The Muppets Deal with War

I learned a lot from "Sesame Street". I learned my alphabet and numbers by watching and was already a step ahead of a lot of other kids by the time I was in pre-school. I guess the fact that they combined music and silliness to help convey their lessons made it easier to retain what they were trying to teach us. To this day I can still remember some of the sketches that the Muppets and their human co-stars put together. But now, they are stepping up and helping kids learn about more than just the things they need to do well in school. They are helping kids deal with loss.

Given that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been raging for nearly a decade now, it's not necessary to say that some kids have unfortunately been left without a parent due to death in wartime. As such, the Pentagon, in cooperation with "Sesame Street" has worked to produce a special which will air on PBS stations nationwide tonight. Entitled "When Families Grieve" it's meant to help kids understand how to deal with the loss of a parent and to understand what it means to them and their families. Though I haven't seen any clips from the show as yet, I can imagine that it will teach the lesson in the way that only the Muppets and "Sesame Street" can.

It's sad to think that such lessons need to be taught to kids. Some might argue that it's necessary given that the war continues and more time will be needed before all our troops come home. Yet I think it's a good thing that such efforts are being made for kids to help them deal with these trials and tribulations. No matter how hard I try, I can't imagine the difficulty that some kids must be dealing with and how much hardship their surviving families must have to deal with after the loss of a loved one. To some it may seem a bit childish to have Muppets talking about such serious things but I've seen that for kids, sometimes that's the best way to get the message across. Not through an authority figure like a parent, but from someone childlike, like them.

Hopefully there will soon come a time when parents won't have to turn to the Muppets to discuss such topics because all our troops will be home to be with their families. One can only hope. In the meantime, I applaud the Muppets and the leaders at the Pentagon who agreed to this move in wanting to help take a serious message to kids and to help them realize that things will get better with time and love.