I’ve always agreed with the sentiments expressed in Trisha Yearwoods’ hit The Song Remembers When. For that reason, I’ve memorized hundreds of songs which bring up special memories and places. Ironically I can’t sing in key at all!! My mom and others have shared the notion that some people (meaning yours truly) should NOT sing out loud. I agree. Still, I have a very active mental music life and I do love to listen.
Recently I watched a 4-hour HBO special “Sinatra: All or Nothing at All”. My dad Al Russell was an avid fan of Sinatra and his incredible musical timing. Dad saw Sinatra in Chicago at numerous matinees during the 1940’s. Whenever I listen to a Sinatra song, I see my dad: his blue eyes filled with delight, recalling all the moments spent enjoying the magic of the Windy City.
I recently painted a blue-eyed black kitten simply because his owner had named him Sinatra. My husband Steve shares my dad’s blue eyes, and his love of muisic. Currently Steve is enjoying his new audio system and celebrating the new year with music.
In celebration of music, here is a little something from the past:
Happy 2016 to all!
My parents lived in Ann Arbor, MI while my dad attended the University of Michigan Law school. I spent ages 3-5 romping the campus. I’ve always loved the feeling in “The Big House”, U of M’s beautiful stadium. When the Wolverine band plays “Hail to the Victors” I still light up and cry.
It’s been a bit more than a month since I turned 59. As I consider my own transitions I’m also struck by those of my grandchildren. Sam (5 years 9 months) is in his last week of Kindergarten. We recently attended a show where he performed a Spanish dance with the entire class of Maxwell Elementary. The children were in costume and paired up. Sam looked so grown up! It seems like just seconds since his birth made me a Grandma. He and his 2 1/2 year old brother Gabriel have filled my heart. They are more incredible than I could have imagined, and I have quite an imagination!
It’s been almost twenty years since my mother-in-law died and yet May, her month, still fills me with memories. Her birthday was May 9 which seemed so appropriate with its proximity to Mother’s day. She was the consummate mother. She always remembered the little things that really are the big things. Birthday cards were never late!! Her journals were filled with positives; not one critical word. She saw only the best in people.
At the ripe age of 50, after 27 years in Texas raising our kids, the move to Concord, MA was difficult. No more close friends nearby who knew the song in my heart…. No more cozy places where my children grew up. Wonderful places like Zilker Park, McKinney Falls, the city of Austin, the state capital building, San Antonio Riverwalk and Zoo, the list goes on and on…..
Artful Passages 