My mother was a child of the seventies. One of her favorite television shows was “Little House on the Prairie.” I was fortunate to catch reruns of the show on the Hallmark Channel. Together, my sister, mom, and I enjoyed the wholesomeness, fun, and life lessons offered by the Ingalls family and their friends and neighbors.
Today, there is a new show on the Hallmark Channel that is reminiscent of the "Little House on the Prairie." The series is inspired by Janette Oke’s bestselling book series about the Canadian West. Coincidentally, the show was developed by Michael Landon, Jr., the son of Michael Landon, the handsome actor who played the much-loved Ingalls family Pa.
“When Calls the Heart,” now in its fourth season, follows a young teacher by the name of Elizabeth Thatcher who leaves a life of luxury and high society to take a teaching assignment in Coal Valley, a small Canadian coal-mining town. Lori Loughlin, who played Becky on the popular nineties show “Full House,” is middle-aged Abigail Stanton, a wife and mother who lost her mine foreman husband when an explosion took the lives of dozens of the town’s miners. Of course, as in any successful show, there is a love story at work. Although at first they butt heads, Elizabeth’s beauty and charm ultimately have the town Constable Jack Thornton (Daniel Lissing) swooning.
Here are several reasons that “When Calls the Heart” is as appealing as “The Little House on the Prairie” once was.
Today, life can be far too complicated and busy.
“When Calls the Heart” depicts a simpler time. Just as life on the Minnesota prairie for the Ingalls meant school, church, and family, so too does life in Coal Valley. People read books, take walks in the woods, and enjoy each other’s company and conversation at the dinner table. Leaving life’s craziness behind for an hour or so to go back to these modest times is a great escape.
Both shows reflect proper family values.
We are inundated with media coverage of families like the Kardashians. We are familiar with the sad fact that many parents lack appropriate parenting skills or control. We know all too well that there are young people who have little or no respect for their elders. In such cynical times, it is refreshing to see youngsters like Cody taken in by Abigail when his sister becomes ill, willingly help with chores at home, just as Half-Pint and Mary woke at the crack of dawn to milk the cows.
Life isn’t easy on the prairie or in Coal Valley.
Neither show refrains from showing us the stark reality of how simpler times could still be challenging. The Ingalls face typhus, devastating blizzards, financial ruin, and, of course, Mary’s blindness, while the folks of Coal Valley are struggling to put their lives back together after the coal mine explosion, only to be exploited by the mine company president. In this way, both shows teach the valuable life lesson of perseverance in the face of difficulties.
“Little House on the Prairie” and “When Calls the Heart” are both great history lessons delivered with entertainment.
And there's none of the boredom of a textbook. “Little House on the Prairie,” based on the Laura Ingalls Wilder books, traces her childhood in the Midwestern United States in the late 19th century, touching on topics of the times such as the dangers of homesteading, the building of the railroads, and daily life on the American frontier. Similarly, “When Calls the Heart,” explores the Canadian Rockies in the early 1900s, introducing watchers to the coal industry and life in a small town where church formals are held, groceries are purchased in the mercantile, and children are taught in a one-room schoolhouse.
Both series harken back to a time when romance mattered and men were chivalrous.
Charles adores his wife, Caroline, treats her with kindness, and protects her fiercely, while Jack courts Elizabeth with the proper degree of respect.
