Memories

It's funny how something so small can trigger such a vivid memory. Today someone left a box of Beechies Chewing Gum on my desk from a salesman, the same kind my grandaddy used to get from the Farm Bureau in Thomaston. As soon as I put the first piece in my mouth, I was back in my grandparents' dining room...I could almost smell the lingering Marlboro Red smoke mixed with Virginia Slims Menthol, spearmint gum, and vanilla candles. I could feel the worn yellow linoleum and braided rug under my feet. I closed my eyes and could see the chunky wood mantel on the brick wall, the hurricane lamps, and feel the heat from the gas log fireplace.

I spent days at a time with my grandparents when I was growing up. My grandaddy was just a phone call away, no matter what was going on he would hop in the truck and come pick me up. We went to pay bills around town, to visit family that lived close by, to the fire station, police station, courthouse, archives, city hall, Red Cross, grocery store, Dairy Queen, feed store (baby chicks!), hospital, library, cemetery, Burger King, Piggie Park...you name it, we went there. He took me to every animated Disney movie that came to the Ritz. We played catch and kickball. We cut the grass, trimmed the hedge, picked snap beans, and picked up sticks. We made things in his workshop - with lots of nails. I was his Sunshine, Troublemaker, and, best of all, The Boss ;-)

It's bittersweet to go visit them now, things have changed so much since I was a child running around their house. Sometimes it helps just to take a moment to remember the good times...