When They Were Young

Helen and Miles, The Amazing Bob’s son, are the same age. OK, Miles is 30 days older. Neither had it easy as kids and both have grown up to do wonderful and amazing things.

Miles is is the Senior Communications Manager at National Wildlife Federation and an environmental activist in his own write (see the blog The Green Miles). Helen has been the manager of an upscale Dallas restaurant and, with her husband, created and managed their own construction company (Troy Construction). Tremendous young'uns, I'm telling you!

In the summer before they turned 13, I flew Helen up from her mother’s in Texas for a week. Considering that what I missed most about my carnival years was Helen -- and ‘missed’ feels like a seriously pale verb here -- I suppose it’ll be no surprise that I harbored fantasies of her moving up here. I could tell her mother that it would be like a foreign exchange program -- Texas to Boston! Yeah, I figured that could work. (snort) Remember I have giant wads of imagination. I figured TAB, Miles, Helen and I would make the most darling little nuclear family. Miles and Helen would trundle off to Boston Latin each day as TAB and I took the T into the small printing company where we sweat and toiled (romantically...of course).

Dream a little dream for me

In any case, Helen was here, we were having a grand time shopping for school clothes, going to scary movies (Terminator -- YEAH!) and hanging out. The big day was when she, Miles and I took a day trip down to Martha’s Vineyard. We took the bus to Woods Hole, the ferry across to Vineyard Haven and the trolley to Oak Bluffs.

Granted, this was a zillion years ago so I just remember two things. Swimming at a gorgeous quiet beach outside Oak Bluffs with Helen and Miles awkwardly talking about their respective schools. The bus ride back when both kids plopped down in their own seats, plugged themselves into their Walkmen and tuned out. I LOVED it! Yeah, I needed my own quiet time too but more than that, these were two kids who felt comfortable enough to do what kids at that age do -- pretend they’re on their own, independent. OK that and I figured real parents must get this all the time -- the teen progeny shunning. I savored it. Yep, I did.

Flash forward 20 years -- Helen and I had been out of contact all these years. We’d each sent letters which never arrived, we’d thought much about one another but, fate being the cruel fucker that he is, we remained out of touch. Facebook to the rescue (and YES I realize that it’s so totally unhip for me to love Facebook but, really now, I’m 55. I don’t give a toss about hip or not anymore). Since rediscovering each other Helen and her family (wonderful husband and 3 girls) have come up from Dallas for a week, I’ve been down there and Helen was here for her birthday weekend  this past October.

Honest and true, I feel more complete with her back in my life. I never stopped missing my little sweetie.

My dream of familyness came true on this last visit of Helen’s. Miles flew up and we spent a day, all of us, hanging out -- lunching, beach walking, chatting and hugging.

You KNOW that was awesome squared for me, don’t you? Of course.
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AND the update!

Helen and family now live up in Hoosick Falls, New York in the old Maderer homestead. I'll see her tomorrow night for a Girls Night Out in Brattleboro, Vermont -- about halfway between our homes. I am just thrilled to bits that we can do this!
Miles is married and living in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. We'll see him on Sunday when we attend the baby shower! Miles and his awesome wife Bethanie expect Baby Girl Grant to arrive next month. March. Projectile vomiting sprogs, here we come!