A few more memories broke free from the dark corners of my mind. They are memories that I remember, remembering. For some reason, I had packed them tightly away during my last brainstorming session. I think I also get confused as to when things happen but as I am laying the timeline out several things are becoming more clear.
I remember our grandmother taking us grandchildren to the Holiday Inn to swim in the pool. The smell of chlorine was strong in our noses and voices echoed in excitement throughout the enclosed space. There was lots of splashing and running the back of tiny fists across the eyes. I have a memory of being in a long hallway and reaching for a door handle that seemed far away, my fingertips barely grazing the brass. When I saw The Shining I would feel catapulted back to that moment. I was the little girl reaching for the door handle and Danny was the one who opened the door. It is a movie that scares me to this day, all twisted in with my innocent memory.
In music class, I played the xylophone as the class sang:
“It was a one-eyed, one-horned, flyin’ purple people eater
(One-eyed, one-horned, flyin’ purple people eater)
A one-eyed, one-horned, flyin’ purple people eater
Sure looks strange to me (One eye?)”
I had this cinderella dress and wore it while catching frogs in the pond. Whoever put that on me should have known that I loved mud and reptiles more than playing princess. Yet the adults seemed surprised and upset that I had ruined the pretty dress.
I remember monkey bars, book fairs, and field day.
We would go roller skating quite a bit. I even took lessons and learned how to roller skate backwards and I was a limbo champ. We would buy huge pixie stix and get high off of the powdered candy. The sensation of the disco lights, the sugar coating my tongue, and the excitement of being with friends spins around my head in slow motion. I want to lock fingers with this memory as friends would lock fingers as they spun around and around the rink.
Melfuntioning Memories 