You CAN go home again

Just a short entry tonight — I’ve had a difficult time getting started, it’s late, I’m tired. Good reason to be tired: long day, to PA and back, lots going on. Good day.

I met up with my friend Lynne today. I already wrote that we’ve recently re-connected after many years of no contact. In fact, I mentioned her in two separate posts. The one titled Reconnecting had a photo of an unknown occasion — something that involved a Christmas tree and tissue paper dresses. We led a wild life. Seriously. I still have no clue what was going on. I suppose we could ask the others in the photo, but I haven’t seen Steve since the 70’s and Bill died long ago. I suppose this will remain a mystery indefinitely.

I also mentioned Lynne in the post titled Swimmin’. I’ve “borrowed” the photo mentioned in that post, the one I said that I couldn’t copy. It turns out that I could copy it.

Those in the photo are Sharon Campbell, Pam Reider, Jenny Knauer, and Lynne. We really had fun in those days. We knew the town and each other and ourselves.

Lynne sent me another photo that she found, one taken at Band Camp. I suppose I’ll deal with the whole idea of camp some other time, but for now I’ll share the picture.

Shaving cream. Of course. That’s me on the left, followed by Holly Griesemer, Lynne, Sue Hoke, and Sherry Plott. I’m glad that Lynne remembered who was in the picture — with the shaving cream, I probably wouldn’t have guessed.

This weekend Lynne was in Middletown for a funeral and I planned to go there for a birthday party, so we met and went to the Brownstone for brunch. Our time was very short, but we enjoyed catching up. Then we drove around for a bit, looking at the town, remembering.

We were very disappointed that Feaser School no longer exists. I looked for photos of this place a few days ago and couldn’t find any. So I tried a Google satellite search of the area and . . . nothing. Fink Elementary School is still there.

And the stadium.

But no Feaser. We both found that to be extremely sad. Lynne attended from first grade. I went there for fourth and fifth grade, half of sixth, and all of seventh and eighth. That’s a lot of years, a lot of memories.

As we were driving, Lynne made the remark that she doesn’t like change — at least, not in Middletown.

She also said that she likes returning because in Middletown, she’s herself.

I think that’s an interesting and valid observation. When I’m in Middletown, even when things change, there are memories that surface, that remain the same. Middletown was a safe place to grow up, a secure place, a place where we knew what was happening and knew where and who we were. Even when buildings are torn down and new ones erected, there are still places that evoke that sense of safety and security.

We all need a place like that.