by Noella Noelophile®
(Royalty-free image by Jill Wellington, from Pixabay.)
What are the loves of your life?
Notice, I said, “what”, not “who”. “Who” is really none of my business.
But, what do you love very most in life? Places, profession, pastimes, music, films, otherwise?
That seems like a fun area of which to think, today. What are your passions?
Here are just a few of mine.
(Royalty-free image by Bruce Emmerling from Pixabay.)
The “where”
When we talk about “places”, the first one with which I’ve fallen in love, in my life, is Ocean City, New Jersey.
My family spent two weeks there every August.
For a kid coming from the concrete of New York City, it was a wonderland.
The Atlantic swirled to shore against the background of sea gulls’ cries. Salt air smelled wonderful. Sun on our backs and the wooden boardwalk under our feet felt wonderful. Sixties rock music provided a soundtrack as the staff of then-Mack and Manco’s kneaded pizza dough and baked fresh pies for customers lined up at their counter.
(Royalty-free image by 12019 from Pixabay.)
At night, the boardwalk came alive with lights, sounds and festivity.
Wooden horses and chariots whirled on the Gillian’s Fun Deck carousel. A clanging bell warned all aboard to tighten their leather belts and hang on–another revolution was about to begin!
Just down the boardwalk, gold lights gleamed from the mirror maze. Scents of popcorn and spun sugar filled the air. Local musicians like Tom Perkins (who also owned the gift shop, Tom Perkins’ Sea Shanty) showcased their talents in evening concerts at the Music Pier. Small shops (one of my favorites was Drift In and Sea) displayed stained-glass ornaments, costume jewelry, candles and glassware.
And over the years, there was a rite of passage.
(Royalty-free image by Julian Hacker from Pixabay.)
As the sun rose, bicyclists were allowed on the boardwalk. And as a teenager, I could actually get up and go out bike riding alone, watching the sky light up with the colors of an Atlantic sunrise.
Heady times. While I’d later fall madly in love with the San Francisco of the 1970s, Ocean City, New Jersey, remains my first love in the “place” category.
Where do YOU most love to be?
The “what”
(Royalty-free image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay.)
The “what” of passions, for me, include cats, books, broadcasting and crafting.
For time’s sake, let’s just look at crafting.
My mom was always knitting or crocheting. We had a marvelous yarn store near where we lived. They even had (then-rare) craft supplies, such as beads and sequins!
I loved to make things, and see what others have made. Still do.
Christmas crafting was a year-round endeavor. My mother always bought needlework magazines with craft ideas. Felt crafting became my medium.
As a teen, I’d hurry down to our basement, after dinner, and get busy with scissors, glue and sequins.
To this day, we still have a drawer full of the sequinned, felted small ornaments from back when. And I’ll always recall my first craft show–at the Newark YWCA in Delaware.
A group of local sculptors, who called themselves The Chiselers, came in together and made a huge fuss over my ornaments. They must have bought about seventy-five dollars’ worth of them–which was an absolute blast and left me feeling like I had arrived, as an artist!
A decade later, I would fall madly in love with broadcasting. After all, audio production is, simply, crafting–but with sound, rather than sequins. Handcrafts, back then, laid the foundation for my profession.
What do YOU most love to do–and where are some of the fun places these passions have taken you?
(Royalty-free image by StockSnap, from PIxabay.)
The “taste” of love–and friendship
A final thought: what does love taste like?
The foods I love: Italian pasta (no surprise, right?); fresh strawberries; good coffee; and mint-chip ice cream.
In our small town, in the Sixties, the latter was exotic.
The local sweet shop featured three ice cream flavors: chocolate, vanilla and strawberry.
It’s interesting to think how many fewer choices we had back then. Today, if we buy toothpaste, twenty varieties appear to be available!
But one of my all-time favorite people in our small town was our former scout leader, “Mrs. K.” Today, she would be a CEO at the very least.
(Royalty-free image by Dani Myrick from Pixabay)
Mrs. K. had a doctorate from her alma mater and was a leader in every way. She was calm, diplomatic and could manage projects with ease.
The small-town world of the Sixties, since she was married with three children, really didn’t offer her much, in the way of professional opportunities. She used her talents by organizing church events, and leading a number of women’s groups.
She also, somehow, found time to help neighbors with rides to the store, drove the local children to school and took teenagers on weekend trips with her teenage daughter.
On one of those excursions, Mrs. K. suggested we stop for ice cream.
(Royalty-free image by Silvia from Pixabay.)
Stopping at a stand on the way to our destination, she said, “I’m going to get chocolate chip!”
Chocolate-chip ice cream? That was a completely new concept for me!
Coming up to the stand, we saw all the featured flavors, including chocolate mint…
…and so began a new “love” in my life.
Mint chocolate ice cream will always remind me of kind, professional Mrs. K.–a role model, a leader in her time, and an amazing friend.
Now–what do you love to eat? And what are the great memories with which you associate these favorites?
A very Happy Valentine’s Day to you and yours! May it be filled with everything you love.