The Answer, My Friend ...
Today was Mother’s Day and I headed down to the beach with mine. The feel of sand between my toes and the cool gulf water were refreshing. Mom and I braved the warnings of rough surf and jellyfish and had a great time. At the end of the day, I have a bit of sunburn and feel a bit drained from the travel, but can say it was definitely worth it.
The day began with my wake-up call at 6:30. Not sure if it was due to the small amounts of sleep I’ve been getting lately or what, but oddly enough I woke up with a Bob Dylan song in my head. Now, it must be stated that I am not the greatest Dylan fan. I like the “Like a Rolling Stone” song and have been warming up to others, but have not reached fan status just yet. When I got in to the car, I figured I would indulge that tune in my head so I put in a Dylan mix.
So we’re driving down the road and I’m listening to Dylan and am really feeling a sort of mindmeld, wondering why I haven’t listened to more of him in the past and it hits me. I was a burgeoning Dylan fan in 6th grade. You see, my elementary school had the coolest librarian ever, Ms. Spivey. She drove a little red sports car and kept a stereo in her office. Some mornings when I was the only kid in there she would open up her office door and crank it. She told me stories of her son about how they would make forts out of her baby grand piano and how she would let him leave his toys (army men) all over the house because he’d grow up and they’d be gone soon enough. She was dating a contractor and she would go with him to houses and while he worked, she would play music and dance throughout the empty rooms. One day she showed up and introduced herself to me as Mrs. Case because she had spontaneously married the contractor the day before at the justice of the peace.
The coolest thing about Ms. Spivey was that she played the guitar, a beautiful steel-stringed acoustic. When my class came into the library, we would sit in a circle and sing (after finding the choicest of books to read, of course). We sang all kinds of songs, but my favorite song to sing, the song that I always requested was “Blowin’ in the Wind,” the quintessential Dylan song. I neither knew nor cared who Bob Dylan was but I loved that song. I’m sure I made my friends sick of it. I even had Ms. Spivey copy the sheet music for me so that I could learn all the words. I might even still have it somewhere.
Now I’m thinking that Bob and I are really old friends. I started my path to potential fandom earlier than I’d imagined and we just need to get reacquainted. Oh, and that librarians, in general, are probably among some of the coolest people in the world. Ms. Spivey certainly was.
The day began with my wake-up call at 6:30. Not sure if it was due to the small amounts of sleep I’ve been getting lately or what, but oddly enough I woke up with a Bob Dylan song in my head. Now, it must be stated that I am not the greatest Dylan fan. I like the “Like a Rolling Stone” song and have been warming up to others, but have not reached fan status just yet. When I got in to the car, I figured I would indulge that tune in my head so I put in a Dylan mix.
So we’re driving down the road and I’m listening to Dylan and am really feeling a sort of mindmeld, wondering why I haven’t listened to more of him in the past and it hits me. I was a burgeoning Dylan fan in 6th grade. You see, my elementary school had the coolest librarian ever, Ms. Spivey. She drove a little red sports car and kept a stereo in her office. Some mornings when I was the only kid in there she would open up her office door and crank it. She told me stories of her son about how they would make forts out of her baby grand piano and how she would let him leave his toys (army men) all over the house because he’d grow up and they’d be gone soon enough. She was dating a contractor and she would go with him to houses and while he worked, she would play music and dance throughout the empty rooms. One day she showed up and introduced herself to me as Mrs. Case because she had spontaneously married the contractor the day before at the justice of the peace.
The coolest thing about Ms. Spivey was that she played the guitar, a beautiful steel-stringed acoustic. When my class came into the library, we would sit in a circle and sing (after finding the choicest of books to read, of course). We sang all kinds of songs, but my favorite song to sing, the song that I always requested was “Blowin’ in the Wind,” the quintessential Dylan song. I neither knew nor cared who Bob Dylan was but I loved that song. I’m sure I made my friends sick of it. I even had Ms. Spivey copy the sheet music for me so that I could learn all the words. I might even still have it somewhere.
Now I’m thinking that Bob and I are really old friends. I started my path to potential fandom earlier than I’d imagined and we just need to get reacquainted. Oh, and that librarians, in general, are probably among some of the coolest people in the world. Ms. Spivey certainly was.