It was a different world. And your memories and imagining it all much better then only gets stronger as you age. I never imagined a world I did not understand. I was always on top of things with technology and slang. Now with AI, crypto and seeing people banking on their phone and a thousand other things I am beginning to feel lost. So, like you, I look at images of the past in my mind or other places. It was safer and less complicated. But the past had its problems for many people. People not like you and I. I want to talk to my dad, and my grandparents to my cousins. I look at my kids, especially my 18 yr old daughter, and know she will want to talk to me one day when she cannot. Thankfully, we talk all the time. Norman Rockwell evokes that much simpler world. I recently read Charles Schultz biography. Nothing makes me think of the past like him. I grew up with Charlie and Snoopy and Linus. Ok, I have wandered into the wilderness here. Sorry.....I have seen that book. It is wonderful. We miss that time. We missed you for a few days. We love you, Sean. You remind us that we are all human and need to treat each other as such.
I am not surprised that you should write this tribute to Norman Rockwell Sean. He truly has seeped deep into your soul because your writing reflects his paintings. When I read your essays they often conjure a Rockwellian image in my mind. Well done!
I’d like to read a thoughtful analysis of Norman Rockwell’s popularity, the reasons that his paintings touched so many hearts and minds with “goodness”. That’s the best word I can think of to describe a Rockwell painting, maybe Goodness with a capital G.
Or this…
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, Goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
There is quite a resemblance between Norman Rockwell's view of the world around him and yours, Sean. You both share your views, albeit, in differing forms, but very much the same. You both make our world a lot easier to appreciate. Thank you. ❤
My mom worked at the Curtis Publishing Company in Philadelphia & worked with Norman Rockwell when he would come in w/ his large black bag holding sketches of what he hoped would be considered for a magazine cover.
She always spoke highly of him as a true gentleman & incredible artist.
I have a book signed by Norman to my mother….I’ll treasure it & it makes me smile too!
Mom went back to work after we kids were in middle school. She had worked there just after graduating from Drexel university & loved it. She had some great story’s & was a part of selecting the illustrations from many artists.
If you’re ever in Philly, do stop by the Curtis building…the mosaic fountain inside is stunning!
Hi Marilyn….haven’t “seen” you in a while! Hope all is well on the gulf. Enjoyed your comment…..what a neat encounter and occupation of your mom. The fountain sounds magnificent too!
Others help us see each other and ourselves. Thanks for writing this morning. Thanks for writing about Norman Rockwell and your pups. Sharing what we love is sharing who we are. ❤️
Yes indeed. But we mostly want him to be happy. Sean has done his share of helping us. He deserves at the very least a break and a thanks for writing. ❤️ I’m not convinced El Camino was a lot of a ”break”. But I could be wrong.
What a great memory to share this morning. I remember, as a kid in the 40s and 50s, waiting to read the Saturday Evening Post and seeing Norman Rockwell’s paintings on the cover. You’re right about the emotions they would generate. They always told a story, and they always seemed to have a secret message, that if you really looked closely, you could see it. Most always, they showed me how things could be in a more perfect world and I felt better. They gave me hope, comfort and happiness that things could be better, maybe if I tried a little harder. They were so real, so detailed. When I was eight or nine, my mother had my portrait done by the artist Hal McIntosh, who also painted very real, detailed portraits. I had to sit still for two hours each afternoon after school for a week. I hated doing that. It was so boring. After that, when looking at the boys my age in the Rockwell paintings, I would feel sorry for them, imagining how long they had to sit still. I look at that little boy McIntosh painted still hanging in my den today. There is a sadness in his eyes that reflects what life was like in those days. Life wasn’t easy for that boy, but he turned out okay. He just tried a little harder. Thanks, Sean, for the memories.
Beautiful, Sean. What Norman Rockwell did with paint, you do with words. You are both masters of your crafts. If you didn’t already know, Rosie is part of the collection in the Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, AR. The first time I saw her face-to-face I burst into tears. She’s large and in charge. I felt like I was seeing Mr. Rockwell and all the women Rosie represented. Go see her!
I tell stories in my little corner of the world, and you, Mr. Dietrich, have inspired me again and again to find the good in the bad and share that. Thanks! May you be blessed for spreading good will and laughter to all of us!
‘Change the way we see the world’, yes it’s a choice. Rocks in hand we see trouble, strife and offenses so easily, it’s become almost involuntary to gripe and complain.
A ‘renewing of the mind’ is required. Gratitude for that we take for granted, silver linings, and positive outcomes are all there for those who diligently seek them.
If you cannot see the good, be the good someone encounters today. It may be as simple as a word or an illustration of encouragement.
I grew up in the Norman Rockwell world, and I miss it. The modern world holds few charms for me. I seem to recall an old episode of "The Twilight Zone" where a man wakes up on a train and gets off at a station, and the town is oddly familiar to him, although its ways are antiquated and old fashioned. If I recall it correctly, it turns out the town was his boyhood birthplace. I would love to find that train and just go back there for a week...a month... a year, and have a cherry float at the drug store on Depot Street, or a haircut on at Clyde's Barbershop, or a home cooked meal at my mother's table. We have lost so much, and traded it all for our own personal surveillance devices we carry around, the ultimate "fidget spinner" of our lives.
I have behind me an official (ie it cost me more than $10) print of his "do unto others..." https://www.un.org/en/visitor-centre-new-york/golden-rule-norman-rockwell a commission for the UN from FLOTUS Nancy Reagan. Of course he is in hte crowded painting, but heartbreakingly I am told the Scandinavian looking woman holding a toddler is his wife holding their grandson. Sadly she died before the grandson so this is a depiction of a scene between them which didn't ever happen. Worth another column on Rockwell.
I grew up with that magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, on the table, with all those covers. I loved that America. I visited the Norman Rockwell museum in Stockbridge Mass. His paintings are even more moving in person.
Norman Rockwell may be my favorite American artist and I remember The Shot. I also remember the Magazine but best of all I remember the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge Massachusetts. I visited there several times but back then it was in a house he used to live in, not it’s current location. I don’t know why it was moved, perhaps so they could display more of his artwork without the sun pouring through the windows to cause them to fade. There were so many pieces that many were kept in a safe area and pictures were periodically rotated to preserve them. Your words remind me of his paintings, in fact, I can picture new artwork he might have made to fit your stories, both are magical.
I’ve said this before, but you, Sean, are our Norman Rockwell in words. And for that, we are so very thankful.
Not only in words, Sean's drawings match the talent too.
It amazes me how I can always see the picture his words paint.
What she said. I am so thankful you exist.
It was a different world. And your memories and imagining it all much better then only gets stronger as you age. I never imagined a world I did not understand. I was always on top of things with technology and slang. Now with AI, crypto and seeing people banking on their phone and a thousand other things I am beginning to feel lost. So, like you, I look at images of the past in my mind or other places. It was safer and less complicated. But the past had its problems for many people. People not like you and I. I want to talk to my dad, and my grandparents to my cousins. I look at my kids, especially my 18 yr old daughter, and know she will want to talk to me one day when she cannot. Thankfully, we talk all the time. Norman Rockwell evokes that much simpler world. I recently read Charles Schultz biography. Nothing makes me think of the past like him. I grew up with Charlie and Snoopy and Linus. Ok, I have wandered into the wilderness here. Sorry.....I have seen that book. It is wonderful. We miss that time. We missed you for a few days. We love you, Sean. You remind us that we are all human and need to treat each other as such.
Thanks, Stephen. You put into words some of the very thoughts that are in my heart also.
I find it interesting that some of his stories get mostly female replies and others get many more male replies. I try to reply to all of his stories.
I am not surprised that you should write this tribute to Norman Rockwell Sean. He truly has seeped deep into your soul because your writing reflects his paintings. When I read your essays they often conjure a Rockwellian image in my mind. Well done!
I’d like to read a thoughtful analysis of Norman Rockwell’s popularity, the reasons that his paintings touched so many hearts and minds with “goodness”. That’s the best word I can think of to describe a Rockwell painting, maybe Goodness with a capital G.
Or this…
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, Goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Galatians 5:22-23 ESV
There is quite a resemblance between Norman Rockwell's view of the world around him and yours, Sean. You both share your views, albeit, in differing forms, but very much the same. You both make our world a lot easier to appreciate. Thank you. ❤
My mom worked at the Curtis Publishing Company in Philadelphia & worked with Norman Rockwell when he would come in w/ his large black bag holding sketches of what he hoped would be considered for a magazine cover.
She always spoke highly of him as a true gentleman & incredible artist.
I have a book signed by Norman to my mother….I’ll treasure it & it makes me smile too!
Wow, Marilyn! What a treasure you have in that book and memories of your mom.
Absolutely Phillip!
Mom went back to work after we kids were in middle school. She had worked there just after graduating from Drexel university & loved it. She had some great story’s & was a part of selecting the illustrations from many artists.
If you’re ever in Philly, do stop by the Curtis building…the mosaic fountain inside is stunning!
A book signed by Norman Rockwell is indeed a treasure…made even more special by it being for/to your Mother❣️
Yes, I made sure to let everyone know in the family…
“Don’t put this book in the garage sale if I’m not around anymore “!!!! 😂
Thanks Julie!! 💐
Hi Marilyn….haven’t “seen” you in a while! Hope all is well on the gulf. Enjoyed your comment…..what a neat encounter and occupation of your mom. The fountain sounds magnificent too!
Hi Cindy!!
Yes, it’s been a while getting situated moving from Pa to Florida but so far it’s been great!
Wonderful hearing from you…hope life is treating you well!!
Blessings my friend 🙏🏻🏖️🐠🦀
Others help us see each other and ourselves. Thanks for writing this morning. Thanks for writing about Norman Rockwell and your pups. Sharing what we love is sharing who we are. ❤️
Thanks for writing is right! I’ve missed his columns…..
Yes indeed. But we mostly want him to be happy. Sean has done his share of helping us. He deserves at the very least a break and a thanks for writing. ❤️ I’m not convinced El Camino was a lot of a ”break”. But I could be wrong.
What a great memory to share this morning. I remember, as a kid in the 40s and 50s, waiting to read the Saturday Evening Post and seeing Norman Rockwell’s paintings on the cover. You’re right about the emotions they would generate. They always told a story, and they always seemed to have a secret message, that if you really looked closely, you could see it. Most always, they showed me how things could be in a more perfect world and I felt better. They gave me hope, comfort and happiness that things could be better, maybe if I tried a little harder. They were so real, so detailed. When I was eight or nine, my mother had my portrait done by the artist Hal McIntosh, who also painted very real, detailed portraits. I had to sit still for two hours each afternoon after school for a week. I hated doing that. It was so boring. After that, when looking at the boys my age in the Rockwell paintings, I would feel sorry for them, imagining how long they had to sit still. I look at that little boy McIntosh painted still hanging in my den today. There is a sadness in his eyes that reflects what life was like in those days. Life wasn’t easy for that boy, but he turned out okay. He just tried a little harder. Thanks, Sean, for the memories.
Beautiful, Sean. What Norman Rockwell did with paint, you do with words. You are both masters of your crafts. If you didn’t already know, Rosie is part of the collection in the Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, AR. The first time I saw her face-to-face I burst into tears. She’s large and in charge. I felt like I was seeing Mr. Rockwell and all the women Rosie represented. Go see her!
I tell stories in my little corner of the world, and you, Mr. Dietrich, have inspired me again and again to find the good in the bad and share that. Thanks! May you be blessed for spreading good will and laughter to all of us!
‘Change the way we see the world’, yes it’s a choice. Rocks in hand we see trouble, strife and offenses so easily, it’s become almost involuntary to gripe and complain.
A ‘renewing of the mind’ is required. Gratitude for that we take for granted, silver linings, and positive outcomes are all there for those who diligently seek them.
If you cannot see the good, be the good someone encounters today. It may be as simple as a word or an illustration of encouragement.
Thanks for yours.
I grew up in the Norman Rockwell world, and I miss it. The modern world holds few charms for me. I seem to recall an old episode of "The Twilight Zone" where a man wakes up on a train and gets off at a station, and the town is oddly familiar to him, although its ways are antiquated and old fashioned. If I recall it correctly, it turns out the town was his boyhood birthplace. I would love to find that train and just go back there for a week...a month... a year, and have a cherry float at the drug store on Depot Street, or a haircut on at Clyde's Barbershop, or a home cooked meal at my mother's table. We have lost so much, and traded it all for our own personal surveillance devices we carry around, the ultimate "fidget spinner" of our lives.
“A Stop at Willoughby" from The Twilight Zone, is Rod Serling’s favorite story from the first season of the series.
If only we could ride that train to the Willoughby station, and regain some of what we have lost. If only…
Yes! That's the one. Indeed, if only...
I have behind me an official (ie it cost me more than $10) print of his "do unto others..." https://www.un.org/en/visitor-centre-new-york/golden-rule-norman-rockwell a commission for the UN from FLOTUS Nancy Reagan. Of course he is in hte crowded painting, but heartbreakingly I am told the Scandinavian looking woman holding a toddler is his wife holding their grandson. Sadly she died before the grandson so this is a depiction of a scene between them which didn't ever happen. Worth another column on Rockwell.
The balance of that painting is lovely, like a piece of architecture.
I grew up with that magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, on the table, with all those covers. I loved that America. I visited the Norman Rockwell museum in Stockbridge Mass. His paintings are even more moving in person.
I also visited the Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
To see his paintings in person, was indeed, a very moving experience.
Norman Rockwell may be my favorite American artist and I remember The Shot. I also remember the Magazine but best of all I remember the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge Massachusetts. I visited there several times but back then it was in a house he used to live in, not it’s current location. I don’t know why it was moved, perhaps so they could display more of his artwork without the sun pouring through the windows to cause them to fade. There were so many pieces that many were kept in a safe area and pictures were periodically rotated to preserve them. Your words remind me of his paintings, in fact, I can picture new artwork he might have made to fit your stories, both are magical.
I have that same book. It does lift the heart!!
I may purchase it. Better than some of the travel souvenir books I still haven't unwrapped lying under my coffee table...
Boy, do we need a Norman Rockwell and a Charles Schulz today! Thank goodness we have a Sean Dietrich to carry the torch, however.