Yesterday I bought a box of Cheerios because I believe those crunchy little Os stand for something we dearly need in this great country of ours: Optimism.
Though I’m a fruit and yogurt kind of breakfaster, I’ll be eating those Cheerios today, because I like the taste of class, and sweet rebuttal, and firm resolve.
I’ll be loading up my bowl with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries too. A little color makes a meal tastier, healthier, brighter and breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Like the family with whom you share it, breakfast fuels you up, gives you energy and strength to face your hectic life.
Just as the recipe for original Cheerios has remained constant for 74 years, so has the real definition of family stayed true.
Families mean love and you know who gets to define what makes a family? The people in it.
I have to confess that I didn’t notice the bi-racial nature of this family when I saw this commercial. I saw a cute, mischievous little girl, a strong napping father and a beautiful, serene mother. The backlash this commercial received took me my surprise. I thought as a nation we were more mature than that, less threatened and more enlightened. Today, short of anonymous vitriol spewed by a bitter minority, I still believe we are.
Though they disabled the comments on their YouTube channel, General Mills did not pull the “Just Checking” ad. Instead, the marketing team behind General Mills created a brilliant follow-up commercial and aired it during the Super Bowl.
In it, we learn that Gracie and her family aren’t going anywhere. In fact, they’re growing bigger. The crunchy Os in that commercial stand for Outstanding. Albert Einstein once urged people to, “Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of Life!”
This morning, we’ll be rejoicing in our house and saluting the beautiful land of Life with a big, colorful bowl of cereal.
Oh my I thought the same thing when the controversy started about the commercial. I was brought up on Cheerios & Wheaties & still love them. I was so pleased when General Mills stood their ground. I just put banana’s on mine.