What A Day...For A Daydream

Summer has officially arrived in the Ozarks.  From my vantage point it is a 'great day to be alive.'  It is one of those days when sweet thoughts of youth surround you, especially if you happen to be advancing in years.

My day began simple enough.  In Beatles verse, just another "Day in the Life."  "Woke up, fell out of bed, dragged a comb across my head..."  Leashed my dogs for a brief morning walk, retrieved the newspaper from its familiar spot on the driveway, and returned indoors to ready myself for church.  On this day I am 'home alone.'  Wife, Kathryn, is in Maumelle caring for our two grandsons while their mother, Lynli, is working a weekend shift at the hospital and their dad is out of town on business.  My morning pace is typical for me, feeling hurried even when there is no need to be.  I drive the short distance to the Norfork United Methodist Church and enjoy the company of friends in worship.  I return home to the peaceful existence on the White Bluffs just upstream from the hamlet of Norfork with an awesome view of God's handiwork.

What a day for a daydream

What a day for a daydreamin' boy

And I'm lost in a daydream

Dreamin' 'bout my bundle of joy

That "bundle of joy" on my mind and in my heart is indeed a joyous "bundle" of friendship.  Thoughts of the many wonderful relationships I have in my life and the memories that accompany those relationships are always at the forefront of my daydreams.  Days like today jumpstart thoughts that lead one to dissociate with the harsh realities of the world around us.  It is a day for wishful thinking and happy remembering.

And even if time ain't really on my side

It's one of those days for taking a walk outside

I'm blowin' the day to take a walk in the sun

And fall on my face on somebody's new mowed lawn

A couple of months back I celebrated my 61st birthday.  Yeah, this age thing keeps creeping into a realm of higher numbers.  Some wise guy once muttered, "Birthdays are good for you.  Statistics show that people who have the most live the longest."  I am enthralled with the study of statistics and 'the odds' that a certain outcome may happen based solely upon statistical evidence.  My love for baseball is partially driven by the statistical history of individual player's performances and the predictive outcomes based upon that historical evidence.  Statistically, while "time ain't really on my side" any longer, I will not be placing any bets on life's race.  My father convinced me that there is "no such thing as a sure thing."  Despite that keen observation, I'm pretty sure even he would agree, statistically speaking, those who "live the longest" will "have the most" birthdays.  So I think I will pour myself another drink and raise my glass to the thought of enjoying many more birthdays and remember those friends and loved ones whose birthdays were relatively few in number.

Growing older is a fun ride if you will ignore the physical challenges, the emotional stress, and the mental lapses that seem to go along with the process.  I have been recalling times past and scattering thoughts into the 'Miles Files' for more than a decade now.  If I begin to repeat myself, let's simply attribute it as a side effect to aging.  And if you happen to remember something of significance differently than I, we will laugh about it and call each other "crazy."

Days like today are rare.  It is one of "those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer" that Nat King Cole sang about when I was a kid.  You have heard me complain about the fast paced world in these pages before.  "Spinnin', spinnin', spinnin', spinnin' like a spinnin' top..." Yet in many respects, the swift pace of every day living yields opportunity.  The "bundle of joy" referred to earlier is made up of the many friends who have merged onto my life's raceway over the 61 years I've been on 'the track.'  There are those times when I feel as if I'm in the middle of the pack and speeding into turn four at Talladega, so a gentle Sunday afternoon is welcome.  It is nice to be able to 'coast' into pit row on occasion to rejuvenate the senses.  And to "daydream" about those who have contributed to a life worth living...

Life atop the bluff overlooking the White River is my 'pit stop' from the rapid pace prevalent in today's work-a-day world.  As I glance down at the river and see boats leisurely drifting in the stream with fishermen casting the shallows, my "daydream" takes shape with psychedelic quality.  I'm watching my grandmother take a small perch from the hook at the end of the line on my cane pole...it must be the first fish I ever caught.  I'm sitting alongside childhood pal, Margaret Ann Gillihan, on the banks of Newport Lake in Remmel Park as we patiently observe our floaters bob amongst the cypress knees near the water's edge.  I listen to my scoutmaster and friend, Bob Guthrie, as he explains the 'art' of fly fishing to me and others as we wade Sylamore Creek.  "What a day for a daydream..."

And even if time has passed me by a lot

I couldn't care less about the dues you say I got

Tomorrow I'll pay the dues for droppin' my load

A pie in the face for bein' asleep before dawn

Earlier this month Kathryn and I attended the wedding of Leah Graham and Ricky Beauchamp in Heber Springs.  Leah is the daughter of fun college friends Melissa and Mike Graham.  Several 'old' friends were in attendance and much effort was expended to 'keep up' with the younger generation making up the wedding party and majority of reception attendees.  Kathryn and I shared a condo at the Red Apple Inn with our dear friend Susan Elder.  Reminiscent conversation took us into the wee hours of the morning.  We did manage to fall "asleep before dawn."  There was no "pie in the face," but I did "pay the dues" on the 'morrow for forgettin' my age while in the company of several "forever young" college cronies, Linda and Harroll Henry, Donna and Tommy "Frog" Reed, Marilyn Dunham Davis, Paula Taylor Bell, Gina Cook Knox, Ann White, and, of course, the parents of the bride, Melissa and Mike.  Such a 'get together' with 'old' friends serves as a "daydream" portal.  Best wishes to the Beauchamps!  What a party!  What a day!  "What a day for a daydream..."

And you can be sure if you're feelin' right

A daydream will last along into the night

Tomorrow at breakfast you may pick up your ears

Or you may be daydreamin' for a thousand years

Following my "walk in the sun" a bit earlier and observance of the fishermen on the river below the bluff, I ducked indoors for another 'cool' drink.  Turned on the television to watch the final round of the Travelers Championship golf tournament knowing my friend Ken Duke was in contention.  I came to know Ken and his family upon my move to Arkadelphia in the early '90s.  He was still a college student at Henderson State University at the time.  It was my good fortune to befriend Ken and to play golf with him on occasion.  Watching Ken from shot to shot on this day spawned a "daydream..."  

I know Ken has dreamed, day and night, of winning a PGA tour event ever since he acquired his player's tour card.  Today that "daydream" came true when Ken captured the Travelers on the second hole of a sudden death playoff.  "Do you believe in magic?"  A 'magical moment' was witnessed on the 10th hole of the final round when Ken yanked a wedge shot into a green side tree and a favorable carom resulted in the ball landing surprisingly close to the pin.  Ken made his birdie putt.  Ken's opponent in the playoff, Chris Stroud, provided his own 'magic act' when he chipped in from off the green for birdie on the final hole of regulation to force the playoff.  But in the end, Ken Duke won his first PGA tournament at age 44.  I am certain his parents, Bettie and Ray Duke, are beaming. You can bet this "daydream will last along into the night" and "tomorrow at breakfast" you can read all about it in the daily news.  Congratulations Ken Duke!  What a day!  "What a day for a daydream..."

I'm a "daydreamin' boy."  And it seems as if my mind is spinnin' just as fast as the world is these days.  I fully embrace each chance meeting with a "daydream" since they are always bring a smile as they stroll into my mind.  And as "crazy" as this may sound, I often find more pleasure in an event well after its occurence because of the joy I experience in remembering it.  I can savor the memory over and over again.

Seven months have passed since I last emptied my head onto the pages of the 'Miles Files.'  In that relatively short time frame, Kathryn and I have been to New York City, Dallas, and Las Vegas with multiple visits to Memphis, Little Rock, Branson, and other nearby places thrown in for good measure.  The 'far away' journeys brought reunion with childhood friends in each instance...lunch with Terry Long in New York, drinks with John Sink in Dallas, and lots of laughter with sister Lana in Las Vegas.  Following my return home to the bluff after each of these journeys, I turned on my "daydream" switch and enjoyed mindful experiences with each of these friends in another time and place.

Kathryn and I also attended a Fleetwood Mac concert in Little Rock a short time back.  There I saw friends from grade school days (Cherry Lou Smith and David Gray) to college days (Robin and James Elbert).  While I welcomed the chance encounters with each one, my memories of our earliest times together brought warmth to my heart.

We drove to Magnolia in May to watch granddaughter Claire in her first dance recital.  She was a star!  Yet my mind slipped into a "daydream" to recitals years ago when I tapped at Miss Bobbie's School of Dance under the watchful eye of my beautiful friend, "Miss Bobbie."  I then found myself drifting into another hazy "daydream" watching Claire's mom, Evelyn, and her sisters, Emily and Elizabeth, 'tripping the light fantastic' under the direction of my friends, Linda Fann Kent and Nancy Allbright Nicholson.

And then there are the visits from our grandchildren.  What fun!  Oliver, Claire, Julian, and Annabel are a delight.  Watching them 'play,' rekindles the fun experiences I had with cousins oh so many years ago.  A couple of days in the company of the 'grands' escalates the 'aches and pains' of growing older, but it sure makes the heart jump with joy.  They are so busy!  Daughter Emily recently informed us that Grandchild Number Five has signaled an estimated time of arrival in early November.  I'm feeling happy...and tired...  "What a day for a daydream..."

What a day for a daydream

Custom made for a daydreamin' boy

And now I'm lost in a daydream

Dreamin' 'bout my bundle of joy

Friendships all wrapped up in a "bundle of joy."  And now another grandchild on the way to this fast paced world.  Such happy news!  I'm taking it all in as I settle into the serenity of our house on the bluff. I watch the river roll easily down toward my hometown of Newport.  It is a day "custom made for a daydreamin' boy."  What a day!  "What a day for a daydream..."

I'm Miles for Nowhere...  Think I'll take my time...

joe