Almanzo quotes from Little House on the Prairie

Almanzo

[to Laura] I didn't want you to feel like you had to be nice to me because of the money.

Be nice to you? I love you, you silly man! Nobody could ever love you as much as I do.

Eliza Jane

How's Laura?

Caroline

[turning to Almanzo] She's fine, and so is your new baby daughter! Meet Rose Wilder! Isn't she beautiful?

Almanzo

Good thing it's a girl. A man can't very well play ball with his son when he's a cripple!

[to Almanzo] You don't need a wheelchair! You could only walk if you tried!

Almanzo

We've been all through this. You don't know what it's like.

And you don't know what it's like for me to watch my husband just give up! I think you want to be a cripple.

Almanzo

What kind of thing is that to say?

The truth, that's what!

Almanzo

Beth, you know that I have tried.

Oh, yes. Just long enough to give up. Doc Baker gave you exercises, and you won't even do them!

Almanzo

They don't work! Can't you understand that?

No, I don't! I don't understand anything about you anymore!

Almanzo

I don't want anyone taking care of me. Not you, not Laura. Nobody.

Eliza Jane

You have no choice.

Almanzo

Yes, I do. I can die.

Eliza Jane

Almanzo, you don't mean that!

Almanzo

I pray for it every night. If there's a God in Heaven, He'll let me die. Please go away, Eliza Jane. Go away.

Eliza Jane

[to Almanzo] What are you doing?

Almanzo

I'm building a house for me and my family to live in.

Eliza Jane

Why? We're moving to Minneapolis. You can't build a house here!

Charles

Eliza Jane--

Eliza Jane

Look, this came today! It's a job, Almanzo. A proper job! One you can handle from your wheelchair. Now you don't have to worry about this silly farm anymore.

Charles

Maybe Almanzo doesn't think this is a silly farm.

Eliza Jane

He'll be a lot better off once we get him to Minneapolis.

Charles

He doesn't want to spend the rest of his life in that chair!

Eliza Jane

It's not my doing that he's in the wheelchair.

Charles

Isn't it? It seems to me that as long as you were doing everything for him, he had no reason to get out of it.

Almanzo

[to Eliza Jane] I'm standing on my own two feet and I don't want you to take that away from me.

Eliza Jane

Almanzo!

Almanzo

You've always been my big sister. I've listened to you, looked up to you. I always thought you knew what was best for me.

Eliza Jane

I do want what's best for you!

Almanzo

I know you do. But you need to let me decide what that is from now on.

Eliza Jane

This job! It's what we've been waiting for!

Almanzo

It's what you've been waiting for. I want to be a farmer. That's all I've ever wanted out of the whole world. After we finish raising the house and working the fields for next year's crops two weeks ago, I didn't know what I was going to do. Now I do.

Eliza Jane

[backs away and starts crying] After everything I've done for you, I can't believe you're going to throw it all away! [runs off]

Almanzo

[to Charles] I didn't want to hurt her like that.

Charles

She'll be all right.

Almanzo

[to Laura about the new house] I know it's small. We're all gonna be living in one room for a while.

I'm used to that.

Almanzo

And you'll have to fetch the water from the well, because there's no pump in the kitchen like before.

I'm used to that, too.

Almanzo

We're gonna be downright poor for a time, but the Farmer's Almanac predicts a good year. Cool summer, mild winter.

If the Almanac says it's so, it's so.

Almanzo

We're right back where we started, you might say, but the land is ours and nobody can take it away from us.

They better not try!

Almanzo

Welcome home, Beth. [they hug each other]

[about Matthew] It's him! It's the Wild Boy!

Jenny

But he's not wild!

Almanzo

I said keep away from him! There's no telling what he's gonna do.

Jenny

Please! Won't you just listen to me? He's not wild, I tell you! He's a mute! [walks over to Matthew] It'll be all right, Matthew. They won't hurt you. His name's Matthew. He can't talk, but he can hear. He scratched his name in the dirt over there. The reason he acts this way is because Dr. McQueen keeps him locked up in that cage. You'd act wild, too!

I can't believe anybody would do something like this.

Almanzo

What I can't understand is how he got here. Jenny, how long have you known about this?

Jenny

Just today. Well, see, some of us sneaked into the tent to see him. We were just gonna take a quick peek and leave, honest. Nancy started teasing him and hitting him with a cane. Well, I stopped her. When I was putting the cane back, he reached down and touched my arm. He was scared, and he had this look on his face like.....well, now I know that all he wanted was for someone to help him.

[to Almanzo] I don't think it's such a good idea for Jenny to be spending so much time at Marvin's.

Almanzo

Why not?

Well, you saw her. She's exhausted. She could barely keep her eyes open at the dinner table. She hardly even ate anything! I just don't think it's a good idea.

Almanzo

Beth, how many times has that child come home so exhausted from playing that she can barely keep her eyes open?

It was different then.

Almanzo

How?

She was all right then. How do we know this isn't making her worse? All that walking.....

Almanzo

Beth, it's good for her. She's having fun. Don't treat her like an invalid. You said you were gonna give this a chance.

[about naming the baby] It was so much easier when we were sure it was gonna be a girl.

Almanzo

Yeah, and the only problem is, I can't think of a boy's name similar to Elizabeth.

All right, Baby Wilder. Time to greet the morning! [reaches into the baby's crib and stops cold) Baby? [long pause, backs away] Manly? MANLY!

Almanzo

Beth, what is it?

There's something wrong. There's something wrong with the baby! Oh, God!

Jenny

[walks in as Laura backs away in shock) Aunt Laura, what's wrong? Aunt Laura?

Almanzo

[tries to wake the baby up, long silence] Dear God. He's dead. Our baby's dead.

Doc Baker, I will not have you present at the burial of our child.

Almanzo

Beth, please.

No! Not when our son is dead because of him.

Laura!

Just go away. You're not wanted here.