Tommy D.

I grew up on Maple Avenue, and Tommy grew up around the corner on Second Street.  It was a post-WWII Baby Boomer neighborhood, which we lovingly called Gingerville.  Yes, I've written about Gingerville before, but someone is not allowing me to let go of my reminiscing of that time and that place.  I half-heartedly stated awhile ago that I should write a novel about it, and now Tommy is sending me "gentle reminders" to get started on it.

Tommy is two-and-a-half weeks older than I am, and we've known one another since before we started kindergarten.  There were likely a good number of years during which we had no contact with one another, but through the wonder of social media, we have reconstructed our friendship to the point where not a week goes by that we don't chat about something online.  And I have discovered something new about Tommy.  He is one of the kindest, most gentle men I will likely ever know.  Did I understand this about him when we were children?  Probably not.

This is a picture that one of Tommy's best friends from childhood posted of him this morning.  I know it's a difficult picture to view closely, but I think you can see the smile on Tommy's face.  My guess is that he was tickled to be having his picture taken.  It was fairly easy to make Tommy happy . . . a backyard baseball game, some homemade ice cream, or a neighborhood clam bake was cause enough to light up Tommy's face.  I have not seen Tommy in years, but I'm pretty sure that when I do, I will see that same smile on his face.

These friends from childhood . . . where do they go?  Our world was so small those many years ago.  As adults, we travel so far beyond it, ideologically, geographically, socially . . . and then we find ourselves reflecting so positively on what once was.  I recognize the gift of a memorable childhood; I know that not everyone is as fortunate as I. 

Today, I fell in love with this picture of Tommy D., but I fell in love with more than that.  His smile embodies all the joy and hope and promise that we, as children, felt back then.  In a week of CIA torture reports, hostage-taking in Australia, and cyber-hacking of Sony, it's nice to think back on a chubby little kid in the 50s, happy to have his picture taken by his best friend's mom.