Why Reading Rainbow Gave Me Recurring Nightmares as a Child (But I Still Love LeVar Burton Anyway)

Like galore an ‘80s kid, I pledged undying fealty to Reading Rainbow. The titles featured connected the acquisition PBS amusement were the ones I sought successful the room and begged for arsenic gifts. Except for 1 book. One publication gave maine recurring nightmares for decades.

For years, I had scant memories of the nightmarish communicative featured successful 1 peculiar Reading Rainbow episode. A farmer, moving his field. An tremendous volcano, retired of perfectly nowhere. Utter destruction. Those details were each it took to propulsion my small unconscious encephalon to the brink.

Look, I was a fearful kid. An incomplete database of things I was acrophobic of: ants, dogs, fire, fireworks, slayer bees, cobwebs, alien abduction, the tiny radical I thought lived successful the table successful my bedroom, my grandparents’ unnervingly bluish upstairs bathroom, and quicksand (a communal fearfulness among america ‘80s kids). Several of those made their mode into my dreamscapes, but lava dominated them all. Raining from the sky, burbling retired of the plot successful my backyard, chasing maine disconnected the playground. Over and over, inescapable and terrifying.

Shortly aft identifying the book, I was among the DVDs successful the children’s conception of my nationalist library, astir apt looking for a Garfield Halloween peculiar oregon immoderate different forgotten classic, erstwhile I happened upon a enactment of Reading Rainbow DVDs that included episodes from the 1980s.

The communicative Hill of Fire followed. It was conscionable arsenic I remembered. A husbandman minding his concern successful the tract astir loses his ox to a smoking spread successful the crushed that past erupts into El Monstruo. While radical were capable to flight and recovered a caller village, the volcano decimated their homes. As a kid I took nary solace from the ending, successful which everyone was blessed to beryllium live and person a caller tourism manufacture successful their caller town, acknowledgment to looky-loos anxious to spot the world’s newest volcano.

Following the story, LeVar explains much astir volcanic activity. He introduces the layers of the earth, magma chambers, etc. He says determination are hundreds of volcanoes scattered each implicit the world. What helium ne'er says? That volcanoes are precise improbable to erupt successful your backyard oregon playground! He ne'er says wherever connected the globe volcanic enactment is concentrated. No 1 told maine that I lived connected precise volcanically inactive terrain. I thought that what happened to the nameless husbandman successful Hill of Fire could easy hap to me. Cue the nightmares. Isabelle, you mightiness ask, wherefore didn’t you simply archer your parents astir your fears? Surely they would person assuaged them. Dear reader, that’s for maine and my therapist to benignant out!

Or possibly it was seeing the occurrence again, noting that my juvenile fears were successful immoderate ways righteous. Another healing infinitesimal whitethorn person been visiting Volcanoes National Park myself — the precise spot LeVar Burton began the infamous occurrence — and staring into a glowing caldera. I marveled astatine this unusual orangish smolder, amazed that airy truly tin travel from inside the earth. Of each my theories, I similar to deliberation this is erstwhile I made bid with volcanoes. When I yet looked into the void, and it shone backmost astatine me.

Even though LeVar Burton didn’t expect my peculiar fearfulness and caput it disconnected successful that episode, I clasp perfectly nary sick will. If anything, rewatching the occurrence gave maine renewed emotion for what Reading Rainbow did. (Burton’s bookish life continues to beryllium aspirational, by the way.) That aforesaid occurrence had a fascinating conception with a potter practicing raku techniques from his workplace adjacent Kilauea. It besides had the trademark, indelibly charming publication recommendations from chap ‘80s kids. The amusement did not condescend to its audience. It’s surely played a immense relation successful making maine the scholar and the genuinely funny idiosyncratic I americium today. Ultimately, the nightmares were a tiny terms to pay.