A month before the madness of COVID-19 descended upon us, I watched Marielle Heller’s brilliant film, “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,” starring Tom Hanks as Fred Rogers, the beloved children’s’ television host of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. The film unearths the long-forgotten virtues of patience, listening, kindness, and the embrace of one’s feelings. I found the film transformational. Yes, even then, when many of us, myself included, enjoyed a relative confidence in the world’s security. Now, it seems, COVID-19 has ripped our world apart in ways that we had once refused to entirely admit were possible. From then till now, I have spent a considerable amount of time reflecting on Fred Rogers’ life and his teachings. In view of the current turmoil confronting us all, I think it’s time to lean more fully into Mister Rogers’ message.
