Thinking of grandparents reminds us of a story Fred Rogers used to tell. As a youngster, there was nothing he liked better than Sunday afternoons at his grandfather's farm. Surrounded by miles of winding stone walls, the house and grounds provided endless hours of fun and discovery.

Since his very first visit to the farm, he wanted more than anything to be allowed to climb the stone walls surrounding the property. His parents would never approve. The walls were old; some stones were missing, others were loose and crumbling.

He long remembered one afternoon when he was eight years old and hesitantly asked to climb the walls. His mother and grandmother said something like, "Heavens no, you'll hurt yourself." But his grandfather said, "Let the kid walk on the wall. He's got to learn to do things for himself. Now, scoot on out of here," he said to Fred with a wink. "And come see me when you get back."

For the next two and a half hours, Fred climbed those walls, skinned his knee, tore his pants, and had the time of his life. He loved his grandfather for trusting him so much. His grandfather's name was Fred McFeely. No wonder Fred included a lively, elderly delivery man ("Speedy Delivery!) in our television Neighborhood whom he named "Mr. McFeely."

Later that afternoon Fred met with his grandfather to tell him about his adventures.

He never forgot what his grandfather said. "Fred," he grinned, "you made this day a special day by being yourself. Always remember there's just one person in this whole world like you -- and I like you just the way you are." Fred wondered if his grandfather ever knew how important that day -- and his words -- had been to him.

There have been changes in our Neighborhood series over the years, characters and special guests to the Neighborhood come and go. But one thing has remained the same -- our message to the children at the close of our program, "There's just one person in the whole world like you. And people can like you just the way you are."

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