Song of the day: Message to Michael - Dionne Warwick

"Spread your wings for New Orleans...Kentucky bluebird... fly away
And take a message to Michael, message to Michael...- Dionne Warwick"

The time: Thirty years ago...1979.
The setting: Still living at home with Mom and Dad, my sister and I on a sunny Saturday morning...dressed in old clothes, dustrags in hand, and with colorful scarves tied up around our heads.

My younger sister and I were reluctantly going about our usual weekend clean up routine. To help pass the time, we turned on the record player. Most popular song at the time? "Rock With You", by Michael Jackson; and guess what folks?... we had the 45 rpm single! My sister had set the turntable playing arm away from the record. For the benefit of you young ones who don't know what this means...This is what is done to activate the 'repeat' option. And so, for the next few hours, the song played over and over and over...non-stop, at maximum volume, while we slowly went about our business of cleaning; occasionally taking some time out to do a few dances in between chores.

"In search to find wealth and fame
I hear Michael has gone and changed his name"

At the time, Daddy worked evenings, and so he was upstairs sleeping after pulling a long night at the Post Office. Daddy was (is) a patient man; but after about the millionteenth playing, he had had enough of Michael Jackson; and so came flying down the stairs in his underwear (briefs), holding his ears with both hands. "Rock with you! Rock with you!" he shouted, "I'm tired of hearing it!". He tore into the sunroom, snatched the needle up from the record player, and then unceremoniously ran back upstairs again. Perhaps, in another household, this would have left the kids terror-stricken. In our particular household, Daddy seldom got mad...and so this caused my sister and I to laugh so hard that tears ran down our faces. As we each lost control of a particular bodily function, this only served to make us laugh even louder. We talk about it, even up until this day; and relate the story to whoever will listen.

"Message to Michael, message to Michael
Tell I miss him more each day
As his train pulled out down the track"

Fast foward many years later: I have my own child. Through my love of music, he has become quite familiar with old songs and music legends of times gone by. My son also likes to play a video game called "Plants vs. Zombies". (I do too) At one of the stages in the game, a Michael Jackson-like character appears. He is appropriately dressed in a red leather jacket, trimmed in black and dripping wet curls around his forehead. Make no mistake about it...the likeness is striking! Accompanied by a dozen or so zombies, he does a little moonwalk dance as he inches up to the player's house. The object of the game is to 'zap 'em' all before the house is invaded. It is a fun game. I begin to think how amazing it is that one person had such an ability to bridge generations in such fun and unique ways.

"Oh tell him how my heart just breaks in two
Since he'd journied far"

I was told of his death while I was at work. My co-worker gazed around her monitor and whispered the news to me. The early evening sun was still up in the sky as I walked out and made a quick phone call to my sister. Her phone rang. Before I could say anything, she answered it with the words: "I know...I was waiting for your call". We chatted for about thirty seconds and I went back to work. You know, I have never been one for idolizing celebrities, but have to admit that this particular one has had a huge part in creating unforgettable memories for us all; and for this I thank him.

"Come on,come on,come on, home tonight
Take it, take it, home tonight
All the lights will be shining home tonight"

Can you believe it? Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett gone at the same time...who would have thunk it...

In the meantime, another year has come around. It is summer again. The blackberries are almost ready to be picked...again. Time is passing quickly.

Song of the day: Crazy - Seal

"But we're never gonna survive unless
We get a little crazy- Seal"

"Jesus!", my co-worker exclaims, as she walks into the room, out of breath and wearing big sunglasses. We then exchange greetings. Today is Tuesday. I returned from a week of vacation yesterday, yet we have not spoken to each other since the Friday before. Yesterday (Monday), when she walked in, we uttered not one word to each other; not even a brief "hello"... There were absolutely no words spoken between us at all...not even a "goodbye" at the end of the evening when we all left for home. This is OK. Others may not understand this, but we do. She needed her time and space, and so I gave it to her. We are tuned in to each other's frequencies.

"In a world full of people only some want to fly
Isn't that crazy?"

She plops herself down, and says "Jesus!" again. I am also seated, and so I peer at her from behind my monitor. Stonefaced, and with a raised eyebrow, I tell her, "I just know you aren't expecting to reach Him!" I go on..."Just so's ya' know: The reason why you haven't been able to reach Him, is because He's been busy with me all this time". "Sorry girl, it's first-come, first-serve up there... you realize that, don't you?" I say. "It's gonna be a while...get to the back of the line!" She bursts out laughing. We are the only two people in the room. There is an unspoken agreement between us, that we will speak to each other only when no one else is around. (Remember that Looneytoons singing frog cartoon... "Hello my baby, hello my darlin'"? )

"And then you see things, the size of which you've never known before
They'll break it someday"

Once everyone else arrives, we usually "clam" up for the rest of the night. You see, we try not to add any more conversational "fuel" to the resident Chatterboxes' "fire", for them to feed off of. And so for the next twenty minutes or so, we continue to talk about the economy, overcoming roadblocks, and about the bi-polar ones among us. I tell her that as long as they pick a pole, or at the very least, let me know which pole is dominant during any given time, I can work with the situation. "Pick a pole and stick with it!", I say. We both give each other a "high five", and double over in semi-silent, shoulder heaving guffaws.

"Only child know them things
The size of which you've never known before....someday"

With tears of laughter streaming down both our faces, she pronounces me "crazy", and we manage to pull it together before anyone else walks into the room. Soon everyone begins to file in. We each plug into our respective earphones and begin to tune in to our separate worlds. She, to her radio's evening news station; and I, to CD disc number 15 of 20...of "The Hour I First Believed", by Wally Lamb. This is one serious book. As I listen, my laughter begins to fade....

It is going to be a long night.

"But we're never gonna survive unless
We get a little crazy"

Song of the day: Morningtown Ride - Malvina Reynolds

"Rockin', Rollin', Ridin', out along the bay
All bound for Morningtown, many miles away" - Malvina Reynolds

"The Boy" has been promoted to the fifth grade. Yay! We attended his school awards ceremony last week, where he was given one for Attendance (which truthfully should have been given to his father and me, since we were the ones who made the effort), and one for Accelerated Reading (the one he really earned). After the ceremony, his father and I walked around the gymnasium to say our "goodbyes" to the teachers. As I said "goodbye" to one teacher in particular; she mentioned to me that she would be sending a book home with "The Boy" on the last day of school. She had started to give it to him around Christmastime, but changed her mind because she thought it would be appreciated more, if received at the end of the school year. We hugged briefly, and then said our goodbyes. And so now, the summer school break begins.

I had forgotten about the book until this morning. "The Boy's" father and I spent most of the morning shredding his old school papers of the past year. As I emptied his backpack, a book fell out. It was the book that his teacher had promised him..."The Little Engine That Could".

"Maybe it is raining where our train will ride
All the little trave'lers are warm and snug inside"

Illustrated in cheery primary colors, with clowns and an assortment of bright circus animals, it clearly was a book intended for a much younger student; leaving me to wonder why she had chosen to give him such an elementary book; because, after all, he has a massive vocabulary, and can read flawlessly at a high school level (I do admit though, that at times, his comprehension leaves something to be desired.) I continued to wonder...that was until I read the inside dedication:

"Dear Xxxxxxx,
You are the most kind and loving child I have ever met. You have a unique quality that others might not always understand just like "The Little Engine". This book has meant a lot to me through my life and I wanted to share it with you. Always believe in yourself through life's journeys. Always be that positive person that you are and embrace that "I Think I Can Attitude" towards everything that you do.

Remember that there is always someone here that supports you because...

I know you can
I know you can
I know you can

Ms. Xxxxxx" - June 2009

"Somewhere there is sunshine, somewhere there is day
Somewhere there is Morningtown, many miles a-way"

Such a sweet and heartfelt message. During our frequent talks, she revealed to me a few of her personal struggles. This message was true. She, herself has lived by these words. She still lives by them. Tears begin to roll down my face.

I then flip the book over and take a look at the back cover. It reads:

""I think I can! I think I can!" Here is a delightful adaptation of one of the best-selling children's books of all time with a vocabulary geared for beginning readers."

"Rockin', Rollin', Ridin', out along the bay
All bound for Morningtown, many miles a-way"

Now, I understand. It seems the world has forgotten the value of even the most simplest of things. As I re-read the book with a new perspective, I realize there are things that I always thought I knew, but at the same time, also realize that sometimes it is possible to know a lot about everything, and yet really know nothing at all. Common sense has been lost in a plethora (my brother's favorite word) of multi-syllabic words, and hidden away by the so-called "intellects" among us. "a vocabulary geared for beginning readers", the book says. In some ways, I feel as if I too, am just a "beginning reader". Oh, and by the way...if you would be so kind: Please count me in as being amongst the simple "fools". Go right on ahead! I won't be offended. This "fool" will prevail, and will get to where she truly needs to be...soon.

"I think I can! I think I can!"

"All bound for Morningtown, many miles away"

Because of teachers like the one mentioned above, somehow the road ahead doesn't seem quite as long...All aboard!!!


Added note: "The Boy" told me today that I was a really "fun" and "cool" Mom. It doesn't get much better than this...really.