Do you remember that scene in the Pixar movie The Incredibles when Dash, the superhero son, having just escaped evil villains and near death while trying to save his father, splays his arms wide, throws back his head and screams “That was TOTALLY WICKED!” before falling backwards onto the bed behind him? I have always loved that scene … and I totally lived it last night.
There were no evil villains, of course, or even near-death experiences. In fact, it was a ho-hum Loree sort of evening: I visited a public library to talk with patrons about TRACKING TRASH. (I don’t find this sort of thing ho-hum at all, mind you, but I think Dash and his Incredible family would.)
Anyhow, the library was in Melrose, Massachusetts. I didn’t grow up in Melrose, but my cousins did, and that means I spent lots and lots of time there. Visiting MPL felt a bit like coming home. Even more so when friendly faces from my past began to show up. My oldest and dearest friend in this world was there, along with her son … and they sat with my daughter and smiled at me all night. That was cool.
And then there was Marion, who knew me when I was my daughter’s age. I cannot for the life of me remember Marion, but she remembered me. She brought a Thank You card that I wrote to her thirty years ago (!), and a photograph that nearly brought me to tears. Check it out:
That’s me and my sister on our first day of school many, many years ago. Oh, those outfits! The macramé plant hangers! That little linen purse!
The rest of the crowd were strangers to me, but they were some of the most attentive, interesting, and curious folks I’ve ever met. They participated at every turn, shared observations, made comments, laughed when I attempted being funny and, best of all, hung out after the talk to buy books, chit-chat, and tell me a bit about Melrose today.
Anyway, you may not get the full effect from this little blog post, but my night at Melrose Public Library was spectacular. We got home very late and I tucked my overtired daughter into bed straightaway. But then I looked at that photograph some more (Oh, those lime green curtains!) and thought about the many Saturdays I spent thumbing through magazines at the Melrose Drug Store with my cousins. I thought about old friends and new friends and leaving home and returning home. Eventually I threw out my arms, tilted back my head and screamed “That was TOTALLY WICKED!”
Then I crashed into bed and fell asleep.
True story.