May We Make Them Proud

I watched the first part of this episode yesterday, and it was a tearjerker. I felt so bad for Mary and Adam with the loss of their son and Jonathan and Andy with the loss of Alice. I also felt bad for Albert because he felt so guilty over the start of the fire. I will probably be watching the second part of this episode today!

Probably one of the most difficult episodes to view, waves of painful emotional scenes to navigate through. Also it must of been a daunting challenge for the actors to get through this one without feeling the reality of this being what can occur in real life. I am currently watchin it

Could a storyline with such devastation have been an indirect catalyst for the eventual "Father Murphy" pilot not all that long after?

That's quite possible, I never thought of it like that. I also have Father Murphy on dvd.

Yes there is that element that plays out ,with variations within the scripts between all the series. I think Michael got it just right, wheras it never lacked sincerity. I am still waiting for season 4 of Highway to Heaven to be released on dvd. The first three came out at a good pace, but the fourth is taking forever.

A very sad episode.

Part 1 comment
-Alice died bravely trying to save the kids
-Mary is depressed after the fire that killed her baby
-I wanted to stop watching after the fire... I was wanting to watch this for months working my way up but now I don't know if I want to watch Part 2
-Poor Jonathen and Andy
-Whats going through Albert's mind when he overheard that the fire was started by the pipe he was smoking
-Mary has gone mad when she woke up at Nellie's
-Poor Albert the guilt is crushing him
-Mary went so crazy she won't even go to her baby's funeral
-Jonathan stopped believing in God!?!?
-Jonathan is yelling at Andy because Andy cares about him. What good will that do?

Part 2 comment
Going to try to watch it tomorrow. It's so hard to watch Part 1

I coulden't work up the courage yet.

This one just rips your heart out...
It also reeaaalllyyy makes you feel for Mary....

I can't watch this one ever again.....once is enough.. way too sad

I always have kleenex on hand when I watch the episode. I think it't the saddest episode.

This had to be, besides the last show for different reasons, the most dramatic. The episodes got a bit darker in some ways after this. I remember my mother running to the phone (back when people dialed) and saying "Did you see that? Why did he do that?" and things along those lines. Ratings soared I'm sure but I felt it was too sad. Having a baby die of illness or an accident is one thing, going up in flames is another.
Before those shows, young children could watch without any hesitation, shows were filled with morals and good values...but shows like that one would have horrified some 5 or 6 year olds, maybe older, the rape episode was very scary. Maybe they had warnings back then, I dont remember, but I know at times my kids would say, "This is Little House?"..it had to grow, but I wish a little less dark at times.

I do remember that "Sylvia" carried a parental guidance warning when it first aired on NBC. I don't know about "May We Make Them Proud", however.

At the end of the show, they display a new placque for the school and Adam's dad is paying for the rebuilding, what happens after that? Where do the children go and do they ever rebuild it?

I'm not sure where the blind students went after the fire. The school was in the process of being rebuilt during part 1 of He Loves, Me, He Loves Me Not. Adam recieved a letter from his father's law office announcing Adam's father passed away. When Adam went to New York to settle his father's estate, he learned his father was in debt. Lura went with Adam to New York and after Charles picked them up from the train station in Sleepy Eye, Laura saw a vacant building and convinced Charles and Adam it would be a perfect place for a new school.

It's not fair that Albert got the blame for the fire. Clay talked him into smoking. Albert wasn't so sure about smoking saying he once smoked Charles' pipe and got sick.

I don't think he was blamed alone..Charles did go to his friends house to question him and he admitted to stealing the pipe and smoking it.
A lot of guilt to shoulder and the characters in this show were very forgiving, I've seen similar things but only with a lot of love and faith and even then, this show might have stretched that.
A lot of sadness in a hour but it did show what one careless move will do.

MSA did have a point about her character, every time they called her to work, something dramatic, but usually not good happened.She went blind, thought she'd get her sight back and didn't, lost 2 babies, one in an awful way with the death of another friend, almost went nuts in the process, lost their school twice....but it brought out a lot of her best work.

When they lost the school in Winoka, isn't that when they went to Walnut Grove?

Thats correct.....
Episode is "Blind Journey" Two Parts.......Adam goes a little bananas in this one when they have to cross a river and Mrs Oleson learns the meaning of predjudice.

Spanky wrote:

It's not fair that Albert got the blame for the fire. Clay talked him into smoking. Albert wasn't so sure about smoking saying he once smoked Charles' pipe and got sick.

I Don't really recall Albert getting the blame, outside of him blaming himself. I know one thing, that scene of him running up the hill to Charles at the end was one I have never forgotten.

It was a terrible loss, but I do like how in the end they all know they have to move on with life.   The only way they could ever make those they lost proud was to continue with life themselves.  The work was going to be tough to move forward but in the end it made them stronger and appreciate life, family & friends more.    

  I do wish Mary had been given the chance to come back in The Last Farewell with a child .  Just so she would have been given another chance and would have been part of the final movie.   I do believe Melissa S. Anderson deserved that.

Gin wrote:

I do wish Mary had been given the chance to come back in The Last Farewell with a child . Just so she would have been given another chance and would have been part of the final movie. I do believe Melissa S. Anderson deserved that.

Agreed!

Matt deserved a mention too. After all they both contributed to that show, the least they could of done was at least mention them in the script......