APRIL FOOLS

Many (many) years ago..................

  She said "yes, Saturday night will be fine, what time will you pick me up?"

It was the girl that occupied 7/8ths of my mind for several weeks, courage and trust converged and she said "yes" to a date! My mind began to plan the night out on the town........

I was attending college classes in the morning and my afternoons and Saturdays were spent working in New York City. My workplace had me pass down the streets of Madison Avenue, where the stores that cater to wealthy are lined. My first move was to a fine mens clothing store where I was admiring this one shirt that was displayed in the store's front window (where the remaining 1/8th of my mind was at!).The shirt cost me the equivalent of two full days of pay, but do the math, 1/8 plus 7/8ths, it's a perfect fit!

 My personal excitement ramped up as I showered, shaved and manicured myself from every angle, and finishing myself off with a touch of cologne. I carefully removed the pins from the gorgeous finely tailored shirt, and felt the new level of elevation it brought as I buttoned it up.

I made my way to her door, and knocked......the sounds coming off the wood door were mirroring the sounds coming out of my heart. She opened the door, her eyes twinkled with approval, and her smile...."Marc!   wow.....Nice shirt" ..and then she winked.  A smile and a wink.....I was done.

It was the first week in April, we went into New York City to see the movie "April Fools" starring Jack Lemmon and Catherine Denenuve. It was about two people who had everything except a fullfiling relationship, despite the fact that they were both married. The movie details their meeting and how they spent an evening "on the town" and quickly fell in love.

After the movie, we walked down the avenue of the romantically light town. I took her into a fine dining establishment , which because of the late hour, was nearly empty. The waiters catered to us, I'm not certain if they were getting a kick out spoiling two young adolescent diners or if my Madison Avenue shirt and shoes was telling them a big tipper was in the house!

The waiter came to our table and prepared from scratch, a Ceasar Salad (he even tossed in a raw egg...somehow we did worry about salmonella back then!). A piano player played an endless chorous of love songs, and we spent what seemed to be an entire  night staring into each others and echoing smiles and laughter.

Every year at this time, my mind plays host to this warm and wonderful event from many years ago...

...I am tickled this night from long ago remains vivid. I have been rightly accused of having an imagination that runs wild, like some outlaw. ....And now I see this outlaw running faster, afterall, it trapped in a body that is surrounded by time...time that is passing.It knows that one day, these precious memories will lose some of their glimmer. Time is like a sheriff, the days are it's bounty hunters..I feel them coming after me....the law says....we must move on. So before this wild imagination gets captured, or gunned down in a shoot out...I will stash my loot of precious memories right here.

No matter how "far from my youth" I may wander....I'll know just where to find it!