Calm and bright

All is calm and bright in my little corner of the world.

Yesterday, we watched “A Christmas Story.”

For me, it’s the perfect seasonal classic film, yet it often gets dismissed as another gimmicky holiday movie running in those 24-hour TNT marathons.

There are so many reasons it’s been my favorite for nearly 40 years, and not just because it’s absurdly funny and makes me laugh every time I see it.

“A Christmas Story” makes sense to the kid in me: corner bullies, broken eyeglasses, big dreams and lasting friendships.

“I swear, you know all those silly lines,” Rebecca says.

Yes, I do, thank you very much.

“Some men are Baptists, others Catholics. My father was an Oldsmobile man.”

“Fra-gee-lay. It must be Italian.”

“Has anyone seen Flick?”

And, of course: “You’ll shoot your eye out, kid.”

Based on the semi-autobiographical stories by Jean Shepherd, who also narrates the 1983 film as the adult Ralphie Parker, “A Christmas Story” follows the adventures of a young boy, his friends and his family.

Dad’s a cranky but loving father, a.k.a., “The Old Man.” Mom is sweet, overworked and “hasn’t had a hot meal in 15 years.” Little brother Randy won’t eat but always looks out for Ralphie.

Mostly, though, it’s about Christmas as seen through the eyes of Ralphie, whose biggest concern in life is getting one seemingly unattainable gift: a Red Ryder Carbine-Action 200-Shot Range Model air rifle BB gun.

Some of my favorite vignettes:

• The iconic scene where Schwartz “triple-dog dares” Flick to lick the frozen flagpole, and he gets his tongue stuck.
• When Scut “Yellow Eyes” Farkus and his sidekick Grover Dill terrorize kids walking to and from school.
• Randy’s puffy snowsuit that prevents him from putting his arms down.
• When Ralphie reaches his limit pummeling Scut to the point of a bloody nose, creatively cussing him out just like his dear old Dad.
• And, of course, The Old Man’s leg lamp – “a major award” – that has become a pop-culture icon. (We have two miniature versions – a nightlight and an ornament.)

The movie also provides some important life lessons:

Loyalty matters: Even at his age, Flick already knows what Robert DeNiro told Ray Liotta in “GoodFellas”: “Never rat on your friends, and always keep your mouth shut.”

Dream big: Ralphie isn’t afraid to ask for what he wants, even when he knows it’s likely unattainable. He never gives up, reminding his parents every chance he gets and desperately clawing his way back up the slide to tell Santa exactly what he wants.

Moms rock: Mrs. Parker is tough but a quiet hero when necessary. Like when she comforts Randy who’s hiding under the sink because he thinks, “Daddy’s gonna kill Ralphie” for fighting. She assures him that daddy’s not going to kill Ralphie. “Would you like some milk?” she says, handing it over and closing the cupboard door – with Randy still inside.

So, Ralphie finally gets his treasured BB gun, nearly shoots his eye out and his glasses fly off his face into the snow.

“Oh, no,” he says, before hearing that dreaded “crunch” after accidentally stepping on them.

“Oh, no,” he repeats as tears stream down his face.

That scene gets me every time.

As a “four-eyed” person since I was 5, I was always losing or breaking my glasses. Without fail. One of the hazards of being a tomboy.

Each time, I worried myself sick about telling my mother, who never really got all that upset and always found a way to jerry-rig them together so Dad wouldn’t notice when he got home from a hard day’s work.

And Mom, my tough but quiet hero, also managed to steer that evening’s dinner conversation away from my face.

Because money doesn’t grow on trees, Jennifer.

Another life lesson.