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Recently, the kids and I were at the Graham branch of Alamance County’s library system, browsing through the DVD collection of television shows, picking out a few disks to watch over the weekend.

My daughter had a handful of “Gilmore Girls” that we wanted to watch again, and I was looking for something to add to the mix.

As we looked around, the full set of “thirtysomething” (Season 1) caught my eye. I was surprised to see it there so soon after its DVD release. I had seen the set at Best Buy and had debated buying it since I had been eagerly anticipating the release for a long time. Thankfully, I talked myself out of buying the disks since I (rightfully) figured the library would eventually add it to its large collection of movies and TV shows on DVD.

Set in Philadelphia, “thirtysomething” ran from 1987 to 1991 on ABC. The show highlighted the relationship between two married couples (Michael and Hope Steadman and Elliot and Nancy Weston) and their single friends (Ellyn Warren, Gary Shepherd and Melissa Steadman).

Within the series, you are invited to observe the characters as they struggle with many common adult situations. The mothers wrestle with their roles within the home as they have made choices for a time to stay at home to raise their children. Raised to embrace feminist ideals, they grapple with common issues mothers face such as feeling inadequate “just being a mother,” whether and when they should go back to work and then finding and trusting someone to watch their children. Ever present are issues that face all parents at one time or another. Each issue is dealt with carefully and respectfully.

The fathers feel the tremendous pressure of being the only source of income within the family. Both men form an advertising agency and work together knowing they have to succeed or they will let their families down. They struggle with not always having their wives’ full attention because of the demands of their very young children.

The characters’ problems throughout the episodes are handled in such a raw, real way — almost to the point of making you feel uncomfortable when true emotion comes pouring out. Issues such as marital discord, serious illness, failures and death are covered in the show’s four seasons.

I enjoyed seeing the “blast from the past” fashions displayed on the show. I can remember wearing many a shoulder pad as the women did in this show. Michael’s character wears suspenders, much like my husband did for several years around the time we were dating and newly married.

The technology of the time period stands out. Giant telephones with curly cords connecting the phone to the receiver were commonplace, and gigantic answering machines were high-tech once upon a time. One of the main characters, Melissa, is a photographer who has a dark room and a fridge full of film — not something you hear of these days with the popularity of digital cameras.

In one of my favorite first-season episodes, Nancy buys her family’s first computer. She takes the computer to Hope for help getting it to work, which eventually it does. Remembering how challenging DOS was makes me thankful for the nice plug-and-play versions we all enjoy now.

Another favorite from the first season was “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.” Hope and Michael are both faced with their daughter’s first holiday season. Michael, who is Jewish, hopes to keep certain Hanukkah traditions alive, while Hope wishes for Christmases like she had growing up as a Protestant. In the end, both compromise as each reaches out in a way that is meaningful to the other.

Bringing these DVDs home from the library, I waited until my husband was available to enjoy many of them with me. It was the first adult show we both began watching together from beginning to end. The story lines resonated with us — imperfect people trying to adjust to their lives as adults when problems do not always present easy solutions and are not always resolved by the end of the show in a nice, neat package.

As newlywed twentysomethings, we first enjoyed watching these characters in their thirtysomethings. Now watching the episodes on DVD as forty­somethings, we are able to reflect on the issues within the show with knowledge gained from having lived through our own thirtysomethings once upon a time.

Linda Vestal is a wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend living in Gibsonville. Contact her with comments or story ideas at lindavestal@triad.rr.com.