July 9, 2014
My Instead: I took my
mom to see "Always, Patsy Cline" at Westport Plaza.
Let’s face it, word of
mouth isn’t always in hearing distance. Hence, browsing the internet allows us
to see a world of things to do. Sometimes, we just have to rely on technology
to get ourselves out and about!
Patsy Cline has been
erased from our planet for over 50 years, but she is alive and well and viral
on Google. And that is how I found out about “Always, Patsy Cline” showing live
at the Westport Plaza in St. Louis. I knew that my mom loved Patsy Cline
because I remember, all too well, listening (and singing along) to her records
on her hi-fi. So I invited her to join me for this Patsy production.
We headed out to
Westport Plaza on that warm Wednesday evening. Mom prayed part of the way. She
is not used to traveling in St. Louis nor my free spirit. I told her to pray
that she is not in the car with me when it is MY time to go!
We made it there in two
pieces, Mom and me, and headed for the theater. It was freezing in there! “Think
warm thoughts”, my mom would always say when it was cold somewhere. Sure, she
can tell me that now…she was smart enough to bring a jacket! She shared her
sleeve with me as the show began…
We were second row and
center and almost felt like we were part of the act. And sometimes we were when
we were encouraged to clap or to sing along. Ms. Patsy impersonator had a
stupendous voice, but she was not Patsy, of course not! Patsy’s friend in the
production was delightful and funny.
I would look at Mom
through the corner of my eye and see her “getting into it”! She clapped along
as best she could with her one arthritic hand, sang a bit too and kibitzed with
the friendly gal next to her. Mom appeared to be in her element, even though
she really wasn’t. I love removing her from her box and putting her in her
place! No pun intended or was it?
As I sat there next to
my mother, I wondered how it will feel when she is no longer with me. When that
happens, I’ll remember this night…always.
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