"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE"

Subject: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Thu Feb 22, 2007 12:04 am

“If I Should Wake Before I Die”
"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Flwrpurdown

After her friend dies, Miss Amy, an old lady, convinces the Ingalls and Doc Baker to help her stage her own death. Amy thought this was the only way to get her family to come and see her.

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Wake1

Even though this episode didn’t center around the Ingalls, I did enjoy it. I liked Maddie, the old lady in the beginning scene who has the girls singing. It sounds like she called Laura “Laure” lol I think this episode is sort of like a lesson or reminder to us all that we should keep in touch w/ our family members because it’s true that we all get really busy with our lives and we tend to forget our friends/family. Just the other day I got a call from a friend who said… “Well, I just wanted to call and check up on you, to see if you’re still alive” lol I guess that was a sign I had kind of forgotten her. :shy: Anyway, this episode has several funny scenes. One I can point out is when Laura and Mary are in bed and Laura keeps talking to Mary who keeps telling her to go to sleep. Then Laura says that when you die, death must be like that, and then she says to Mary: “Goodnight!” and Mary is just left there staring w/ her eyes open, afraid to sleep now. ROTFL

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Horses10

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Thu Feb 22, 2007 12:38 am

Larry wrote:: This was a good episode..I really like how she conned Pa into helping her out, Ma got mad, but ended up helping her too!

Misti wrote:: The comic aspect of it was hilarious. Like the scenes you mentioned, Larry. It was funny; Ma was going to talk her out of it and next thing you know, she said she agreed to make a cake! Everyone running around like mad; Pa sprinting from the barn to the house when he saw the preacher coming. Very funny!

Susie wrote:: This is another great episode. I thought it was sad, how Miss Amy had to stage her death, just so she could see her kids.

bethandmanly wrote:: I loved this episode. It is sad that a woman has to stage her own death to see her children and grandchildren, but it's true that sometimes this is what it takes to get people to come to you. It was so funny how Doc Baker, Charles and Caroline all protested but ended up staging the whole thing with her. I would have loved to have seen what would have happened if Reverend Alden had been brought into the con. That feisty little tirade of Amy's at the end where she gives her children what for is the best part.

Rhonda wrote:: This is a cute episode and sad too. I hate how Miss Maddie dies in her rocking chair while reading the letter from her kids that they aren't coming in for her birthday, and how Miss Amy gets the idea to make sure her kids come see her.......The whole scene that has been mentioned with Doc Baker and Charles getting talked into helping Miss Amy stage her own death and Caroline protesting so loud about it and then giving in to help is so classic.

I also LOVE little Carrie in the wagon while Ma is inside talking to Miss Amy. Pa and Carrie are waiting for Ma, and Pa is pacing back and forth and Carrie is doing the same thing, just like his shadow. He has his hands behind his back and his head dropped, pacing, and you watch Carrie, and she is mimicking him with everything....TOO CUTE!!!! Then Pa starts talking to her and asking her questions as if she were an adult and could even comprehend what he was talking about....

pamh36 wrote:: I enjoyed this episode. That's what I got from it too, that it's important to keep in touch with those you care about.

Carol wrote:: Another funny moment was when Laura was chewing on that corncob like a mad woman! You see Pa glacing at her sideways when she's eating....

Also, i thought it was funny when Miss Amy takes her veil off at the party and the Father says "Oh! That's Ms. OHara... Hi Ms. O'Hara" LOL!!!

Lori wrote:: This is a good episode that is both sad and funny. It is sad that it takes a death for the children to come. I enjoy all the scenes already mentioned, plus the scene in the Ingalls' house when the priest comes. They are trying so hard not to lie about anything!

Amy wrote:: I loved this episode, in fact one of my favorites. It really had all the elements...you're chuckling one minute and then sad the next. The end actually makes me cry, and I don't cry easily! I loved the part when she's found out by Charles and the Doc and they get so angry with her! The woman who played Amy was just fabulous. It always amazed me how Little House cast such elderly people so freely. You just don't see that done anymore, I don't think.

LHDaisy wrote:: Although it's not really a favourite episode of mine it does have some funny and good parts.

I like the opening scene were Maddie is playing the cider? in the
Ingalls house for Laura, Mary and Carrie and they are singing songs with each other.

I like the part were Amy is fooling Charles & Doc Baker. Pretending she is sick and asking Doc and Charles to arrange the funeral etc. Then when they promised, she got out of bed! I love Charles and Doc's reactions. They are very angry, but finally they agree with the idea .

I like Caroline's reaction too! Being angry with Charles because he promised Amy to arrange her funeral. She would talk Amy out of this idea. It's so cute when Charles and Carrie are outside waiting for Caroline who is inside the house talking to Amy. Charles is walking back and forth next to the wagon, and Carrie who is in the wagen walks with him. So cute !
I love Caroline her face expression when she comes out of the house. Charles thinks Caroline managed to talk Amy out of this idea and asks her how she did that. Then Caroline says: "I'm baking the cake!"

I thought it was a nice ending with the wake and Amy finally got to see her children and grandchildren. She was very angry with them at first and then her children realize that it was wrong of them that they didn't visited their mother in a long time. I thought it was nice she was finally reunited with her children.

I love the part were Charles starts to play the violin. It was funny how Doc Baker was so nervous during the whole wake! Then Charles says to him: "Doc you got my permission to dance with my wife."

It's a nice episode. And I like the lesson we can learn from it!

Great pics Carol!

ChristinaAL wrote:: I love this one too! Amy is too funny, and such a sweet lady. All she really wants is to be with the ones she loves and she'll go to any length to see them again. Some of my favorite scenes are the ones already mentioned - Doc Baker is too funny when he's so nervous at the wake! And also, when Amy talks to the priest outside, Charles rips off a piece of the cake, convinced "they don't need it anymore". Little did he know! LOL.

Prairie Dweller wrote:: I like this episode, but I thought that it was said that Amy had to pretend to be dead so she could see her children again.

I have to laugh when Maddie is playing the autoharp! Sometimes she doesn't even hit the strings.

I love it when Pa is pacing by the wagon and Carrie starts copying him!

Savannah wrote:: I'm late chiming in, but this is one of my *favorite* episodes. All of you have mentioned my favorite moments. I loved how angry Doc & Charles got at Amy when they found out that she wasn't actually ill at all. Their reaction was so funny!
Caroline looked so sure that she was going to be able to dissuade Amy from her notion - and instead ends up persuaded by Amy to bake the cake!
And little Carrie copying Pa in the wagon! That was so cute! There were so many funny moments. Definitely one of my favorites.

Lilly wrote:: This is actually one of my favorite episodes. I like episodes like this and The Craftsman, where the story isn't completely centered around the Ingalls, there is an outside character, and where something valuable is learned.
People tend to push important things off saying "i'll do it tomorrow"....but tomorrow may be too late.

Vannesa wrote:: Yes. I like this episode VERY much. Mrs. Amy was a sweet and at the same time strong character...How sad that some poeple must believe that a relative is dead to dedice him/herself to go to see him/her...

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Sun Feb 25, 2007 6:12 pm

I like Old miss Amy she is funny

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Jacobk10

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Jacob210

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Sun Jul 22, 2007 1:40 pm

I really liked her too. I loved how she convinced everyone, even stubborn Caroline haha, to fake the funeral and all.
I especially loved that part you mentioned, Carol where Amy takes off the veil and the Father is th only one not realizing who she is and is only happy to see Ms O´Hara. LOL

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Wed Jul 25, 2007 9:54 am

I just watched this last night. Everybody in my family loves this one! It is SOO funny!!
It is kinda sad, because Amy does have a point in what she does with her kids never coming to see her, and not even hearing from the youngest in 15 years.

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" FGKeeper

~ Home is the nicest word there is ~

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Little

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Wed Jul 25, 2007 9:57 am

Farmer Girl wrote:: It is kinda sad, because Amy does have a point in what she does with her kids never coming to see her, and not even hearing from the youngest in 15 years.

I understand her frustration. But you can reckognize it from yourself that you only understand how important your family is to you when they´re gone. This episode should be a lesson to everyone...

Guest

it is well true what you say GrandDuchessOlga
it is a big lesson for all hulls Applause

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Wed Jul 25, 2007 6:11 pm

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Guest

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Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Thu Jul 26, 2007 4:44 am

Well, it´s new here on the board right... didn´t think I had seen it before. It´s great anyways grinsmiley

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Sat Nov 24, 2007 6:30 pm

This is one of my all-time favorite episodes in Little House...I just love Amy's spark, and her desire to do what it takes to get her children to come visit her. I find myself being a little angry with her children because of their neglect, but I do understand how that can go when life gets a little crazy... OhMy

This is a favorite " Doc Baker" episode of mine too...probably my alll-time favorite character on LH...

I wish Amy had shown up in more Little House episodes. She is mentioned in a couple of eppies afterwards, but never actually shows up again in the series...

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Sat Jul 19, 2008 12:12 pm

This isn't one of my favorite episodes... it has it's moments though!

My favorite parts would be when Ma goes in to set Amy straight and Pa and Carrie are outside. I love the pacing and how Carrie is imitating Pa. That's really cute.
Then Ma comes out and she doesn't say anything. Charles asks how it went. "I'm making the cake." Silence and then Charles begins to giggle.

After school Laura goes to Doc Baker and tells sneakily tells him about Amy and Nels is clueless!

I feel sorry for the umm... priest?. "Hey, that's Miss O'Hara!"

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" PDKeeper

Guest

this was a great one....I loved all the backward glances going on the general uneasiness.....i agree with you prairie dweller Carrie copying Pa as he paced then Carolines comment of im making the cake was a crack up....Doc Baker looked like him would need a Dr thru out the wake scenes lol

Guest

I love the opening scene, when they are singing.

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Wed Mar 11, 2009 9:10 am

This is a great episode! It reminded me of my family. Most of my aunts kept up with my granny, but two of them didnt show up until she was on her deathbed. I will always love this episode because ,even though this episode was about death, it was so funny!

Sometimes life throws you under the bus. You gotta hold on for dear life. Don't waste one single day.

==============================================================================================

I wonder how I find myself with the greatest boy ever! <3 He loves me in spite of my issues.

Guest

I don't really like this esp.It's too sad...I think what the lady does is very selfish thing.I mean i can understand the reason behind why she does it tho.I mean i understand it..I don't think it's right tho.

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Mon Mar 07, 2011 1:06 pm

good esp

“Tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it... Yet.” ― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Mon Mar 07, 2011 4:25 pm

Love the Irish accents, and Thelma Lou!

Frontier Traveler Number of posts : 560

This one is not one of my favorites. I understand why Miss Amy does it, but it still is not something that I think she should have done. I wish that there was another way the Ingalls' family helped her to gather her children and grandchildren around her.

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Mon Feb 13, 2012 11:51 pm

Not fond of this episode

“I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.”
― Laura Ingalls Wilder

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:20 pm

amyk wrote:: This one is not one of my favorites. I understand why Miss Amy does it, but it still is not something that I think she should have done. I wish that there was another way the Ingalls' family helped her to gather her children and grandchildren around her.

I agree with you.I understand too.I just think it's NOT right of her todo.

“Tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it... Yet.” ― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Thu Apr 30, 2015 6:20 pm

This was a very strange episode, but it has some really great scenes in it. I am not sure if Laura ever realized that the reason that Miss Amy thought up the whole idea to pretend that she died in order to see her family again was because at her friend's funeral, Laura made the comment that we should have our funerals before we die, that way we would be able to see our family again.

I love the scene when Caroline is in a frenzy because Charles got roped into going along with Miss Amy's plan of feigning death.... especially when they go to her house and Caroline tries to talk sense into her. While she is inside, Charles is pacing back and forth next to the wagon... And Carrie is imitating his every move! HeeHee

Then Caroline comes back and doesn't say anything. Charles asks her how it went.. and she replies and says "I'm making the cake". I love Charles smile and laugh when she said that! Laughing

It was also nice to see the three new, deleted scenes as well. I really like the one when Laura runs to tell Caroline and Miss Amy that her family was there. That whole scene with Laura right there was deleted on the older DVDs.

“I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.” - Laura Ingalls Wilder

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Laurai10

"IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Laurai10

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Fri Oct 30, 2015 10:54 am

This is a weird episode. I was watching it again, last night. I don't remember being on tv, when I was a child. I remember the pilot episode or the girls going to school. But, this episode. I don't remember being on tv as rerun back in the 80's.

Frontier Traveler Number of posts : 560

I don't really like this one too much. Maybe it is because COZI-TV cuts things out, but I didn't really connect with Amy Hearn, and I didn't really care about her family coming to see her. I think we were supposed to be pretty emotionally moved by the end of the episode, but I just wasn't really feeling it. I did think Carrie was really cute in this episode, though, especially with trying to pat her head and then how she was mimicking Pa walking back and forth when Caroline went to talk to Amy. It was also a bit interesting that they had a priest come and we saw a little religious diversity in Walnut Grove.

I also thought that the veil was not really hiding Amy's face that much and if anyone bothered to look at the woman behind the veil they would have easily figured out it was Amy - or maybe they would have thought it was a sister or something, but why wasn't anyone trying to go and talk to the woman behind the veil?

Subject: Re: "IF I SHOULD WAKE BEFORE I DIE" Sat Jul 17, 2021 11:16 am

I think what she does is "WRONG". But i do understand her reasons for it. How much she wanted to see her family. I guess it was the only why she could get to seem them,

“Tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it... Yet.” ― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

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