I didn’t watch it much as a kid, to be honest. With that, I’ve probably seen more episodes of Sesame Street as an adult than as a child.
It all came about over fifty years ago (November 10, 1969). That is when all the television audiences around the United States were introduced to Sesame Street.
These days, they say it’s not just for kids, and I believe it to be true. They still teach you how to count and say the alphabet. I know a lot of adults that can use help with that. But. It also teaches a lot of worthwhile life lessons about getting along with one another. I know a lot of adults who need that lesson even more.
There is a lot about the show’s history that is interesting, though.
The name didn’t start out as Sesame Street. When they were first planning things out, the original title being discussed was 123 Avenue B. They had to scrap that idea because it was a real location in New York City. I kind of like the name. I wonder who really lives at 123 Avenue B.
I guess, as with life, so is with Sesame Street. I have favorite characters, and then there are the ones I don’t like so much.
I never cared too heartily for Oscar the Grouch. I think it is because I’ve been OCD my whole life. And Oscar is unkempt. And he lives in a garbage can. And even though I couldn’t smell him through TV, I imagined him being stinky. But here’s a thing. When the show first started, he was orange. Then, after season two, he turned green. They said it was because he went on vacation to the very damp Swamp Mushy Muddy and turned green overnight. This might also have something to do with why I never liked to go camping. You just never know what kind of a permanent mark it will leave on you.
One character I do like is Cookie Monster. That guy! He is just crazy for cookies. But Cookie Monster is not his real name. Before he started eating cookies, his name was Sid. I imagine his name is still Sid, but people have pinned that nickname on him.
Since we are talking about the characters, I was always indifferent about Big Bird. But I will give him this. Big Bird is big. He stands 8’2″ and, to make his body from head to toe? His parents needed approximately 4000 feathers.
Then there are Bert and Ernie. Everyone is always asking if they are gay. They are not. In fact, Bert says they aren’t even friends. He says Ernie is a pain in the neck.
Finally, I should tell you most Muppets only have four fingers. All of the main players only have four fingers, except for Sid, aka Cookie Monster. He has five. To grip cookies with, I’m sure.
And the others never use their fingers to count to ten, as that would be problematic.
So as we go about our days, we could take a lesson from Sesame Street:
Always be kind. And if you can’t be kind? Try counting to ten and be grateful, for the ten fingers most of us have.
And if none of that works? Go have a cookie.
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Goodness is about character – integrity, honesty, kindness, generosity, moral courage, and the like. More than anything else, it is about how we treat other people.
— Dennis Prager
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Kindness is more important than wisdom, and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom.
— Theodore Isaac Rubin
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No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.
— Aesop
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The Muppet Truth. Count to four.
