Childhood Memories
BY KCY
The day I watched my first movie is a day I will never forget. I was seven years old. It was a rainy day in the Bronx. Mom, never one to let inclement weather force her to stay home, took me and my sister to the library. I wore my magenta raincoat, while my sister wore her blue one. On our sojurn, we splashed our way through the puddles of Pelham Parkway, dodged the worms dancing on the sidewalk and tipped our heads back every once in a while to catch a few raindrops in our mouths. We skipped along, only stopping at the crosswalks to wait for our mother to cross the street.
When we finally arrived at our destination, Mom took us to a section we’d never been before: the video section.
“Girls,” she said. “I think it’s time. Today, you can rent one movie from the library, and we can go home and watch it on this rainy day while eating pizza.” My sister and I looked at each other, our eyes both widened. What?! Our exercise, health food loving mom was going to let us watch a movie and eat junk food! We made a silent pact with our eyes. Pick a movie as quick as possible and get home before she could change her mind.
But what to pick? I scanned the shelves, resting my eyes on a picture of a big yellow bird. “Follow that Bird.” Sesame Street! Both educational and age appropriate. Mom was sure to agree to this one!
I grabbed the video, thrusting it into Mom’s hands. “This one,” I said.
“Good choice,” she said. “Liz?”
My sister nodded her head in agreement. Not surprising. She was my baby sister, and she pretty much followed whatever I did.
Mom checked out the video cassette (yes, I’m that old!), and we left the library, stopping by our local pizzeria on the way home. My mom actually bought pizza (score!), and we got home in record time. No stomping in the puddles or stopping to collect a pink worm. My sister and I were on a mission to eat pizza and zone out in front of the television.
Mom popped in the tape into our VCR then handed us each a slice. Pizza in front of the T.V.? Score again!
If you’ve never seen this movie, let me tell you about this hidden gem. Big bird gets adopted and leaves Sesame Street. When he arrives, he realizes his home and family are back on Sesame Street and runs away. He has adventures on his way back, and eventually everything ends happily ever after on Sesame Street.
It’s not an Oscar winning movie, but to this seven-year-old on that rainy day, it was an Oscar winning day. A warm apartment, yummy pizza and a movie with catchy songs and funny characters. What more could a girl ask for?
A second viewing! Mom let us watch it for a second time right after it was done. Maybe she was tired that day, or she had other things on our mind, or maybe she just thought it was time for us to watch a movie. Whatever her reasons, I was glad I was able to watch it two times in a row.
Last night, I found a few clips from this movie. It made me smile to hear the singing. It made me smile to see Big Bird back on Sesame Street. It made me smile to remember that rainy day, those wiggly worms, that big yellow bird, that slice on a paper plate, sitting on the floor in our cozy co-op.
What childhood memories make you smile?