Day with M

M and I went out to have a Talk, and created a very special memory day. She wanted to go to the lake near here and shoe skate, so we did. I taught her how to waltz on the lake, and she loved it! We slipped and slid our way through the movements. Next, we headed to Chester, but on the way I had another idea; we were close to Morristown, which is very close to Chatham, where I grew up. So we headed over there, and I showed her my house, my elementary and high school, the library, the pee hole where I learned to swim, the park where I played. We had brownies and hot chocolate at Café Beethoven, and got our nails painted. We read through the book, How You Are Changing, and had a good talk.

So yes, Chatham, I returned, incognito, with my daughter, and was pleasantly surprised to find that I indeed have good memories tucked inside all those bad ones. I was proud of my town, shocked to see some of the same places still there – for instance, the café, the pizzeria (although it’s no longer Little Italy), the sports store. Other places had changed, but that’s to be expected; the feel of little Chatham was still there.

M took pictures of my schools, my house; I took pictures of her skating on the lake. We had a wonderful day, very precious and a bonding experience. Why don’t I do this more often? Even once a year would be more than I currently do!