Posted on by Belinda O

you’re my hero, Charlie Brown

In my life, Snoopy, Lucy, Charlie Brown, and the rest of the gang never, ever went away.

snoopy nbg
Give me anything Peanuts — a gift that’s sure to be appreciated!

I’ve literally been a fan my entire life. My mom tells me my favorite toy when I was six months old was a Lucy doll. That vain and loud-mouthed girl rarely failed to make me laugh, and still gets me through the blues today.

Throughout my growing up years, I frequently spent my precious few dollars on the latest Peanuts book. Early on I giggled at Lucy, sitting on Schroeder’s front steps, saying, “It’s amazing how stupid you can be when you’re in love.”

Today, I have a t-shirt with that very picture. More than once I’ve worn it while shopping at Walmart and some poor young checkout girl sighs and says, “that’s so true.” Some things will never change.

Hence the beauty of Charles Schulz’ wonderful characters. They are universal and timeless. So many of the comic strips aren’t laugh-out-loud funny, and yet, they are, because they hit at the heart of who we are, our dreams and vulnerabilities, our best and worst selves, all wrapped up in the innocence of a group of kids from a past era.

A friend of mine can’t bear to watch “A Charlie Brown Christmas” because of the rejection, but I love it for Linus’ simple reading from the Gospel of Luke and the children joining together in the end to celebrate Charlie Brown’s poor little tree.

Somehow Charlie Brown never was a truly sad character to me. He had Linus, Sally and Peppermint Patty, among others, and Snoopy needed him, not just for the food, but for the love.

I was wearing one of my favorite Peanuts’ t-shirts while shopping not long ago, and the store manager told me he’d been a fan all of his life, too. In fact, when he was a child, he watched the Charlie Brown Valentine’s Day special and felt so sorry for Charlie Brown, he sent him a valentine. In return, Charles Schulz sent him an original hand-drawn picture of Snoopy.

Wow. He still has it, and I told to keep it, it’s worth something. You couldn’t pay me enough for something like that, I’d treasure it all my days.

I treasure everything Peanuts I own, as small as my collection has become. I cherish that band of earnest characters plowing their way through the world and making it all work.

I’m glad I live in a world where the Peanuts gang just keeps hanging out.

And for those of you wondering about the new movie, here’s a review by a trusted fellow blogger & Peanuts fan:

The Peanuts Movie — Good Grief, You’re in 3-D Charlie Brown — A Review

 

24 Replies to “you’re my hero, Charlie Brown”

  3. Great minds think alike. I just put my review of the new movie on both my sites. I was raised on Peanuts and will be a fan for eternity! Love your passion for Peanuts!!!

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. I couldn’t agree more – Charlie Brown has always been a favorite – in fact -my husband and I use the pet name “Baboo” for one another. As in “my sweet Baboo” which I’m pretty sure is from the comic strip.
    Kalen

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. I’m quite sure that’s what Sally calls Linus… I just looked it up — Google “my sweet babboo Sally” and look under images. There’s some fun stuff, unfortunately for me it’s all copyrighted so I can’t post it!

      Liked by 1 person

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        1. Of course. I don’t expect everybody to read mine, even if I read theirs…we all read what resonates with us, and it doesn’t necessarily go both ways. I appreciate that you’ve visited my site, though, and I do hope you enjoy it!

          Liked by 1 person

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  7. Looking forward to “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and its anniversary special beforehand on Monday. Hope you are also. Have a good one Belinda…nice to have a Peanuts pen pal!

    Liked by 1 person

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      1. One additional thought. A local university professor just wrote a wonderful column about the meaning of “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” If anyone Googles “Mark Noon Charlie Brown” they should be able to find it as it was picked up nationally. Great read for any Peanuts fan.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

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