have you heard my favorite story that came from the Seattle Special Olympics? Well, for the 100-yard dash, there were 9 contestants, all of them so-called physically or mentally disabled. All 9 of them assembled at the starting line, and at the sound of the gun, they took off. But not long afterward, one little boy stumbled and fell and hurt his knee, and began to cry. The other 8 children heard him crying. They slowed down, turned around, and ran back to him. Every one of them ran back to him. One little girl with Down syndrome bent down and kissed the boy and said, "This'll make it 'Kapow!' The little boy got up, and he and the rest of the runners linked their arms together and joyfully walked to the finish line. They all finished the race at the same time, and when they did, everyone in that stadium stood up and clapped and whistled and cheered for a long, long time. People who were there are still telling the story with great delight.

And you know why?

Because deep down, we know that what matters in this life is more than winning for ourselves. What really matters is helping others win too, even if it means slowing down and changing our course now and then. Anyone who has ever been able to sustain a good work has had at least one person and often many who have believed in him or her. We just don't get to be competent human beings without a lot of different investments from others. I'd like to give you all an invisible gift, a gift of a silent minute to think about those who have helped you become who you are today. Some of them may be here right now. Some may be far away. Some, like my astronomy professor, may even be in heaven. But wherever they are, if they've loved you and encouraged you and wanted what was best in life for you. They're right inside yourself. And I feel that you deserve quiet time on this special occasion to devote some thought to them. So let's just take a minute in honor of those who have cared about us all along the way. Way, one silent minute. Whomever you've been thinking about, imagine how grateful they must be that during your silent times you remember how important they are to you. It's you I like. It's not the things you wear. It's not the way you do your hair. But it's you I like.

The way you are right now.

The way down deep inside you. Not the things It's the things that hide you, not your caps and gowns. They're just beside you. But it's you I like, every part of you, your skin, your eyes, your feelings, whether old or new. I hope that you remember, even when you're feeling blue, that it's you I like. It's you yourself. It's you. It's you I like. When I say it's you I like, I'm talking about that part of you that knows that life is far more than anything you can ever see or hear or touch. That deep part of you that allows you to stand for those things without which humankind cannot survive: love that conquers hate, peace that rises triumphant over war, and justice that proves Love is more powerful than greed.

Thank you for joining me here this week on Voices in My Head. I hope you'll visit me on my website at rickleejames.com where you can find out more about me, get my music on vinyl and CD, follow my blog, and even schedule me for a concert or a speaking engagement. Better yet, even a book signing in your neighborhood. You can find all that and more at rickleejames.com. Also, it would mean a great deal to me if you could write a review of this podcast on iTunes. The more positive reviews that we receive, the more visible this podcast will be online. And now for the benediction. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. God bless you, and thank you for listening to Voices in My Head.