Reflecting on Roseanne

Sweet hubs and I recently re-watched the entire series of Roseanne. I was never a dedicated watcher when the show was on the air, but I did enjoy it when I caught it on occasion. 

Considering my age upon the original airing of the show, I always identified with Roseanne's children, Becky, Darlene and DJ - and of course Mark and David. I loved John Goodman's character, Dan - I thought he was such a great dad. Roseanne, on the other hand, usually annoyed me. I always thought of her as the bitchy, annoyingly vocal, incredibly naggy mother.

Now that we've reviewed the entire series, my outlook is a bit different. Maybe its because now, as a 30 year old woman, I can identify more with Roseanne since she was just slightly older than I am now when the series started. Now I see that Darlene was a bratty, snarky kid, but did develop into a headstrong, responsible adult. I see that Becky also, though incredibly self-absorbed (as most teenagers are), made some mistakes, but handled them with humility. And DJ really was an adorable little mischevious boy - took on a lot of responsibility himself throughout the show.

It's funny when you experience a film or television show at two completely different points in your life and you realize how differently they resonate with you.

Instead of finding Roseanne entirely annoying, I now can see that her character in the show really was multi-dimensional - not just a naggy, negative minded wife. I hope that one day when sweet hubs and I do have children, that we will be able to endure life's challenges and wonders with an obnoxiously appropriate laugh when necessary to keep going and accept life for all the good and bad it can dish out.

I'm glad I gave Roseanne a chance so that I could realize what she had to offer. Thank you, Roseanne. Thank you, for finding humor where most people would stop and throw their hands up in the air in frustration. Thank you, for standing up for what you believed in and still finding a sane balance between your feminist ways and being a good mother and wife. Thank you, for showing your viewers how to find joy in a lot of the smaller moments in life that usually pass by in the blink of an eye and go without notice.

Thank you for being you.