Another Piece of My Childhood Died With Alex Trebek

So God Made a Mother is Here! 🎉

2020 dealt us another blow this morning with the death of beloved Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek at age 80 from pancreatic cancer. We all watched the last two years as he fought his struggle with grace and kept on hosting the iconic game show for which he is so well known. Trebek’s fight was inspiring and he will be so, so missed.

Alex Trebek and Jeopardy! hold a special place in American culture: He and his show are one of the few things baby boomers, Gen Xers, Xennials, Millenials, and today’s teens all have in common, know about, and enjoy.

I know very few people who haven’t watched at least a few games of Jeopardy! together with their families. If you’re like many of us, you watched it with your family on a regular basis. The quiz show and its matter-of-fact, friendly host were a staple of my childhood and something my entire family enjoyed, from my grandparents down to little old me. We still like to watch it together when we get the chance!

Alex Trebek brought us together for 30 minutes every weeknight.

Thanks to Alex, families took time to sit together and learn together. He stumped us, he made us feel like a genius when we knew the answer, and he always made sure we answered in the form of a question. His light banter with contestants after a commercial break, where I could get glimpses of his personality, was something I always looked forward to.

Another thing I looked forward to was when SNL would do a Jeopardy! spoof. I wonder what Alex thought of Will Ferrell’s impression? I loved it, but no matter what, if you’ve been parodied on SNL, you KNOW you’re an American (or Canadian-American as the case may be!) icon.

Now, that gentle genius who united friends and families five nights a week is gone, and I feel like one more piece of my childhood is gone with him.

Jeopardy! will live on, I’m sure—it’s fantastic! But I don’t envy the host who has to try and fill the shoes that such a beloved man has filled since 1984 (when I was just seven!). I’m glad we can still stream old episodes and see Alex show us and the contestants how it’s done (fun fact, I love watching Jeopardy! when I’m on the treadmill). Watching old episodes can take us through the best of Alex’s fashion looks and hairstyles (you know the perm is your FAVE!) and also just remind us of a time when life was a bit slower and we all had time to sit together for a whole hot 30 together to learn and laugh.

Missing Alex Trebek is, in a very real way, missing a more carefree time of my life.

Final Jeopardy!: Who is “a job well done, personified”?

Alex Trebek.

Thank you, sir . . . well done.

Watch the moment Final Jeopardy brought Alex Trebek to tears here.

So God Made a Mother book by Leslie Means

If you liked this, you'll love our new book, SO GOD MADE A MOTHER available now!

Order Now

Her View Shop

Jenny Rapson

Jenny Rapson is a follower of Christ, a wife and mom of three from Ohio and a freelance writer and editor. You can find her at her blog, Mommin' It Up, or follow her on Twitter.

It’s the Flower Food Packet that Hurts

In: Grief, Loss, Motherhood

It’s the flower food packet that gets you. That little plastic packet with the powder that keeps your flowers alive longer. The little packet you know you’ll never use because these flowers aren’t going in a vase. They’re going on the ground. RELATED: The Impossible Grief of Child Loss Hurts Forever Buying flowers for my baby’s grave is a normal process for me. Every so often, and especially around the time of year we lost our boy, I grab a bunch at our local grocer. I lay them carefully on top of where his very tiny body was laid to...

Keep Reading

How Do You Say Goodbye to Your Mother?

In: Grief, Loss

Sitting at a McDonald’s table in Charleston, SC, I looked down at my ill-fitting shirt and shorts. Stress had taken its toll, and most of my clothes now hung off me. I should have worn something else I thought, but how do you pick out an outfit for saying goodbye to your mother? I reached up and felt my earrings. They were hers and seemed right. That was something at least. Within the hour, my family and I would come together to take my mom off life support. It was Good Friday and I managed to secure an Episcopal priest...

Keep Reading

This Is How to Show Up for a Friend Who Has Cancer

In: Cancer, Friendship, Living

Bald woman during cancer treatments and same woman in remission, color photo

One moment I was wrestling with my toddler and rocking my 3-month-old to sleep, and the next I was staring blankly at the doctor who just told me I had stage four cancer that had metastasized from my uterus to my left lung and spleen. “Well, I didn’t see that coming,” I smiled at the young doctor who had clearly never given this kind of news to anyone before. I looked over at my husband’s shell-shocked face as he rocked our baby back and forth in the baby carrier because I was still nursing, and we knew we’d be at...

Keep Reading

All I Have Left Are Dreams of My Mother

In: Grief, Loss, Motherhood

Mother holding infant, older color photo

I had a dream about my mom last night. It’s rare when this happens but last night’s dream was unlike any I’ve ever experienced. I was at a party, and she just walked in. It was so vivid. She sat down in a chair, looking so beautiful, so young, her eyes so very blue. She was so full of light, something I hadn’t seen in a while. I just looked at her, stunned, and gasped. I said, “Are you here? Are you real?” I couldn’t believe this was happening. Just like that she got up, grabbed me, and hugged me...

Keep Reading

I Miss the Little Moments with My Mom the Most

In: Grief, Grown Children, Loss

Woman sitting on floor by couch looking sad

You think it’s going to be the big holidays that are hard. The first Thanksgiving without her. The first Christmas. Maybe even her birthday. But it’s not the big days that bring you to your knees. It’s all the little moments in between. It’s cooking a family recipe and not being able to call her to ask a question about the directions. It’s looking down and realizing you’re using the Tupperware you stole from her and knowing you can’t return it even if you wanted to. RELATED: My Mom is Never Coming Back To Get Her Shoes It’s talking about...

Keep Reading

“It Can Wait.” What I’ve Learned about Doing Too Much after My Mom Died Young

In: Grief

My mom died at the age of 45. Yes, just 45. Around Mother’s Day, the reality of just how young she was hits me hard. As a mother of two young boys, I’m evaluating my own motherhood journey and in the absence of my mom, trying to give myself some sound advice for this next year. My mom was a family doctor. She got her MD at the University of Pennsylvania and a Master’s from Johns Hopkins University. Brilliant, most would say. She was in generally good health, petite, never smoked, never had more than a glass or two of...

Keep Reading

Time Doesn’t Make Mother’s Day Hurt Any Less

In: Grief, Grown Children, Living

Grave stone that says "mother" with a yellow flower

I’ve been in this motherless daughter club for over a decade now. Most of the time, that still seems strange to say out loud. I’m far from the firsts without my mom. However, what I have learned, is that there are certain experiences, certain days, and certain moments that you can’t put a timeframe on. These are the times that hurt for so much longer than just that initial grief period. Big moments without my mom—anniversaries, birthdays, special days—but the one I like to believe weighs the most and hits the hardest year after year is Mother’s Day. RELATED: Mother’s...

Keep Reading

Can You Hear the Silent Cry of Bereaved Postpartum Mothers?

In: Baby, Grief, Loss

Trigger warning: post discusses death and loss The cool air shocked my sweltering face as I walked into the doors of Old Navy. My husband kept his hand on my back to remind me he was still with me amidst the summer hustle that was buzzing in the store. We were there for a shirt. A single shirt. An embarrassing want that I was calling a need. I thought I would actually laugh at the situation once I got out of the house for the first time in a week. Seven days before, I was lying on my back in...

Keep Reading

I’m Happy for You But I’m Still Grieving: Remarriage after Loss

In: Grief, Grown Children, Loss, Marriage

Coupe holding hands at wedding, close up black and white image

“I take you for my lawful wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death does us part.” Remarriage is beautiful and redemptive. Remarriage proves that second chances are possible and that love doesn’t come in one specific shape or size. Remarriage is the embrace of hope as much as it is of love. Remarriage shows that love is still possible through heartbreak. But let’s face it, when you aren’t the one remarrying, remarriage can be a little awkward. Add in that you are the progeny...

Keep Reading

On the Days I Miss You Most

In: Grief, Loss

Holidays. Birthdays. The day they physically left us. These are the ones that hit the hardest—the toughest days. But they are also the expected ones, which makes it just the slightest bit more manageable. It’s the ones you don’t see coming that absolutely break you. The ones that come from way out in leftfield and hit you like a ton of bricks. The ones that force you to grieve all over again, something you never thought you would have to do. It’s when my daughter is happily sitting in a church pew reading her prayers when I wish they were...

Keep Reading

Say it Ain't So, 2020: Jeopardy! Host Alex Trebek Dead at 80

News

Say it Ain't So, 2020: Jeopardy! Host Alex Trebek Dead at 80

6 Ways Youth Sports Parents Can Be Better

Kids

Another Piece of My Childhood Died With Alex Trebek

Alex Trebek and Jeopardy! hold a special place in American culture: He and his show are one of the few things baby boomers, Gen Xers, Xennials, Millenials, and today’s teens all have in common, know about, and enjoy.

Now, that gentle genius who united friends and families five nights a week is gone, and I feel like one more piece of my childhood is gone with him.

Missing Alex Trebek is, in a very real way, missing a more carefree time of my life.

Watch the moment Final Jeopardy brought Alex Trebek to tears here.

If you liked this, you'll love our new book, SO GOD MADE A MOTHER available now!

Her View Shop

Jenny Rapson

It’s the Flower Food Packet that Hurts

How Do You Say Goodbye to Your Mother?

This Is How to Show Up for a Friend Who Has Cancer

All I Have Left Are Dreams of My Mother

I Miss the Little Moments with My Mom the Most

“It Can Wait.” What I’ve Learned about Doing Too Much after My Mom Died Young

Time Doesn’t Make Mother’s Day Hurt Any Less

Can You Hear the Silent Cry of Bereaved Postpartum Mothers?

I’m Happy for You But I’m Still Grieving: Remarriage after Loss

On the Days I Miss You Most

free email bonus

5 Ways to Connect with Your Kids

A National Bestseller!

Order So God Made a Mother

Another Piece of My Childhood Died With Alex Trebek

Alex Trebek and Jeopardy! hold a special place in American culture: He and his show are one of the few things baby boomers, Gen Xers, Xennials, Millenials, and today’s teens all have in common, know about, and enjoy.

Now, that gentle genius who united friends and families five nights a week is gone, and I feel like one more piece of my childhood is gone with him.

Missing Alex Trebek is, in a very real way, missing a more carefree time of my life.

If you liked this, you'll love our new book, SO GOD MADE A MOTHER available now!

Her View Shop

It’s the Flower Food Packet that Hurts

How Do You Say Goodbye to Your Mother?

This Is How to Show Up for a Friend Who Has Cancer

All I Have Left Are Dreams of My Mother

I Miss the Little Moments with My Mom the Most

“It Can Wait.” What I’ve Learned about Doing Too Much after My Mom Died Young

Time Doesn’t Make Mother’s Day Hurt Any Less

Can You Hear the Silent Cry of Bereaved Postpartum Mothers?

I’m Happy for You But I’m Still Grieving: Remarriage after Loss

On the Days I Miss You Most

Previous Post

Next Post

You May Also Like

5 Ways to Connect with Your Kids