Heart Conversations While Watching “Heartland”

Our family loves to watch the CBC TV series "Heartland" together.  When Season 6 appeared on Netflix, screams of excitement flooded through the house.  Finally, new episodes had arrived.  We've tried to pace ourselves to savor the series this time.  Regardless, we've made it to episode 12 of the season in short time, and a conversation emerged relating to the escalating behavior of one of the new characters.

So, I've got to give you a little context so you can fully appreciate the beauty of observations of character.

"Heartland" is about a family living on a ranch in Canada.  Amy, the main character, loves horses and every episode has her working with either a troubled horse or a troubled owner.  With each new season, new characters have entered the lives of the main family and caused joy or trouble, mostly the latter.  Georgie is the newest edition to the "Heartland" series.  Found sneaking food from Amy's kitchen, this runaway foster kid befriends a runaway horse, and together they find themselves a permanent part of the family.

Georgie's horse is a natural jumper, so Georgie asks Amy to teach her to jump. Since Amy was a prize-winning jumper, she starts where she should, with the grammar of jumping.  Unfortunately time and time again, Georgie gets frustrated with the "boring stuff" and stomps off in an angry huff.

Meanwhile, Lou, Amy's older sister, had been confiding about her marital problems to the long-time family friend and ranch hand, Caleb.  When Lou's husband returns home from a trip, Caleb gets in a quick fight with him and punches him (oh, TV drama).

Begin Conversation:

Littlest Girlie: I don't like Georgie.

Me:  Why not?

Littlest Girlie: She's not even listening to Amy.

Me:  How would you describe how she's acting?

Middle Girlie:  Foolish (She's been reading Proverbs in her Quiet Times)

Me:  Why would you say she's foolish?

Middle Girlie:  Because she won't take instruction.  If she would just give it time, she could actually learn something.

Me:  How is Georgie like Caleb? (I love the topic of comparison...it is so handy for great conversations)

Oldest son: They both acted in anger.

Me:  How is Caleb different than Georgie?

Oldest son:  He's much older.  He should know better.

It was a quick conversation.  I capitalized on a simple observation from my youngest.  She didn't even know what she was seeing, but simply that she didn't like how the character was behaving.  By posing a few questions, my whole family had the opportunity to discuss the foolishness of the actions in the show, and they have the opportunity to avoid the folly exhibited in their own lives.