These are my Grandparents, Mary and Hugh, or Baba and Gogo as they liked to be called; the only ones I was fortunate enough to have met. When I was very young, they were with the Foreign Service in Europe, and my family was living in California. We communicated primarily via cassette tapes which we sent back and forth 'par avion'. They would record stories, and Gogo would play us a tune on his piano. My brother and I would blurt "hello, cheeseburger" into the mic, and fall over in peels of laughter, rendering us useless to the rest of the dialog.
Sometimes, during the summer months, while we were off from school, we would meet halfway, in rural Pennsylvania. While there, Gogo taught me how to play 'Over The Rainbow' (with two fingers!!) and would take me on long twilight walks after supper. Baba attempted to teach my brother and me The Lord's Prayer, "...forgive u(snot) our trespasses..." (yes, my brother and I were cheeky twits), and would give my little hands manicures with lovely clear orangey pink iridescent polish.
Summer is on the cusp, as it was then, and as I think of them, right now, I know what a gift it is to have had these experiences with two of the most remarkable people I have known.
1 comment:
Great old photograph and story!
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