Chapter 76

“Memories tell me who I was, not who I’ll become. They don’t fix the present any more than they fix the past.”
—Caroline George, The Vestige

THERE WAS A BUNCH OF STUFF on my bed Saturday night. I’d had dinner with the family and no one said a thing. We just talked about the race and the results. I knew, of course, there were runners who are a lot faster than me. I mean, I placed tenth over all. But in this race, there were only three runners in my division, so placing first wasn’t such a hot accomplishment. Still. I had the medal to prove I’d done it.

But no one said anything about there being new gear on my bed. That’s what it was—gear. A new webcam was the first thing I saw. Wow! High def with low light capability so it’ll clarify my image when I play without washing out the background. There was a tripod for it and a digital microphone on a stand that plugged into it. The whole thing would plug into my computer and there was a two-terabyte solid state drive for storing files as well. I was looking at close to a thousand dollars worth of equipment that would seriously impact my sound quality when I played my guitar.

I couldn’t just go to bed without trying out the whole package. I moved my bed so the painting was in the background and set everything up to record. It even had a remote control so I could make adjustments after I was seated and could see what I looked like. I got myself arranged with my guitar and adjusted the position of the mike. Then I turned it all on and started recording. I played through a bunch of exercises and then played it back. The difference between recording with the built-in webcam on the laptop and the new equipment was phenomenal. I don’t suppose anyone would confuse it for a studio recording, but it was the best quality bedroom equipment I could imagine.

I played for half an hour and checked file sizes. I hoped my audience had unlimited data service. A half-hour hi-def recording was going to be massive.

Sunday morning, I showered and dressed in black slacks and my peach-colored shirt. I sat and played for a while just to get warmed up. Then I started the equipment and began my half-hour pseudo-concert. I’d chosen some of my Spanish influenced pieces to do this morning. It went pretty smoothly with only one mistake serious enough that I needed to start the piece over and then edit it together.

I set aside my guitar with a real sense of peace. I might never be able to play professionally because there wasn’t that big a market for a classical guitarist. It’s not like I would suddenly become a rock star. But playing this instrument was just so calming and peaceful that I felt all was right with the world. It took about another half an hour to edit the file, put in the ribbon with my PayPal address, and title each of the pieces. Then I uploaded the file to YouTube and let it go.

Mom, Dad, and Pey were all in the kitchen and there was a big frittata in the cast iron skillet on the table.

“Thank you so much for the new equipment,” I said. “I can’t believe you did this for me. The recording is ten times better than what I’d been producing. I just ... thank you.”

“It’s just nice to wake up on Sunday morning hearing you play,” Mom said. “I want everyone to experience a little of what it is like to hear you live.”

“Oh. Yeah. I don’t think I mentioned it, but this weekend is the play, you know. Speaking of hearing it live.”

“We already bought tickets for all three performances,” Dad said.

“Well, the girl who plays flute has asked me to perform a duet at her recital in January. So, I guess what I’m saying is that even though the play is over, rehearsals aren’t. Is that okay?”

“Of course it is!” Mom said. “You aren’t letting any of your studies slip, are you?”

“I think I’m on top of everything. Having the girls to study with really helps. I don’t want to let them down.”

I jumped up when I heard the doorbell and ran to let Livy in. She came straight to the kitchen table.

“Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins. Hey, Peyton,” she said.

“Good morning, Olivia. Would you like a little breakfast before you go out to run?” Mom asked. She didn’t wait for a reply but dished some of the frittata onto a plate and set it in front of Livy. Livy didn’t hesitate to dig in. “That won’t be too heavy for a meal before running, will it?”

“We’re doing an easy run today,” Livy said. “We’re meeting Nanette at the cross country course down near Ossian. We just need to make sure our muscles don’t seize up on us after the hard runs yesterday and then the long drive. Breakfast is great!”

“I’m going running, too,” Peyton announced.

“You are?” That was news to me.

“Richard and I are going to run for half an hour. He’s getting out of shape and I’m not going to let my friend get fat. Maybe Donnie and Barb will want to start running with us,” Peyton said.

“I think that’s a good idea,” Livy said. “They might even be available for a jog today if you call them. We can’t have our brothers and sisters getting out of shape.” Pey left the table to go call her friends. That foursome was shaping up to be a force to reckon with.

Nanette was already at the church waiting for us. The service was over and the church was dark but there were half a dozen other runners who were parked in front and were stretching.

“The running club often comes out here Sunday afternoon for a run,” Nanette said. “Nothing formal. With the weather getting colder, we probably won’t be able to run here much longer. It’s pretty hazardous to run this trail if there is snow or a lot of rain. I just wanted one more easy run on it before winter.”

I reached to greet Nanette with a kiss and she shied away.

“Um ... sorry...” I said.

“Do you really want other people seeing you kiss an old lady?” she asked. Well, fuck that. I reached out and pulled her to me, planting a kiss firmly on her lips.

“I’ll respect your wishes when you really don’t want a public display,” I said. “But I’m not ashamed to be your friend and to kiss you anyplace we are together. Don’t ever think of yourself as an old lady.” Nanette plastered herself against me and gave me a kiss considerably more intense than what I’d started. Then she grabbed Livy and brought her in for more of the same.

“Let’s run or we’ll be lying down,” she said. She took off on the trail and we followed close behind. It might have looked like a chase at first, but we were really just doing an easy lope and were soon running side-by-side on the wide parts of the trail. At this pace it was easy to talk and we relived yesterday’s race yet again.

After our run, Livy and I spent a few minutes kissing Nanette again before she left in her car and we loaded ourselves into Livy’s Wrangler.

No one was home when we arrived so I led Livy to the shower and made love to her long lean body under the water.

5 December 2019

Rehearsals have been brutal this week. I didn’t know what went into making a play work. We’ve been onstage until seven or eight o’clock every night. And that’s starting at three in the afternoon. They bring pizza in for us to eat around five or five-thirty. I guess it’s part of the budget for doing a play. Or maybe just one that is this complex.

Riko and Riley’s costumes are the star of the show. The Beast is not Disneyesque. He looks more like a gargoyle from the roof of some cathedral. Not only does he have hooves, but he has four arms and wings. His face is more insectoid than like a bull or mammal. There are five characters who are only referred to as ‘Grotesques’—Gold, Silver, Burgundy, Green, and Brown. They are like dancers in otherworldly costumes and makeup who change scenery, hold up signs, and operate Beast’s two wings and extra arms. And sometimes they just flit across the stage in a little dance to show the scene is changing.

And through the whole thing—an hour long—our trio plays appropriate music. We have costumes, as well. We just look like a medieval chamber orchestra. We have our own little two-level platform with the timpani and other percussion instruments elevated a foot above where Cindy and I sit with the guitar and flute. I only have to worry about the guitar. Cindy has a flute, piccolo, clarinet, and recorder next to her. What an amazing talent!

There’s no way I can truly paint a picture in words of what the whole ensemble looks like. It’s just exhausting to rehearse so many hours and it’s only eleven days until finals begin. Final dress rehearsal is tonight and then we have a Friday night performance, Saturday matinee, and Saturday evening performance. I still need to finish my term paper for US History and my startup plan for Intro to Entrepreneurship. Better get to it.

I won’t say the show was flawless, but it was such an unusual performance everyone was just blown away. Combined with some creative lighting, the costumes and music came alive on stage. And that’s not to downplay the actors themselves. Every move on stage was choreographed and it can’t be easy to perform your lines in verse.

Moonlight and a gentle, misty veil.
The perfect setting for a fairytale.
Here, for an hour, you and I will climb
The silken thread of “Once upon a time...”