Today was an ice cream kind of day.
Well, every day is an ice cream kind of day, as we in the Avery clan know. Today, though, was ice cream for everyone. Temps in the 90s, sun shining - what other reasons do you need to have ice cream? None!
Ice cream has been a staple in my family. Growing up, I thought it was one of the five food groups. (What, it's not? Says who? Well, in my book, it is.) We usually had it for dessert at least one meal each day. Most of the time it was vanilla, which was fine. Sometimes we'd have toppings for it, and that was always fun.
Those of you who know me and my family know we lived in Franklin, a small town in south-central Nebraska, when I was growing up. We'd do our school shopping in Kearney or sometimes Hastings. And when we'd go to Hastings, the trip included a stop at the Goodrich Dairy. With its selection of at least a dozen different ice cream flavors, my siblings and I knew we were previewing heaven when we walked in. With so many different kinds of ice cream, we could each get exactly what we wanted. And we didn't have to share with anyone else. Brownie nut fudge, rocky road, mint chip - all were on the list for me. No vanilla for this girl!
Occasionally, on the way home from church on a Sunday night, we'd stop at the drive-in in Smith Center where they had soft-serve ice cream. We'd get small ice cream cones and eat them in the car, trying not to let them drip and thereby waste any of the precious nectar of the gods.
To demonstrate the power of ice cream, I must share this. I took piano lessons for many years when we lived in Franklin. My piano teacher's house was across the highway from the drive in where they had soft-serve ice cream. Are you sensing a pattern here?
Anyway, I've always struggled to memorize music. I can learn the words and the melody, no problem. But add chords and stuff, and it just doesn't stick in my head. My teacher wanted me to memorize a piece for an upcoming recital, and I was really having a hard time. Finally, my teacher told me if I had a certain section memorized in a month (I think), she'd buy me an ice cream cone. You know, if she had just said that to begin with, it would have saved a whole lot of trouble.
I buckled down and set my mind to learning this music. I don't remember what song it was. I certainly can't play it today. But I did it. I'm sure my performance on the deadline date wasn't stellar. But I received my reward - a chocolate ice cream cone.
Ah, ice cream. It gives shy people, or at least those who have a hard time memorizing music, the strength to do what needs to be done (Garrison Keillor).
