The Ingalls family and their life on the farm in Plum Creek near Walnut Grove, Minnesota stole the hearts of many. Viewers were eagerly waiting for each new episode and each new adventure. “Little House on the Prairie” attracted millions of fans and many can’t help but wonder what some of their favorite actors from the show are up to nowadays.
The mom of the family, Caroline Ingalls, or as the children called her, Ma, was portrayed by Karen Grassle who was quickly dubbed America’s sweetheart. Even today, she is known as one of the most iconic American moms in TV history.
As she turned 80, Grassle still stuns with her beauty and acting, although she seemed to disappear from the screens for some time before she turned to her first love, Broadway.
Grassle studied at the University of California, but completed her acting education at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
“That was one of the most exciting learning experiences of my life: the school was superb and we could go to the theater in London and see the finest actors and productions in the English language,” Grassle said, referring to her college life in the U.K.
She recalls how she went to an audition for a role she was looking forwards to get, and when she was turned down, she tried her luck with “Little House on the Prairie” probably not assuming back then that this role would help her shot to fame.
The show premiered on September 11, 1974 and lasted until 1983, but Grassle left it the year before. Producers tried convincing her to continue portraying Ma’s role but she didn’t accept the offer so the show was eventually canceled.
After appearing on stage for many years in classics such as “Cabaret” and “Driving Miss Daisy,” Grassle set up her own theater company. Then in 1994, she stared along Kevin Costner in Wyatt Earp.
Three years ago, Grassle were both uncertain and happy to answer to a challenge and try something completely different from what she has been doing her whole life so she accepted a role in the horror movie Lasso.
“Finally, my son tells me, “Oh just do it, Mom. You’ll have fun! You’ll run screaming in the night!” So, I said, “Okay, I’ll do it.” It’s a total change for me,” she said.
I’m sure this stunning actress still has a lot to offer, despite her age. She looks completely stunning and still takes our breath away.
Matt Heath: My parting message: Enjoy things while they are around
A lot of big, tragic and important things have happened to this wonderful country of ours since April 2014. None of which I have covered. I was too busy writing about hungover parenting, ancient philosophy and my dog Colin.
Out of the 536 columns I have written, 27 were about that guy. Far too few. He is such a good boy, he deserves an article a week.
Today is the end of an era for me, and whenever these final events pop up in our lives, we can’t help but think about the ultimate end.
Everything we do, we will one day do for the last time. That’s why you have to enjoy things while they are around. It’s not just big events like leaving a job, house or loved one either. Whatever moment you happen to be in now, you will never get it back, and you don’t know how many more you have.
Everything we do in life, from eating pizza to spending time with the people we love, to driving, writing, drinking or breathing, we will one day experience for the final time. It might happen tomorrow. This can be either a depressing or an inspiring thought, depending on how you look at it.
A few years back in this column, I interviewed professor of philosophy William B Irvine, of Wright State University, Ohio, on this very topic. He put it this way on a Zoom call: “Recognition of the impermanence of everything in life can invest the things we do with a significance and intensity that would otherwise be absent. The only way we can be truly alive is if we make it our business periodically to entertain thoughts of the end.”
Today’s column is very meaningful to me because it is my last. Like the last night with a lover before she goes overseas. And just like a lover, there have been some half-arsed efforts put in from me over the years. Last week, for example, I spent 750 words moaning about how bad my cricket team is. But the truth is that any of my columns could have been the final. If I had reminded myself every week for the past 10 years that the end is inevitable, I may have been more grateful for having a column and appreciated writing them all as much as I am this one.
While everything we do could have more meaning with a focus on finitude, some things are inherently more worthwhile than others. There is no doubt my column “The pros and cons of wearing Speedos” from November 2022 was less meaningful than most things in this world. That was a waste of everyone’s time. So, if we only have so much time, how do we pick the best things to do?
Well, Oliver Burkeman, the author of Four Thousand Weeks – Time Management For Mortals, suggested this to me in a 2022 column: “Ask yourself, does this choice enlarge me? You usually know on some unspoken level if it does. That’s a good way to distinguish between options.”
With that in mind, I don’t feel great about my 2018 article on “New Zealand’s best hole”. That didn’t enlarge anyone.
There will be people reading this column right now who have loved my writing in the Herald and are sad to see it end. Others will have hated it and are glad to see me go. Many won’t have any opinion at all. But for those in the first camp, I have good news. I have a book coming out on May 28 called A Life Less Punishing – 13 Ways To Love The Life You Got (Allen and Unwin Book Publishers). It’s a deep dive into the history, philosophy and science of not wasting our time lost in anger, loneliness, humiliation, stress, fear, boredom and all the other ways we find to not enjoy perfectly good lives. It’s available for pre-order right now (google it if you’re interested).
A Life Less Punishing took me two years to write and is equivalent in words to 100 of these columns. Which would be a complete nightmare for those in the hate camp, but as I say, great news for those who want more.
Anyway, thanks to the Herald for having me, thanks to the lovely people who make an effort to say nice things to me about my column nearly every day and thanks to the universe for every single second we get.
Bless!
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