Harmony
Owen attended Harmony Elementary School in 2nd, 3rd, and most of 4th grades. Ya gotta love a school that names itself “Harmony”. This was where Owen met his first girlfriend, Amanda, in 4th grade.
Funny, how a 4th grade boy can find a girl that means something special to him, at such a young age. The day before Valentine’s Day that year, Owen presented me with that evening’s goal. He wanted…no needed, to find a special present for Amanda. I was at the end of a long day at work, and after seeing his face with all the hope of the future painted in bright lights, and while tired beyond belief, I told him to get ready to shop. Time was short, and hopes were high.
We went somewhere local, I don’t remember where, but we found the perfect bracelet for his special girl. I didn’t realize it at first, but this young girl, Amanda, was the daughter of someone I had worked with when I was pregnant with Owen, and she was pregnant with Amanda. We walked that path together, not knowing our kids would cross paths in the years ahead. That’s freakin’ harmony.
Amanda’s mom, Stacey, has been a constant, though not frequent, part of our lives in Sonoma County. We met when I was managing a restaurant on the coast, and she and her aunt worked there. Years later, all of us still here in the county, Stacey was tending bar in one of our favorite restaurants, a little inland from the coastal restaurant where we first met. Dave and I visited her new workplace on occasion, and always had old stories to recall from the days when I was married to Owen’s father, and new ones to share with Stacey.
Turned out, this restaurant was owned by the family of one of Nat’s longtime school friends (small towns here in West Sonoma County). That friend’s father, Mark, died this year, too. His was the first of 6 funerals I’ve attended since March. A small world, indeed.
After Owen’s memorial service, many of us ended up at that restaurant for what can only be called in the traditional Irish sense, a “wake”, though the restaurant is Italian. Stacey still works there, not as a bartender, but in the office. She and Amanda were at Owen’s service, and we (among others) talked ourselves into the night. Owen would have loved it.
Nat’s friends were all there, and kids who had known Owen at Harmony, plus some of his friends from the theaters. As the night wore on, I began to realize just how small our world is. No matter where you go, no matter who you know, or who you’re about to meet, chances are you’re going to run into someone who knows something about you, your family, your town, or your circumstances. It hurt…and made sense.
Owen liked bands that used harmony as a cornerstone of their music. The Mamas & The Papas were one such band. Being as how it’s Monday, and the day of the week I last had the pleasure of spending time with my son, this song has been on my mind throughout the evening.
Owen loved California, and was happy to return to the state of his birth in 2006. We couldn’t have known then, that it would also be the state where he drew his last breath. He would have written it that way. I couldn’t have written it better. Mama and Papas are dreamin’ of ya every night, O-Wind.
“Monday morning, you gave me no warning of what was to be…”
Song for the night: Monday Monday and California Dreamin’, by the The Mamas & The Papas
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sCWxJ2BGMw4
