A glimpse of a family in a nearby neighborhood led to memories long forgotten, yet easily recalled.
The air smelled a mixture of wet and freshly mowed grass, the chill in the air reminiscent of fall. Two kids sprawled across the grass, with their mother overlooking the festivities from the wrap around porch. A girl, clad in an outfit far beyond her thirteen years. Face puckered in a scowl, almost unconvincingly so. A freckled face, red-haired boy by her side, throwing a football at her as he ran carefree across the lawn. The chase ensued. That is when the memories came flooding back.
Memories of days without bills, uncontained belly laughs, screaming fearlessly on the roller coaster at the fair, the last day of school with nothing planned but summer days, the comfort and resonance of a mother's hug, dinner always on the table at 5. Waiting for my first date to arrive, nervous and giddy. High school football games; cheering with abandon, pulling confetti out of my hair days past. Simple times, really.
The past has a tendency to present itself that way, though, doesn't it? In a glowing haze of perfect memories bound together. I forget all the teenage angst, nights spent waiting by the phone for that phone call that never came. The knot in my stomach as each member of my class was picked, the sinking feeling of being least sought.
Some days I think I would like to go back to simpler times, and then the reality of my memory comes back to me in a jolt. I am not sure you could pay me enough to go back to high school. Searching for who I was, not quite fitting in....all of it is not pleasant enough for me to ever want to repeat. What about you? Would you go back if you could?
2 comments:
I do go back, everyday. Only these days I go back as a 32 year old guidance counselor. I too remember "the good ole days." When I hear about all the things kids go through today in high school, I am quick to say, "you couldn't pay me enough to go back to that!" Its not so bad that we can remember the good, and try to block out some of the bad.
I would go back, to do things a little differently, make a few better choices. It's good that we can remember the good and the bad. Maybe that will help us understand our kids when they reach high school age, right?
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