The Day Aunt Dawn Came to Town . . .

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. . .she brought a pocketful of memories and doled them out one at a time like bits of hard candy from the church lady's cavernous pocket. Little nuggets that had been rolling around in there for awhile, crusty at first, then softened as we mulled over them, becoming sweet and delightful after savoring.

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Aunt Dawn let me have a few old photos she thought I might like. I might alright. Ohhhh, I might. Uncle Moose and me at Pete and Edna's 50th Anniversary Cruise, 1987, a cruise on a lake in upstate NY.

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"You surprised them," Aunt Dawn nudged me, "Remember?"

"We picked you up at Rene's and nobody knew you were in town."

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Yes, I do remember. "That was such a great trip," I smile.

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So many of them are gone now. I struggle to keep the tears away. Don't nobody want no tears at a summer pool party.

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We slice up some watermelon as we discuss Aunt Ethel's 90th birthday party where Aunt Dawn listened in on the cousins' -- Julie, Chris, Carl, Mark and Terry (maybe more?) -- conversation. "You should have heard the stories they told about growing up in the old neighborhood. And Jackie & Richie showing up in that Porsche! Oh, that Porsche, did I ever tell you about when Jackie and I broke down in that Porsche and had to knock on a strange man's door for help?....." And another memory was pulled out.

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When Aunt Dawn came to town, she brought a gentle, warm breeze with her, a breeze that carried the scent of Home and made us all a little homesick.

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Back out at the pool, we played all day with the new generation . . .

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and we talked all day about the old generations.

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I noticed Aunt Dawn and mom laughing hard so I inched over to listen in. "Moose finally grabbed that dog by the tail, swung him around a few times and hurled him out of the pool!".... "Brom's dog kept getting in our pool, all the time!" "Oh, he was a mean dog!" "Moose only did it because that dog was going for Oscar."

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On that bright sunny day when Aunt Dawn came to town, we weren't alone in the pool, I saw Uncle Moose, Uncle Bill and dad in the pool, none of them good swimmers, but all of them full of hilarious stories. (can you say "septic tank sink hole" anyone?) Just like yesterday. But my mind plays tricks on me like that.
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When we talk of old times, I always relish the memory of one of Uncle Moose's trips to Wagener. He used to love to come to Wagener to go to Tyler Brothers for a new pair of overalls. Tyler Brothers always had his size. One afternoon after our trip to town, we'd been sitting on the front patio for awhile talking. We all got up to go in the house. As Uncle Moose rose a few inches off his seat, a cat squealed and went flying out from under him. He had been sitting on the cat for hours.

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On the day Aunt Dawn came to town, she wasn't alone.