The Today Show ... With A Little Navel-Gaving.

Alert! Alert! I've just discovered that some members of the Little House on the Prairie cast will be featured on the Today Show tomorrow morning.

I have *ahem* already set my alarm to make sure that I'm awake on the day that is generally my catch-up-on-elusive-sleep day. I mean, it's Little House! Sure, it was a feel-good 70's adaptation of the series of books, but I'm not going to claim that it had no influence on me and my Little House obsession, because, well ... it did. Big time. I watched that series with alarming fidelity, even when presented with such unpalatable (and out-of-the-blue) topics as mime rapes and blind school fires.

The thing is, after having read a number of biographies of Laura Ingalls Wilder, I think she'd be mortified. About the television series, mostly - I mean, come on ... she'd be aflame in shame at the misrepresentations! But, most importantly, I think her basic sense of privacy and decency would be violated by her fans' scrutiny into her personal life. Granted, Laura was kind and responsive to her readers and fans, and she did appreciate them, but I see her as a woman with an incredible sense of dignity. She shared her life's experience in her books to some degree, but we've sort of of run with it and added all sorts of sentimental filigrees . The long-running TV series completely convoluted her relationship with Almanzo, never mind the major changes (both physical and psychological) to her family.

I'd always related to Laura throughout my childhood, and I'd thought I would as an adult. To be honest, though, I hardly think she'd approve of me. Sure, I'm independent. I value education, and I'm an avid reader and researcher. I've got a strong work ethic, and I pride myself on my ability to be pretty self-sufficient, to do without when needs must, to be able to survive and save on a minimal budget. Still, though .. I'm weak, whiny, self-centered. I frequently feel sorry for myself. I'm vain, on occasion. And I willingly share my thoughts and experiences, both good and bad, on this very blog and others. I can't imagine she'd respect that.

Recently, I've read Becoming Laura Ingalls Wilder. Surprisingly, I found the family dynamic familiar; however, I realized (with a shock!) that it's a pretty spot-on analysis of the relationship that I shared with my now-deceased mother. I was amazed to find that I related, to an unnerving degree, to Rose. Previously, I hadn't felt either way about Rose Wilder Lane, but I could completely subscribe to her relations with her strong, self-confident mother - her overwhelming love for the woman (both as a person and as a parent), her frustration at their differences and the inevitable comparisons, shame concerning her repeated bouts with severe depression, personal disappointment about her diffused sense of direction. I really hadn't expected my paradigm to shift in such a way, but it has.

I'd always wished that I could have met Laura. Now I'm wishing that I could've met Rose, too.

*cue Little House theme music* Anyway, though, I'll be checking out the Today Show tomorrow morning. If nothing else, Alison Arngrim's a gal I really respect for a thousand reasons, and - dammit - I've got a personal attachment to Nels and Harriet! And some friends (you know who you are, ladies) might just get into a mud-wrestling match over Dean Butler (Almanzo Wilder on the show). Really ... who could pass that up?