Plenty of formula in ‘Blessings’

When you wash your car, there is always that nagging possibility that it might rain the next day.

When your phone rings at dinnertime, the likelihood is an imminent sales pitch.

Even more inevitable is that phenomenon of TV movies: When you see two apparent opposites meet, you know they are destined to strike up an unlikely friendship, teaching each other invaluable lessons about life and love over the next two hours.

The predictable tradition continues Sunday night with “Blessings” (9 p.m., CBS), starring Mary Tyler Moore as the Eccentric Old Woman and Liam Waite (“Besotted,” “Ghosts of Mars”) as the Embittered Young Man. Based on the bestseller by Anna Quindlen, “Blessings” was adapted by Joyce Eliason and directed by Arvin Brown.

Lydia Blessing (Moore) is a reclusive, 80-year-old heiress living alone on a vast family estate. Unable to care for the home and grounds herself, Lydia hires ex-con Skip Cuddy (Waite) as her live-in handyman, to the dismay of her daughter, Meredith (Kathleen Quinlan, “Apollo 13”), and her even more protective housekeeper, Jennifer (China Chow, “Spun”).

On the way to his garage apartment one evening, Skip finds a surprise -- an abandoned newborn baby in a cardboard box. He decides to raise the infant on his own but cannot keep it from Lydia’s prying eyes.

Together they embark on a journey of faith, one that creates the family Skip never had while reminding Lydia of the past she has struggled to forget.

If you like this formula, you may enjoy seeing it rehashed in the hands of such a capable pro as Moore. If you don’t, you will gain a new appreciation for the little things in life, like the remote control.