To Shakespeare!
Monday, June 7, 2010
It was another multiple day of birthdays and anniversaries, which included the big 3-0 for Mom and Dad. So Mom was going up to join Dad for the week in Iowa.
Over at the house…
Francis had just come up from the dungeon.
“Oh, hi, Mom. You’re still here?”
“Well, yes, Francis.”
“I thought you had left at six o’clock or something.”
“Oh, so you have party plans you have to change now?”
“That’s right. Put away the balloons, everyone!” Francis called out to the hall.
When Collette reminded the kids that it was Mom’s and Dad’s anniversary, Linnea pondered a moment.
“What do you give people for their 30th anniversary?” she asked.
Collette looked it up. “Pearls.”
About fifteen minutes later, Linnea pulled Collette aside.
“Do you think it’s alright if I give Mom my pearl?”
She opened up the little silver box that held the black pearl she had won in Florida. When she gave it to Mom, Mom was especially touched. She told Linnea that she should keep it herself, but that she would borrow it from time to time. It was a kind thought.
Before Mom left towards nine in the morning, Collette fried up egg sandwiches and omelets for everyone.
And Mom presented the kids with pirate head pencil-tops for their week of schoolwork. Pencils no longer so easily lost.
At nine o’clock, everyone paused their activities to listen to the test tornado sirens.
“Ah, I love that sound,” said Francis in satisfaction.
Come 10:30 for Francis’ break, Collette and Puck went outside to watch the spectacle of Francis, in his go-cart, zoom Linnea-Irish down the street, sitting inside the bottom half of a broken shop-vac. That is, until one of the plastic wheels melted half-off.
And Puck padded after them in his bare feet and swim shorts and shirt.
By twelve-thirty, Collette had Linnea-Irish up at church to depart with the other junior highers for their youth retreat. And her very first. Four days of it.
And when she returned, she brought the boys to pick out groceries for their dinner, as Rose and Francis would be watching Puck that evening.
Come shortly after four, Collette left to pick up OLeif from work after which they departed for Forest Park to get a spot just up front at the stage in Shakespeare Glen. They spread out the blankets and pillows at around five o’clock, with the sun still beating in a little from the west.
Then the Buckle boys and their mom headed over to visit with them, also in the ‘blanket section’. It had been a long time since they had seen them all. And not long after, Judah, Evangeline, and Baby Hesed. They had come bearing additional snacks of chocolate chip cookies and Sun Chips, which were added to the picnic hampers brought by OLeif and Collette. This included, from Trader Joe’s: water crackers, Brie cheese, goat cheese with honey (a Dierberg’s find), strawberries, mini chocolate peanut butter cups, chardonnay, sparkling blueberry juice, and coffee.
Meanwhile, they quickly learned from Judah that the lead role of Hamlet was played by a seminary student at Covenant. A fellow learner with OLeif. And the role of Osric was by a member of Old Orchard Presbyterian.
As they doled out the wealth of food, Judah opened the loudest chip bag in the world: Harvest Cheddar Sun Chips.
“We’d better put that away during the performance,” said Collette, “or else during Hamlet’s soliloquy…”
“Oh, yes,” said Judah. “’To be, or not to be…’ Rustle, rustle, rustle… Waaah! Waah! ‘Get those idiots out of here!’”
Meanwhile, the jugglers were entertaining the crowds with their acts, which included fire breathing. And a prank phone call in Shakespearean accent, on the cell phone of a random audience member, whose aunt soon received a phone message something the likes of…
“Allo? Allo? Yes, yes, your nephew Bryan here, is at the Shakespeare festival. And, well, he ate a cracker and had a bad reaction. He now thinks he’s a bumblebee and is running around the crowds here. We wanted to know if you could help us out. Is there some sort of safe word? Oh, Bryan, no! He’s up a tree with a baby! Bryan! Put the baby down!”
Click. He got some good laughs, and mentioned something about sword swallowing on his way out…
Then, just at eight, the play was introduced, and the audience was questioned as to from where they had come, which included guests from all over the United States, including Alaska, and from afar: Italy, France, Japan, Mongolia, and Canada, etc.
Unfortunately, Baby Hesed could not quite make it past the second scene of the first act, and Evangeline opted to take him home. It had been a brave attempt anyway.
But the night was beautiful, under the stars. A cool breeze. An excellent cast. Packed audience. Sparkling blueberry juice. Once again, fantastic performance. And this time, Collette was able to see the final sword fight and poisonings. A good end. Somehow, she was mostly convinced that she would like to see it for a third time if possible, over the next two weeks.
My words fly up, my thoughts remain below:
Words without thoughts never to heaven go.
~ Hamlet, Act III, Scene III