This Is Us
Last night hanging out with my girlfriends, we were talking about the show “This Is Us”. For those of you who live under a rock, it’s amazing! A show about normal everyday families. None of this sugar coated, devoid of serious problems type of family but people who deal with real issues that we have nowadays. I think every episode of the first season made me cry, no joke! Now we have so many things to deal with, cancer, addiction, suicide, shootings, infertility, bullying, poverty. Very far from the days of The Brady Bunch! If you haven’t seen it and you are planning to… major spoiler alert! Stop reading now!!
“This Is Us” is based on a couple, Jack and Rebecca Pearson. Jack is this sweet, old school, amazing man who was raised by his alcoholic farther and grew up in a very unhealthy environment. Jack had a brother but lost him in the Vietnam war. When he returns from the war, Jack and his best friend try to do anything to make money. They are about to rob a bar and while Jack is waiting for the perfect time he gets mesmerized by Rebecca, who is singing at the bar. Instead of going on with his initial plan to rob the bar he takes the $9 he has to his name and asks Rebecca on a date. That was it, he was in love. They have the cutest little love story and Jack does anything to make Rebecca and him have a happy life. He lands a great job, they get married, buy a house and end up pregnant with triplets. Upon delivery they lose one of the triplets. Devastated, Jack just stares at the babies in the nursery and notices another baby beside his own, crying. He asks one of the nurses what is wrong with the little guy. The nurse tells him she doesn’t really know, all she knows is the boy was abandoned at a fire station and a police officer brought him in to the hospital. He has no parents. Like the sweet man Jack is, he returns to Rebecca with a plan to adopt the boy. They were planning for triplets in the first place, to Jack it was a sign. Rebecca obviously heart broken eventually succumbs to the idea and they take little Randall home, who ends up being my favourite character. They name their biological kids Kevin and Kate. Kevin and Kate are American, Randall who they adopt is African American which makes Randall always feel a little different from his siblings. The Pearson’s struggle with money issues. Kate struggles with her weight. Kevin is the popular kid in school and struggles with the pressures of being the best all the time and Randall struggles with being the only African American in his school and being adopted, wanting to find his birth parents. Jack always hated his father, being an alcoholic and abusive, he never wanted to turn into him which in turn he does struggle with his own addiction with alcohol. By the time the kids are teenagers, Jack finally fesses up to Rebecca about his addiction and does everything in his power to change it for the sake of himself and his family. Love that man! Jack is two years sober by the time the Pearson’s home catches on fire. He saves his family from it, Rebecca, Randall and Kate. Kevin was not home that night. Jack always had a soft spot for Kate. Being that she was the only girl, struggled with her weight and got bullied for it. Kate is hysterical about their family dog being in the house still while the fire ensues and Jack goes back in to rescue it. Jack eventually dies from too much smoke inhalation causing a heart attack called the widow maker. Rebecca has now lost the love of her life and is a single mother of three teenagers. Kate lives with the agony of if her dad didn’t go back into the house to save the dog for her, would he still be with them? Kevin becomes a big movie star and struggles with his own addiction of taking prescription pills and Randall… Oh Randall! In his early years his parents saw he was a genius, always a perfectionist. He eventually applies to Harvard and gets accepted but we actually don’t know yet what school he attends. From when he could, Randall searched for his biological father and found him in his later years when Randall has his own wife and two kids. Randall is such a gentleman, goofy, caring, respectful. Loves his wife like she’s the only woman on the planet, values her and makes it through life’s successes and hardships as a team! He’s a good cook, so thoughtful, hard working. He’s sensitive and strong. He does anything and everything he needs to do for his family. Loves his daughters more than anything, always making sure to take them out and do things with them. He drops them off and picks them up from school everyday. He says cheesy dad jokes consistently! Randall is such a man, with a good heart and on top of all that he ends up wanting to adopt like he was adopted.. heart is melting as I write! Now you see why he is my favourite character! All men should aspire to be like Randall, heck I want to be like Randall!! I know he’s a fictional character but men like this are out there, my father himself is one of them, and we all thank you for being the great men you are! For any of you who haven’t seen “This Is Us” and I just ruined a lot of it for you, i’m sorry and go watch it! It is so good, heart warming and a great depiction of the times we live in now. How we can overcome bad times if we try our hardest, be our best selves and with loved ones by our side! Just a warning, have a box of tissues beside you!
Peace, Love & Team Randall xoxo