They All Fall Down

Those of you who are regular readers of this blog, know that I am Mr. Nostalgia. I love thinking about the past. As I get older, that only becomes more intense. Clinging to the good memories of a mostly happy life.

I drove down an alley, in Slatington, this week. I drove past a high rise for the elderly. It stands on the site of my elementary school, Lincoln Elementary. Lincoln Elementary is where I learned to read. It’s where I learned to add and subtract. It’s where I learned to share. It’s where I learned manners and where I had my first girl crush. Now it is gone. Just a memory. Those who didn’t go there, probably don’t even remember its existence. Sad. We often think of the people we have lost in our lives. But we’ve lost meaningful locations as well. Here are some more of mine.

Smith Hall was my junior high school gym and more. Here I learned how bad I was at gymnastics. Here I learned to play the trumpet. Here I learned how to make a plastic letter opener, a plaque, and a gun cabinet. Here I watched donkeys play basketball! Smith Hall, gone.

My Junior High was a stately orange brick building on Main Street. It was beautiful. Here I attended dances and learned how much I really liked girls. Here was my first time in a lab, my first time in student government. Here was the first time I had to dress up with a tie and a jacket and it not being a Sunday. Every other Thursday was dress up day. In this building’s place is a beautiful small park. But my Junior High, gone.

I worked in two Pfizer pigments plants. We made green in Slatington and red in Easton. Guess what. Yup, both torn down. Here I learned some valuable life lessons and philosophies. Here I made friends that I have to this day. Here I learned the importance of work in our lives. The Easton site is a field of dirt. The Slatington site is a beautiful wetland on the D and L Trail. Both Pfizer plants, gone.

Our lives are a little like these razed buildings. We are here for a number of years, living, learning, loving. Our lives are full and then they are not. Instead, we are gone.

That was a little depressing for a holiday weekend! Sorry about that.