Sweet Magnolias Season 4, Episode 3 ‘Abundant Grace’ is an episode about grief and how complicated it can be at times. Because Bill Townsend wasn’t a great person, and he wasn’t a great father, but that doesn’t mean that his children—and the mothers of his children, cannot grieve him. And of course, despite what Mama Townsend wants to make everyone believe, it doesn’t mean there’s just one right way to grieve.
Because as much as this episode is about grief, it’s also about how we get through grief, and the answer is… however we can. For some, it’s by looking out for others. And sometimes, like what happens with Ty and Kyle, we look out for others as they’re looking out for us, and we get through the day like that. We hang onto our family, to the one we’ve built—as Maddie does. And, sometimes, we try to pretend it doesn’t get to us, like Isaac. But in moments of grief, well… secrets have a way of coming out.
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ABUNDANT GRACE
Maddie isn’t the only one who shows abundant grace in this episode, but she is without a doubt the one leading the charge. And in a way, I get it. I do. Grief is such a complicated thing that you feel like the least you can do is allow people to feel it and be the bigger person in that moment. But Mama Townsend keeps making it hard, not just for Maddie, but for Cal, the kids, and everyone she comes into contact with.
The icing on the cake comes with Noreen, who she has no reason to treat the way she does—particularly not why treating Bex like she is great. Noreen is an adult, yes, and she made her own decisions and her own mistakes, but so did Bill. Bill was Noreen’s superior and infinitely older, not to mention the one who cheated on his wife and abandoned his three kids. Let’s not forget all of that.
If Bill’s mother wants to grieve her son from a place of anger, well, that’s her prerogative. But she doesn’t get to dictate how others grieve him. She can only control her own grief. The sooner she understands that, the better.
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JUST THE BEGINNING OF THE GRIEF
Ironically, confronting Isaac with the truth he kept from everyone is just another way of not just ripping a band-aid, but of making clear that this journey of grief isn’t something that can just be put to rest as soon as a funeral is over. Grief doesn’t just pass. No, grief is a process, and it’s usually one that takes a while to get through. And the problem is, of course, that everyone handles it differently. I say the problem only because a lot of people don’t understand how healthy it is for everyone to have their own way of handling their feelings.
What works for us works for us. What gives us comfort gives us comfort and it will likely not give everyone else comfort. And that’s a hard lesson to learn in general, and might even be an impossible one for Mama Townsend. But it’s one that Maddie and her kids, Noreen and hopefully Isaac can learn and lean on each other for support if needed when it comes to putting into practice.
Agree? Disagree? What did you think of Sweet Magnolias Season 4, Episode 3 ‘Abundant Grace’? Share with us in the comments below!
Sweet Magnolias Season 4 is now available to stream on Netflix.
