WEBVTT - Christof

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, everyone, it's Carvel and before we get into this episode,

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<v Speaker 1>I want to ask you a favor. Throughout this series,

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<v Speaker 1>we've talked a lot about how Fred Rogers has helped

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<v Speaker 1>show us how to make the world a kinder place,

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<v Speaker 1>a better place. But now we want to hear from you.

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<v Speaker 1>We want to hear a story about when someone in

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<v Speaker 1>your life showed you what it means to be a helper.

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<v Speaker 1>Maybe it's someone in your family, or someone in your community,

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<v Speaker 1>or someone that you haven't seen since you were a kid,

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<v Speaker 1>but that you still think about something they did to

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<v Speaker 1>help you. Whoever they are, wherever they are, however they're helping,

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<v Speaker 1>we want to hear about it. So give us a

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<v Speaker 1>call at three three six five one five zero five

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<v Speaker 1>to nine. Again, that's three three six five one five

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<v Speaker 1>zero five to nine, and tell us a story about

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<v Speaker 1>someone who has shown you how to be a helper

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<v Speaker 1>and we might just play it on an upcoming episode.

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<v Speaker 1>Again that number is three three six five one five

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<v Speaker 1>zero five two nine, or you can tweet you're still

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<v Speaker 1>with the hashtag finding Fred. Okay, now, let's start the

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<v Speaker 1>show about a nash studio that sounds studio. Well, that's

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<v Speaker 1>very much like the place we make our television visits.

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<v Speaker 1>It's and Mr Rogers is in Moscow. Here would you

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<v Speaker 1>like to play? Of course I would. I'd love to

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<v Speaker 1>touch a piano wherever I go. My neighbor by, the

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<v Speaker 1>Soviet Union had just begun opening up dialogue with the US,

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<v Speaker 1>and that somehow landed Mr Rogers on the set of

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<v Speaker 1>good Night, Little Ones, the USSRS longest running children's program.

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<v Speaker 1>Back then, there was no television except for one channel

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<v Speaker 1>that was played on in Russian, which I couldn't understand,

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<v Speaker 1>mostly the news propaganda, and then there was a childhood

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<v Speaker 1>program that played at night that I also couldn't understand.

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<v Speaker 1>Kristof Putzel was an American kid living in Moscow at

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<v Speaker 1>the time. Both my parents were journalists. They were assigned

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<v Speaker 1>to cover what ended up being the collapse of the

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<v Speaker 1>Soviet Union. My parents job was to make sense of

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<v Speaker 1>a place that didn't make a lot of sense, where

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<v Speaker 1>information was controlled. Kristof's father was the bureau chief for

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<v Speaker 1>the Associated Press. His mother was the deputy bureau chief

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<v Speaker 1>for Time magazine. They moved to Moscow in and took

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<v Speaker 1>seven year old Kristof and his sister along with them.

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<v Speaker 1>My parents had told me that the biggest toy store

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<v Speaker 1>in the entire Soviet Union was across the street from

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<v Speaker 1>our house. This was the way they tempted me to

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<v Speaker 1>go there and greeted this whole thing as a seven

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<v Speaker 1>year old. And let me tell you, it was the

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<v Speaker 1>first time ever gone to a toy storey. Anyway, it's

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<v Speaker 1>nothing I wanted to buy, because there was nothing on

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<v Speaker 1>the shelves. Um, there was I think shoes, some clothes,

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<v Speaker 1>and a couple of tin toy things and some really

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<v Speaker 1>complicated models that I think we're for adults. And that

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<v Speaker 1>was it. That's the biggest toy store. Seven. It's nothing

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<v Speaker 1>I wanted. I'm Carlo Wallace and this is Finding Fred,

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<v Speaker 1>a podcast about Fred Rogers from I Heart Media and

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<v Speaker 1>Fatherly and partnership with Transmitter Media. We often talk about

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<v Speaker 1>how adaptable kids are, but Kristoff says, the move to

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<v Speaker 1>Moscow was really hard. Frankly, I was pretty depressed. Um,

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<v Speaker 1>you just have to understand just how hard Russia was

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<v Speaker 1>in the eighties, especially for a kid, you know, it

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<v Speaker 1>being so cold, dark, no access to stuff. Um. Sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>friends would record like tapes, the cassette tapes and then

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<v Speaker 1>mail them and I would listen to their voices. We

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<v Speaker 1>didn't live in an embassy. We lived in a square

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<v Speaker 1>foot apartment. My mom, my dad, my sister, myself, and

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<v Speaker 1>our Golden retriever, only golden retriever in the entire civic union.

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<v Speaker 1>People thought that it was a lion. Our apartment was

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<v Speaker 1>bugged because the KGB always kept a close eye on them,

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<v Speaker 1>and they would follow us anytime we were going outside

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<v Speaker 1>of the city. They would constantly try to attempt to

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<v Speaker 1>set up my parents to see if they were actually spies,

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<v Speaker 1>and always monitored whatever stories they're working on. There was

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<v Speaker 1>always somebody watching and nothing to watch on TV, no

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<v Speaker 1>familiar cultural touchstones like Sesame Street or three to one contact.

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<v Speaker 1>So I would watch the same VHS tapes over and

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<v Speaker 1>over and over again that people would mail from the US.

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<v Speaker 1>They just tape whatever was on TV and mail it.

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<v Speaker 1>We'd get it three, four or five months later, if

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<v Speaker 1>we got it at all. And those were like gold

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<v Speaker 1>I like you, Yes, I do, I like you. And

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<v Speaker 1>on a few of those precious VHS tapes were old

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<v Speaker 1>episodes of Mr Rogers Neighborhood. Certainly do I'm glad you

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<v Speaker 1>were with me on my swing. So Mr Rogers in

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<v Speaker 1>Moscow was big news, and Christoph's parents managed to get

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<v Speaker 1>word to Fred telling him about their depressed kid. And

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<v Speaker 1>for Fred Rogers, a note about a sad child was

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<v Speaker 1>like the bat signal. There was one day when my

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<v Speaker 1>parents told me to make sure I was home for dinner,

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<v Speaker 1>which I always was, but I remember being weird. They're like,

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<v Speaker 1>now there's a special dinner tonight. I just remember a

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<v Speaker 1>knock on the door and I'd sort of gotten used

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<v Speaker 1>to being let down by surprise as of them trying

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<v Speaker 1>to like cheer us up in communist Moscow, you know.

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<v Speaker 1>And I opened the door and there's Mr Rodgers in

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<v Speaker 1>his card again and the blue shoes, and my jaw

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<v Speaker 1>apparently just dropped. I remember just being awe struck. I

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<v Speaker 1>didn't understand why Mr Rogers was at my door. I

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<v Speaker 1>grew up watching Mr Rogers. I knew every character. I

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<v Speaker 1>knew I've probably had seen every episode at least for

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<v Speaker 1>that time frame. Um, And so there I was, and

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<v Speaker 1>he walks in the door, and he gets down to

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<v Speaker 1>my eye level and shakes my hand and introduces himself

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<v Speaker 1>as Fred Rogers and asked what my name was. And

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<v Speaker 1>I don't even know if I could get the words

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<v Speaker 1>out of my mouth because Mr Rodgers in the apartment,

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<v Speaker 1>and um, it was just him on his own and

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<v Speaker 1>just by himself. I think it was the first time

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<v Speaker 1>in my life where I felt seen by an adult,

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<v Speaker 1>like when he got down to my eye level, introduced

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<v Speaker 1>himself and looked me in the eye. Of course I've

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<v Speaker 1>had adults introduced themselves to me a million times up

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<v Speaker 1>to that point and asked me what my name was,

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<v Speaker 1>But the way that he looked at me, I felt

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<v Speaker 1>like you saw me. Then he came into the living

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<v Speaker 1>room and we sat down and he opened up his suitcase.

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<v Speaker 1>He had a suitcase with him. I feel like it

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<v Speaker 1>was a briefcase, but it must have been bigger than that. Um.

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<v Speaker 1>And he opens it up and they're all the puppets

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<v Speaker 1>I had never put together that Mr Rodgers did the

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<v Speaker 1>voices I had didn't And so suddenly they were talking

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<v Speaker 1>and I had King Friday and um and actually owl

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<v Speaker 1>in my on my couch. This is a real moment

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<v Speaker 1>for a child, you know. And UM, I think what

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<v Speaker 1>just really struck me about it was how normal it felt.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, not normal, what's the word. UM, It's while

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<v Speaker 1>it felt surreal, it felt like I was in I

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<v Speaker 1>was in the Land of make Believe. Suddenly my couch

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<v Speaker 1>suddenly turned into that in my apartment, and um, it

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<v Speaker 1>was just like the show. I mean, he was wearing

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<v Speaker 1>the same stuff. This isn't a like since it set.

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<v Speaker 1>It wasn't like backstage he was. He had the cardigan

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<v Speaker 1>on and the blue shoes. Like, I mean, first of all,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm just really struck by the kind of person you

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<v Speaker 1>have to be, the kind of self possession you have

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<v Speaker 1>to have to just walk into some strangers houses and

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<v Speaker 1>spend the evening with them, like we don't, like, we

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<v Speaker 1>don't know. I don't know how to do that. I'm like, like,

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<v Speaker 1>ostensibly my job is to be charismatic in public, and

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<v Speaker 1>I still don't don't know if I would know how

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<v Speaker 1>to just go into someone's house with nothing but myself

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<v Speaker 1>and his suitcase of puppets to spend the evening with

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<v Speaker 1>them and their family. I have kids, and oftentimes I

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<v Speaker 1>think about the ways in which illusions are created for

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<v Speaker 1>them and also shattered for them. And so it's a

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<v Speaker 1>tailor as old as time that like the kid has

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<v Speaker 1>someone that they they have idolized and television, then they

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<v Speaker 1>meet them and then the person is not who they

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<v Speaker 1>thought they were, and they're crushed. And you had the

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<v Speaker 1>opposite experience. You you sort of thought this guy was fine,

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<v Speaker 1>and then you meet him and you find out that

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<v Speaker 1>he's exactly who as good as he says he is.

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<v Speaker 1>But I wonder if you ever felt let down. Later,

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<v Speaker 1>mom one time took me to the set of Sesame

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<v Speaker 1>Street because she was working on a story for Time magazine.

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<v Speaker 1>And I went and I was horrified because Big Bird

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<v Speaker 1>was walking around without the top, you know, just the legs,

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<v Speaker 1>and the muppets were all like, you know, like lying

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<v Speaker 1>there corpses, and and they'd warned my mom, they said,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, credit, they said, we don't usually encourage children

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<v Speaker 1>to come here. And it was a little jarring. Um.

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<v Speaker 1>But that wasn't the case with Mr Rodgers. More from

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<v Speaker 1>Kristoff in just a moment, Mr Rogers visit has stuck

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<v Speaker 1>with Christop. It's not just that Mr Rogers got down

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<v Speaker 1>on one knee and looked him in the eye, or

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<v Speaker 1>that he got to play with King Friday and X

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<v Speaker 1>the Owl. It's the kindness of Mr Rogers, the effort

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<v Speaker 1>Fred made in the midst of a busy trip to

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<v Speaker 1>help a kid like I mean, just think about this

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<v Speaker 1>for a second. He when all the way across town

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<v Speaker 1>in a city he didn't know, which is a hard

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<v Speaker 1>place to get around, to meet a family that he

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<v Speaker 1>didn't know, just because he heard that there were some

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<v Speaker 1>kids that were kind of having a tough time. So

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<v Speaker 1>why do you think he did that. It's a really

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<v Speaker 1>good question. I think that he heard that there were

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<v Speaker 1>some kids that, uh grew up watching the show and

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<v Speaker 1>we're having I think a tough time. There wasn't a

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<v Speaker 1>whole lot of stuff to look forward to, and then

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<v Speaker 1>it would be amazing if he would meet them, and

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<v Speaker 1>he apparently just jumped at the opportunity. And so of course,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, um, you can imagine a number of people

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<v Speaker 1>that might want to meet Fred Rodgers or I don't know,

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<v Speaker 1>maybe no one asked him. Yeah, he just came and

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<v Speaker 1>did it. And he spent real time. He like sat

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<v Speaker 1>on the couch and did a whole puppet show and

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<v Speaker 1>I played with them, like I got to hold I

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<v Speaker 1>mean that was crazy. I mean I got to hold

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<v Speaker 1>the king and the owl and the cat and like like.

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<v Speaker 1>And then he had dinner with us and then we

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<v Speaker 1>drove him back to the mayor an embassy where he

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<v Speaker 1>was staying, and so I sat in the back seat

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<v Speaker 1>of our station wagon. It was one of the only

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<v Speaker 1>subarus in the entire Soviet Union, and we sat in

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<v Speaker 1>the backseat and I just sat there with Mr Rogers

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<v Speaker 1>as we drove him across town and drove him to

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<v Speaker 1>the front of marrin Amazon Oh. And he was asking

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<v Speaker 1>questions because he didn't know anything about Moscow. So when

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<v Speaker 1>we're driving, he was asking questions about what's this, what's this?

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<v Speaker 1>I knew the answers like. I was like, oh, that's

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<v Speaker 1>um you know, that's the monument to your your gagar

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<v Speaker 1>And he was like, oh, that's interesting. Or do you

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<v Speaker 1>like space? I was like, yeah, I like space. I

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<v Speaker 1>remember just wanting, like always fantasizing about friends coming so

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<v Speaker 1>I could tell them about what this place was like.

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<v Speaker 1>And I'd be like, I know this looks weird, but

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<v Speaker 1>look at this. This is you know, look, yes, it's

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<v Speaker 1>normal to see like an entire army going down the street,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, like, oh yeah, we see tanks all the time.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh yeah, they parade these missiles around constantly. Like I

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<v Speaker 1>know it looks nuts, but that's what life is here.

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<v Speaker 1>And it never happened, because no one ever came to visit.

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<v Speaker 1>And I got to give that to to Mr Rodgers.

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<v Speaker 1>He must have known that just by him being there

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<v Speaker 1>this was had suddenly transformed Moscow, a place that I

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<v Speaker 1>hated as a child, into the most magical place I've

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<v Speaker 1>ever been. And then got to ride through Moscow with

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<v Speaker 1>Mr Rogers and point out all this stuff. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>I still look back at that, it's like it was

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<v Speaker 1>just magical when I was a kid. As odd as

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<v Speaker 1>it sounds, I did the exact same thing. I imagined

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<v Speaker 1>Ricky Ricardo, for some reason, time traveling from the nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>fifties to my childhood in the eighties and letting me

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<v Speaker 1>explain everything to him Walkman and pac Man and Prince.

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<v Speaker 1>I think now that that was a cure for a

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<v Speaker 1>kind of loneliness that I felt. That Kristof felt that

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<v Speaker 1>maybe a lot of kids feel this world is so

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<v Speaker 1>big and some many things are happening to us all

0:14:01.720 --> 0:14:06.000
<v Speaker 1>the time. We feel sometimes like we're little helpless creatures

0:14:06.040 --> 0:14:08.720
<v Speaker 1>in the midst of all of it. So maybe it's

0:14:08.760 --> 0:14:12.640
<v Speaker 1>just really nice to think that there's someone somewhere who

0:14:12.679 --> 0:14:18.040
<v Speaker 1>cares what you like. Specifically, you are seeing and experiencing

0:14:19.280 --> 0:14:22.240
<v Speaker 1>That's the gift that Fred Rogers gave to Christophe that night,

0:14:22.920 --> 0:14:26.200
<v Speaker 1>and maybe that's the gift he gave to all of us.

0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:30.720
<v Speaker 1>You know. I have this really, this weird question that's

0:14:30.720 --> 0:14:33.680
<v Speaker 1>been on my mind. Was I think a lot about

0:14:33.760 --> 0:14:36.200
<v Speaker 1>good people and what makes a good person, and so

0:14:36.320 --> 0:14:39.040
<v Speaker 1>much of what Fred Rogers was about was about ways

0:14:39.200 --> 0:14:43.400
<v Speaker 1>and systems and methods for being a good person. And

0:14:43.520 --> 0:14:47.400
<v Speaker 1>I I keep returning to wise and everyone like that.

0:14:48.440 --> 0:14:49.840
<v Speaker 1>I want to ask you, first, do you think of

0:14:49.880 --> 0:14:53.760
<v Speaker 1>yourself as a good person? I do, but I think

0:14:53.760 --> 0:14:58.800
<v Speaker 1>it's taken a lot of time and struggle and experiences

0:14:58.880 --> 0:15:02.440
<v Speaker 1>with not always being in the best person, interactions with

0:15:02.520 --> 0:15:07.040
<v Speaker 1>not always the best people, but then also the experience

0:15:07.040 --> 0:15:12.000
<v Speaker 1>of having genuine connection uh and experiences with people that

0:15:12.120 --> 0:15:14.680
<v Speaker 1>consider really good. And I think that has helped me

0:15:15.920 --> 0:15:17.920
<v Speaker 1>become a better person and someone I'm still trying to

0:15:17.960 --> 0:15:23.640
<v Speaker 1>be um because I guess I wonder. I mean, I

0:15:23.640 --> 0:15:26.320
<v Speaker 1>I have this obvious question, which is, why isn't everyone

0:15:26.400 --> 0:15:29.520
<v Speaker 1>like Fred Rogers like why? Why? Like I assume that

0:15:29.560 --> 0:15:33.520
<v Speaker 1>you don't think of yourself was being capable of being

0:15:33.560 --> 0:15:35.320
<v Speaker 1>what he was or doing what he does, not I

0:15:35.320 --> 0:15:36.760
<v Speaker 1>guess I want to know what you feel like in

0:15:36.760 --> 0:15:41.600
<v Speaker 1>your own life stands in your way. It's a really

0:15:41.680 --> 0:15:52.400
<v Speaker 1>good question. I don't know, you know, like why I

0:15:52.440 --> 0:15:56.400
<v Speaker 1>think that I just might not have the patience that

0:15:56.440 --> 0:15:59.160
<v Speaker 1>he had for people, you know, I think just the

0:15:59.440 --> 0:16:02.560
<v Speaker 1>um at least not always, you know. I think I

0:16:02.600 --> 0:16:04.760
<v Speaker 1>have my moments, and I've certainly been inspired by him

0:16:04.800 --> 0:16:07.160
<v Speaker 1>and this memory, and I love what I do for

0:16:07.200 --> 0:16:11.080
<v Speaker 1>a living. But for someone to be like that all

0:16:11.120 --> 0:16:14.080
<v Speaker 1>the time, to have everyone who's ever had an interaction

0:16:14.120 --> 0:16:19.560
<v Speaker 1>with you, to just feel seen and heard while also

0:16:19.720 --> 0:16:23.280
<v Speaker 1>like embraced and almost hugged in a way, even if

0:16:23.280 --> 0:16:27.720
<v Speaker 1>he wasn't doing that physically, I doubt that the people

0:16:27.720 --> 0:16:32.880
<v Speaker 1>in my life would say that I'm like that, you know,

0:16:33.160 --> 0:16:39.400
<v Speaker 1>um uh. But what gets in my way? You know?

0:16:39.520 --> 0:16:44.560
<v Speaker 1>I guess that I think, um, probably cynicism, you know.

0:16:44.920 --> 0:16:46.840
<v Speaker 1>I think I've struggled a lot with this question of like,

0:16:46.920 --> 0:16:51.080
<v Speaker 1>what is like just unconditional love and how do you

0:16:51.760 --> 0:16:56.200
<v Speaker 1>practice that even with with everybody. Yeah. So I'm working

0:16:56.240 --> 0:16:58.760
<v Speaker 1>on a podcast right now about my relationship with one

0:16:58.800 --> 0:17:02.240
<v Speaker 1>of the world's most wanted terrorist. And I had a

0:17:02.240 --> 0:17:06.439
<v Speaker 1>connection with this guy who was wanted by you know,

0:17:06.520 --> 0:17:09.120
<v Speaker 1>everyone in the world pretty much, the CIA, the State's Department,

0:17:09.200 --> 0:17:12.360
<v Speaker 1>the FBI, the African Union. He had a five million

0:17:12.400 --> 0:17:13.560
<v Speaker 1>dollar bounty on his head and I was the only

0:17:13.560 --> 0:17:15.520
<v Speaker 1>one I knew where he was. And he would call

0:17:15.560 --> 0:17:17.119
<v Speaker 1>me in the middle of the night just to chat

0:17:18.160 --> 0:17:20.480
<v Speaker 1>because he just wanted to connect with another human being

0:17:20.640 --> 0:17:22.640
<v Speaker 1>towards the end, and while he was hoping I could

0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:25.919
<v Speaker 1>help keep him alive. When I couldn't do that, we

0:17:25.920 --> 0:17:32.560
<v Speaker 1>would just talk and it started just a great scoop

0:17:32.600 --> 0:17:34.520
<v Speaker 1>for me. But then came this person that I couldn't

0:17:34.520 --> 0:17:40.000
<v Speaker 1>help but start caring about. And that gets really confusing,

0:17:40.280 --> 0:17:42.840
<v Speaker 1>you know, especially when it's somebody that has done terrible things,

0:17:43.080 --> 0:17:46.080
<v Speaker 1>you know, or supposedly done terrible things, or that's supposed

0:17:46.080 --> 0:17:48.760
<v Speaker 1>to be an enemy, or somebody that you hate, or

0:17:48.760 --> 0:17:57.640
<v Speaker 1>somebody that deserves to be killed. UM. And I find

0:17:57.920 --> 0:18:04.959
<v Speaker 1>all human beings, UM people, everyone you know is worthy

0:18:04.960 --> 0:18:06.960
<v Speaker 1>of being listened to and being and spoken to. It

0:18:07.000 --> 0:18:10.400
<v Speaker 1>doesn't mean taking all their b s. It doesn't mean,

0:18:10.440 --> 0:18:13.920
<v Speaker 1>like you know, set yourself up to be abused or

0:18:14.000 --> 0:18:18.800
<v Speaker 1>or or taken advantage of. UM. But I think everyone,

0:18:19.040 --> 0:18:20.919
<v Speaker 1>all any of us, just want us to be loved

0:18:21.200 --> 0:18:25.159
<v Speaker 1>and to be heard and to be seen and UM,

0:18:25.200 --> 0:18:29.400
<v Speaker 1>and I think that your presence is the greatest gift

0:18:29.440 --> 0:18:32.720
<v Speaker 1>you can give somebody. I just think that's what I believe.

0:18:32.680 --> 0:18:35.560
<v Speaker 1>It is just actually learning how to be genuinely present,

0:18:36.640 --> 0:18:39.359
<v Speaker 1>Like in that moment that he came down and sat

0:18:39.600 --> 0:18:41.480
<v Speaker 1>and just like looked me in the eye, asked me

0:18:41.560 --> 0:18:44.400
<v Speaker 1>genuine question and then just don't feel like he felt

0:18:44.440 --> 0:18:48.119
<v Speaker 1>he needed to be anywhere else. That's presence. And I

0:18:48.160 --> 0:18:50.040
<v Speaker 1>feel like when you can give that to another human,

0:18:50.160 --> 0:18:52.959
<v Speaker 1>that's the best gift you can give somebody. And I

0:18:53.000 --> 0:18:55.280
<v Speaker 1>think what keeps us and the second speak myself, what

0:18:55.400 --> 0:18:57.240
<v Speaker 1>keeps us from doing that is it's just really hard

0:18:57.280 --> 0:18:59.919
<v Speaker 1>to be present, you know. I think that we are

0:19:00.119 --> 0:19:02.240
<v Speaker 1>minds are scattered with our wants of what we think

0:19:02.280 --> 0:19:04.399
<v Speaker 1>we want, what our desires are, with the ways that

0:19:04.440 --> 0:19:06.480
<v Speaker 1>we think we're going to get it, our relationship to

0:19:06.520 --> 0:19:10.200
<v Speaker 1>the world, how we think the world perceives us. Um.

0:19:10.240 --> 0:19:12.200
<v Speaker 1>We care a lot about a lot of stuff that

0:19:12.280 --> 0:19:16.200
<v Speaker 1>usually isn't relevant. And I think that's what gets in

0:19:16.240 --> 0:19:18.880
<v Speaker 1>the way. I want to I want to ask you,

0:19:19.240 --> 0:19:27.040
<v Speaker 1>um about the world as it currently stands. And like

0:19:27.160 --> 0:19:29.119
<v Speaker 1>the last thing he did on television was a public

0:19:29.160 --> 0:19:33.160
<v Speaker 1>service announcement after nine eleven m that was the last

0:19:33.160 --> 0:19:35.960
<v Speaker 1>time we saw him on TV uh and he died

0:19:36.040 --> 0:19:39.760
<v Speaker 1>soon after that. And when I watched that footage, I

0:19:39.840 --> 0:19:44.120
<v Speaker 1>often feel like I'm watching a person who has ultimately

0:19:44.160 --> 0:19:49.080
<v Speaker 1>been outmatched by just the huge well of capacity of

0:19:49.320 --> 0:19:52.800
<v Speaker 1>for badness among people. And when I look at the

0:19:52.800 --> 0:19:57.440
<v Speaker 1>world today, it does seem like so much of that

0:19:57.480 --> 0:20:00.840
<v Speaker 1>badness has like gained energy and momentum, focus and force

0:20:00.920 --> 0:20:04.560
<v Speaker 1>and push. And I wonder, your journalist, your job is

0:20:04.560 --> 0:20:08.880
<v Speaker 1>to investigate all, to investigate the human condition via our

0:20:09.000 --> 0:20:11.439
<v Speaker 1>individual stories and the stories we pursue. And I wonder,

0:20:12.200 --> 0:20:14.440
<v Speaker 1>how do I even frame this question? Do you think

0:20:16.040 --> 0:20:21.080
<v Speaker 1>A do you think his impact can be felt? And

0:20:21.160 --> 0:20:37.800
<v Speaker 1>B do you think it's enough? God dense question? Um,

0:20:37.840 --> 0:20:43.680
<v Speaker 1>I think that it's up to us. Two. I think

0:20:43.680 --> 0:20:46.760
<v Speaker 1>it's up to us to allow his impact to be felt.

0:20:47.080 --> 0:20:52.240
<v Speaker 1>And what I mean by that is, look, eventually, we

0:20:52.320 --> 0:20:54.880
<v Speaker 1>can't be relying on Fred Rogers, especially after he's dead.

0:20:54.880 --> 0:21:01.360
<v Speaker 1>We have to be Fred Rogers. I mean, we're grown up,

0:21:02.160 --> 0:21:04.119
<v Speaker 1>you know, like I'm about to be forty. I was

0:21:04.119 --> 0:21:06.639
<v Speaker 1>watching Mr Rogers a kid. It's time for me to

0:21:06.680 --> 0:21:08.679
<v Speaker 1>be Mr Rogers. You know, it's time for all of

0:21:08.720 --> 0:21:11.760
<v Speaker 1>us me Mr Rogers especially now. It is crazy because

0:21:12.040 --> 0:21:16.439
<v Speaker 1>if we don't, then we we we really are up

0:21:16.480 --> 0:21:20.479
<v Speaker 1>Ship's creek, you know, like we we are in at

0:21:20.520 --> 0:21:24.080
<v Speaker 1>time right now where people are so cynical and scared

0:21:24.760 --> 0:21:28.800
<v Speaker 1>and frankly acting bananas, all of us. Whether you want

0:21:28.800 --> 0:21:30.440
<v Speaker 1>to blame the people that are making you bananas or

0:21:30.480 --> 0:21:34.440
<v Speaker 1>your bananas or whatever it is, um uh, but I

0:21:34.480 --> 0:21:37.200
<v Speaker 1>think we all just need those quiet moments of reflection

0:21:37.920 --> 0:21:40.520
<v Speaker 1>and it's our job to embody it. I mean, look,

0:21:40.560 --> 0:21:43.960
<v Speaker 1>we can't. That's another reason, like we can't we can't

0:21:44.240 --> 0:21:47.160
<v Speaker 1>idealize him either in a sense where like you know,

0:21:47.680 --> 0:21:49.760
<v Speaker 1>he's gone. What we have to do is take his

0:21:49.880 --> 0:21:53.960
<v Speaker 1>teachings and try to embody those ourselves so so you know,

0:21:54.040 --> 0:21:55.800
<v Speaker 1>we can evolve and become one of our our own

0:21:55.960 --> 0:21:58.600
<v Speaker 1>version of that love that he was able to embody,

0:21:59.320 --> 0:22:03.200
<v Speaker 1>because that is what I think the world could really

0:22:03.240 --> 0:22:06.320
<v Speaker 1>use right now. And we can't be looking for a

0:22:06.359 --> 0:22:10.360
<v Speaker 1>savior or or I think be just sad over one

0:22:10.560 --> 0:22:12.160
<v Speaker 1>like hey, there was one guy that was really good

0:22:12.160 --> 0:22:18.440
<v Speaker 1>at this once, Like why go and hang out with

0:22:18.480 --> 0:22:21.560
<v Speaker 1>a kid you've never met her? Family, and you know

0:22:22.760 --> 0:22:28.480
<v Speaker 1>in Russia, um who's having a tough time because because

0:22:28.480 --> 0:22:30.720
<v Speaker 1>you can, because you have the he had the ability to.

0:22:35.640 --> 0:22:39.600
<v Speaker 1>Christof still has a photo of that night. There's Fred

0:22:40.000 --> 0:22:45.200
<v Speaker 1>on the couch with X the owl, and there's Christoph beaming.

0:22:49.520 --> 0:22:53.760
<v Speaker 1>When you genuinely learn how to listen and you're genuinely

0:22:53.840 --> 0:22:57.400
<v Speaker 1>interested in somebody just because they're them, not because of

0:22:57.440 --> 0:23:03.199
<v Speaker 1>any other reason that I think I got from just

0:23:03.240 --> 0:23:06.639
<v Speaker 1>that interaction, I think that's what stayed with me. Screw

0:23:06.680 --> 0:23:19.840
<v Speaker 1>Moscow next time. When Fred tells us that we are special,

0:23:20.040 --> 0:23:24.920
<v Speaker 1>he meant that there's something deep down inside each of us,

0:23:25.000 --> 0:23:28.240
<v Speaker 1>not to some of us, but each of us without

0:23:28.240 --> 0:23:35.960
<v Speaker 1>which humanity cannot survive. Finding Fred is produced by Transmitter Media.

0:23:36.240 --> 0:23:38.879
<v Speaker 1>Our team is Dan O'donald, Jordan Bailey and Mattie Foley.

0:23:39.280 --> 0:23:42.760
<v Speaker 1>Our editor is Sarah Nis. The executive producer for Transmitter

0:23:42.800 --> 0:23:46.520
<v Speaker 1>Media is Greta Cohne. Executive producers at Fatherly are Simon

0:23:46.600 --> 0:23:49.280
<v Speaker 1>Isaacs and Andrew Berman. Thanks to the team at I

0:23:49.359 --> 0:23:52.840
<v Speaker 1>Heart Media, and also thanks to Christoph Putzel. Our show

0:23:52.920 --> 0:23:55.920
<v Speaker 1>is mixed by Rick Kwan, music by Blue Dot Sessions

0:23:55.920 --> 0:23:58.640
<v Speaker 1>and Alison Layton Brown. If you like what you're hearing,

0:23:58.960 --> 0:24:01.879
<v Speaker 1>rate the show, you the show, and tell a friend

0:24:02.520 --> 0:24:13.080
<v Speaker 1>I'm Carvel Wallace. Thank you for listening. M hm