Jaki
Jean on Jean & One Tree Hill
The other evening, the Hallmark Channel
aired a promo for an upcoming Hallmark movie, “The Beach House.” I was reading, but I looked up & recognized
an actor who starred in a WB turned The CW series from 2003-2012.
I asked Jean if she remembered the actor,
if she remembered “One Tree Hill.” When she
indicated that she did not, I reminded her that for several seasons, “One Tree
Hill” was her favorite show.
And that her favorite character, Lucas Scott,
was played by a younger version of Chad Michael Murray, soon to appear on
Hallmark’s “The Beach House.”
So I told Jean a story - what I
remembered of the series, set in the small town of Tree Hill, North Carolina, the
plot revolving around two half-brothers.
Fathered by the same man, Dan Scott, within a few months of one
another.
The elder son, Lucas, lived with his
mother Karen, who owned a café in Tree Hill.
His father Dan never married Karen, never interacted with his eldest
son.
Dan married Deb (whose family had
money), the mother of his youngest son, Nathan.
I explained the complexities of life in
Tree Hill, where the major form of entertainment is the local high school Ravens
basketball team. In the first few
seasons, basketball set the tone for each episode – which brother played best,
their father’s reaction to his youngest son’s performance, his fury that too
often Lucas outperformed Nathan.
I told Jean about the females I
remembered. Peyton, the broody, deep, cheerleader, Brooke the slut cheerleader, & Lucas’s best friend Hayley.
And I reminded Jean that whenever Lucas
misbehaved or acted like a male slut, she always defended him.
Lucas is a good boy.
Good as a two-syllable word.
Jean asked me if “One Tree Hill” was
still on. I explained that it ended in
2012, but I would try & find it on Netflix.
“One Tree Hill” is not on Netflix, but I
remembered that I keep forgetting to cancel my Hulu account (I only signed up
for “The Handmaid’s Tale”). And there it
was – all nine seasons.
The next night, I hooked up my computer
to Jean’s TV & we binge watched three episodes of “One Tree Hill.” I pointed out the characters, explained the
relationships.
During one scene, Jean asked what made
Brooke the slut cheerleader. I told her
she needed to keep watching & all would be revealed.
As we watched, I began to recognize actors
now appearing in Hallmark movies. My friend
Rachel Halperin Plotkin’s daughter Emily Plotkin, posted in recent Facebook
memory that Hallmark movies were where all former stars of sitcoms go.
I think Emily is right –but I would include sitcoms,
soap operas & nighttime teenage angst dramas.
I know that I cannot recreate those past evenings
of watching “One Tree Hill” with Jean.
We can watch more episodes & before each one, I will have to explain
the characters & relationships & why basketball is so central to the
plot.
The next day after our three-episode
binge, Jean asked me the name of the aide who comes in three times a week to
bathe her. Angela, I tell her.
Jean repeated: Angela,
Angela, Angela.
Later in the afternoon, Jean announced:
I need a notebook
.
Curious, I asked her why she needed a
notebook.
I need a notebook to write down the things I have forgotten. To remember.
I assured Jean I would get her a
notebook. Then I left the room so she
would not see me weeping.
I wept, not because my mother feels the
need to write down what she has forgotten, what she wants to remember, but because Jean already has a
notebook.