Be a Neighbor

“Love is at the root of everything . . . love or the lack of it.”

This quote is one of my favorites from Mister Rogers (Yes, I know his name is Fred, but I have to call him Mister) from the acclaimed documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor, which I just watched for, I think, the fifth time. It’s so good and I have seen it so many times, I have lost track. The film “hits me in the feels” every time.

I am like Lisa Loopner, Gilda Radner’s nerdy character from the classic heyday of Saturday Night Live. She described her favorite movie, The Way We Were, and said she had seen it five times but cried six times, because she the knew the story so well that she cried on the way to the movie one of the last times. I tear up just thinking about Won’t You Be My Neighbor.

Mister Rogers was my friend who “visited” my house every afternoon as I was growing up. He always had a smile, a kind word, and a make-believe adventure for me. I was an only child and, for a brief time, a latchkey kid. It was also the time of riding in a car without seat belts, cruising without a helmet on a bicycle, and talking on a phone that was attached to the wall, but I digress . . .

Mister Rogers was a great babysitter/companion.

During my last viewing of the film, I was struck by Mister Rogers’ passion for his mission in life. He was ordained for the purpose of ministering through the media. He never once preached a televised sermon, his puppets never told the story of the five loaves and two fishes, and he never sang Amazing Grace on camera. Yet he ministered through his gentle spirit, his kindness, and, yes, his occasional goofiness. You could feel the love through the camera.

THESE THINGS are what I want to accomplish with my writing. I want to be kind and gentle and goofy in a world of chaos. When I think of throwing in the towel—or throwing my laptop across the room when I can’t get a sentence to come out right—I think of this mission. Mister Rogers was called to be a bright light in a dark world, to love unconditionally, and so are we as writers.

When I sit at my keyboard, I want to be as whimsical as King Friday, as mischievous as Lady Elaine, and as sensitive as Daniel Tiger. Is that hard to do in today’s world? Yes. Is that type of thing needed in today’s world? Absolutely. Will people feel the love through the things I write? I hope so.

In the words of Henrietta Pussycat, “Meow meow, go write something kind, meow.”

Carlton Hughes wears many hats—some serious, some goofy.

During weekdays, he sounds like Charlie Brown’s teacher (wah-wah wah-wah-wah) as a community college professor of communication and journalism. On Sundays and Wednesdays, you’ll find him playing games and performing songs with motions in his role as a children’s pastor.

In his “spare” time, Carlton attempts to type kind words as a freelance writer and has been published in numerous books, including several releases from Worthy Publishing: The Wonders of Nature, So God Made a Dog, Just Breathe, Let the Earth Rejoice, and Everyday Grace for Men. He has been featured in Chicken Soup for the Soul and other publications and is represented by Cyle Young of the Hartline Agency. He specializes in humorous observations of everyday life, connecting those experiences with spiritual application.

Carlton loves watching classic sitcoms like I Love Lucy, eating way too much chocolate, and rooting for his favorite college and high school basketball teams. He is on the planning committee for Kentucky Christian Writers Conference and a year-round volunteer for Operation Christmas Child. He and his wife have two college-age sons.