Seeking Perfection

Felix, Sara, Gus, and Felicity—walking through the fields.

Alec, Felicity, and Janet King.

Gus Pike and Felix King.

I’m going to use an example that most people won’t recognize but they should. The series Road to Avonlea is probably the best television show ever. It’s funny without being corny, it’s dramatic without being melodramatic; it’s real without being surreal. :-) It is set in rural Prince Edward Island, Canada, at the beginning of the twentieth century. The show begins by centering on Sara Stanley of L.M. Montgomery’s Story Girl series. In the second season, however, with the addition of a new character named Gus Pike, the series’ focus begins to shift to Felicity King, Sara’s cousin.

Felicity and Gus, soon after they meet.

The relationship between Gus and Felicity becomes the series’ main plot line, intertwined with and interrupted by features on Felix, Cecily, Sara, Hetty, Olivia, Alec, Janet, Jasper, and other main characters.


Felicity with her brother Felix. And with her sister Cecily.

In the end…well…I don’t want to spoil the final show if you haven’t seen it. :-) But, in the end Gus and Felicity end up happy.

Gus and Felicity at The White Sands Hotel…He got the night off. :-)

Now, you’re probably going, “what does this have to do with ‘seeking perfection’?” Just hang on and you’ll see just how well it applies. Gus Pike is a loner and basically an orphan. He and Felicity meet when he is about 16 and she is 13 and three quarters. (See the episode for explanation. :-)) His family is not the cream of the crop, his mother is presumed dead and his father, or the man he assumes to be his father, is in prison for murder. Talk about less than wonderful family connections! :-D Felicity, however, is from one of the best families on Prince Edward Island. The Kings are prosperous, well-connected, and stable: everything Gus Pike is not. Immediately, however, Felicity’s Aunt Hetty takes Gus under her wing: getting him into school and then, recommending him for a good job at the White Sands Hotel. She really becomes sort of a mother to him and he looks up to her for advice.

Hetty and Gus.

I don’t think Aunt Hetty knew about his admiration for Felicity at the time she got him the job; she merely sees a willing pupil and a true heart. When the relationship takes center stage, Hetty—though usually very aware of the King family reputation—shows no qualms. Neither do Felicity’s parents, Alec and Janet. Alec especially likes Gus and sees that Gus is honorable, truthful, and a hard worker. Sure, Gus makes him mad in one episode but that was Felicity’s fault when she was a hint over-zealous about asking Gus over to dinner. :-D Before he came to Avonlea, Gus was uneducated, rough, dirty, and didn’t keep in the best company. Because the Kings gave him a chance, he went to school, got a good job at the hotel, not to mention being able to get the job and home of running the lighthouse, and eventually, he married Felicity. Think of what would have happened to him if the Kings had not given him a chance. For one thing, he would have been stuck in South Carolina if…oops…I don’t want to give away the plot of a very good episode. :-) In any case, the picture below would never have been taken.



What is happening to all the Gus Pike's of our day and age? What about the young man/woman who has made one mistake in his/her past? Will they be rejected from consideration because of it? What if the family of the other young person does not think that his/her family is rich enough, well-connected, or perfect enough? If the Kings had thought that, Felicity would have missed her soul mate and there’s no telling what would have happened to Gus. As Christians, don’t you think we ought to give everyone a chance? Not just the people that are exactly like us? Shouldn’t we let young people make their own decisions about their future? Aren’t parents supposed to guide not dictate? Must we make the perspective suitor write ten (or more) essays? Especially if we know them already? Why do they need to be perfect? Is the person that you’re married to perfect? Is your child perfect? Wasn’t there only one absolutely blameless and pure person in history? Do we really need to pick on the person our son or daughter likes just because she/he wasn’t wearing the right thing? How do you know anything about someone if you just write them off at the beginning and never ask them about their life/plans/etc.? To look at me, as I come from a not-so-large family, you probably would never guess that I want to have six children someday. Unless you asked me. The Kings took the time to ask Gus about himself and his future and saw his worthiness. Don’t you think it’s time you saw the hidden worthiness of the people around you? Suitor or not, young or old. And don’t you think you could help bring it out?


Road to Avonlea ran for Seven Seasons on CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company) and the Disney Channel. (Really! This was before “Hanna Montana.” Bleck!!) It won several Emmy, Gemini, Young Artist, and Cable Ace Awards. This is the link to Sullivan Entertainment; the same company that produced both of the beloved “Anne” mini-series,’ and also produced Road to Avonlea.

http://www.sullivanmovies.com/
The official site
http://www.roadtoavonlea.com/
A very good (fan)site. We love the episode guide!
http://www.avonleaguide.com/

I recommend that you buy this show…right now! :-D We bought the first season and My Aunt and Uncle have given me seasons 2—well, I’m hopefully getting season 7 this December. :-) The Season sets cost $70 each but they are fully worth it. Ask for this for Christmas. And if you can’t buy it get it from the Library or Netflix.

Thanks to http://www.gusandfelicity.com/ for some of the pictures!

This article is dedicated to a very close friend of mine...for reasons which I cannot state.