It’s has been fifteen plus years since I have watched the Anne of Green Gables movie series. It has always been my favorite as a little girl. I have been wanting to watch it with my kids for a while now. I had just talked to my husband about wanting to watch them and shortly after, while exploring a quaint little town up north of us, we stopped by a thrift shop and what do you know they had the movies there in VHS!
I sent my husband a photo and told him how I probably wouldn’t even remember how to use a VHS player if we had one. Lol
I left the tapes sitting on the shelf but when I got home I had a wonderful surprise in store! My dear, sweet husband bought me the series online! (Apparently they are not easy to come by and GazeboTV was one of the only places you could stream them). That night we began watching, the kids at first were hesitant but ended up enjoying it and asking to continue it the next day. The movies are long so we are breaking them up into episodes and slowly watching through them.
It got me reflecting on my childhood and how it seems like it was just yesterday that I was watching these movies with my family or cousins, imagining what my life would look like when I grew up. Now I am “grown up” and my life looks slightly different than my fantasies.
As I thought more and more about it I realized how much the series impacted me. In all my “dreams” of where I’d want to live and what kind of house I’d like to have, they all resemble Green Gables. The pastures, the modest home, the slower pace of life. It all sort of stuck with me through the years. I never realized why but I think it may be a big reason why I like old historical homes and all things part of the past.
For example, vintage suitcases are so charming and hold so much history. I got a few recently for a project but my family is not as intrigued as I am about them so I may just have to sell them off again. (Unless there is a legit way to get the old smell out of them, or else they are going unfortunately. Please let me know if you have any ideas! :)
I love old chairs and desks too lol oh and I can’t forget about my obsession with baskets!
This little high chair is at least eighty years old but the older gentleman I bought it from said it could have been way over that.
I love my little hutch!
When I was a little girl I used to have a collection of straw hats that my mother and I thrifted and hung on the wall in my room. I loved it!
I feel like Anne’s story displays well what matters most in life. (I’m mostly referring to the first two movies, when she was a little girl.) All she wanted was to be loved and to love. After she got adopted she was so content with her life, everything was a joy and she was always so fascinated by the beauty and nature all around. She eventually did venture out and try new places and met new people but at the end of the day, her heart was always drawn home, to the places and family she loved.
Dianas aunt in the movie had a conversation with Anne reflecting on her life and how she ended up being “an old maid”. She said that all she wanted in life was to be rich but by the time she acquired all her riches, it was too late and she had no one to enjoy it all with.
Marilla the one who took Anne in, also had her wise counsel. For example when Anne asked her if she has ever been in the pits of despair? She tells her that, being in the pits of despair is like turning your back on God… I’ve always felt that way and could never allow myself to stay there very long but the way she put it just makes sense.
Watching these movies with my oldest, has given us things to talk about. All the lessons we can learn from mistakes that people made, how much the times have changed and how different our world is now then how it used to be. What is Gods design for us ladies in life? How is it different from the world view that most have these days in our country? It’s been interesting for sure! I have my opinions but I remember being a teenager and feeling like I could do whatever it is I wanted to do with my life. So I’m trying not to speak my mind. Thankfully I allowed the Lord to lead me when I was a teen more than I dominated and he has given me a happy and fulfilled life. Now I’m teaching my kids to have that personal relationship with the Lord for themselves so they could be just as happy and satisfied in their own lives, no matter what the future may look like for them. I like watching oldies and letting them speak for themselves as well as using them as guidance for topics to discuss.
I don’t know if i’ll ever get my “Green Gables” on this side of heaven or not but one thing I have come to realize the last few days is how grateful I am for the life I have. It’s not the reality of my fantasies but it’s imperfectly perfect and I absolutely love it! I am happy to be content with where I live and what I have. I love the season of life our family is in right now, my kiddos are still little and at home with me. (My heart couldn’t be happier!) What a joy it is to have a toddler to keep us on our toes! I love his improper pronunciation of words, mixing both English and Russian all together. His honesty is something to learn from for all of us around here (I’ll even be sharing snippets of his wisdom with you all in one of the up coming entries. So stay tuned!) Oh and having a teenager is a new level of fun that we are enjoying!
I’ll let you in on a little secret, you may have heard me talking about it here and there but Minimalism is what has changed my life and I can’t wait to share all about it with you. :)
Well, that’s it for now, thank you my kindred spirit friends for stopping by and reading and for all your support.
Blessings,
Natty