It was one of those perfect early summer evenings. The sky was sending out les bisous d’or and there was just a faint enough breeze to play with the ends of my skirt.
My Mom had been telling me about the Top of the Park Festival, which takes place each summer on the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor, for years. She had her first date with Leonard – now her fiancé – there and had passed many a happy evening with my Sister as well, dancing under the stars.
Last Saturday evening, it was finally my turn. My Mom and I stocked up on a Mexican feast from one of the food stands set up by local restaurants and went to find Leonard, who was waiting…
…in an area under the trees called the Grove, where the fairy lights blinked and plastic tumblers of red wine awaited us. Just as we arrived, plates balanced precariously in hand, a family got up from where they were sitting at the front and center of the action and said, “We are leaving, do you want our spot?” It was one of those gifts that fall into place on such an evening. We smiled and offered copious thanks as they melted into the crowds.
As I settled in, I couldn’t help but be delighted with the calmness of the scene. People of all ages, races and styles chatted quietly with one another. Kids did cartwheels across the lawn. There was no pushing to be first in line or to procure seating closer to the stage, no frantic texting or gasping theatrically into cell phones. Perhaps I have been living in Europe for too long but it did surprise me, even though I grew up largely in the Midwest where we are known for our polite behavior. Such ease of conviviality, natural and without decorum, only added to the sweetness of the evening.
I think that it was Adam Gopnik who, in his excellent book “Paris to the Moon” nailed down the contrast that in New York you are anonymous and in Paris you are given the head to toe glance by each and every person that you pass. I had experienced the shock of that transition when I moved from Manhattan to France and am now used to that attention in Arles. At the Top of the Park, no one was particularly looking or not looking. We were all just there, together. And while the three of us were unanimous in our dislike for the main band – a let down after the swing of the Joe Summers Gypsy Jazz Trio that had opened for them – we didn’t mind leaving early, for we had already passed a wonderful moment on a perfect night, the simple peace of which I will not soon forget.
From a smaller venue at Top of the Park in 2011:
Many thanks to Leonard Wells, my Mom’s wonderful fiancé, who loaned me his snazzy Samsung Galaxy to take these photos. Alas, I forgot that I can’t download images from my trusty Canon on my laptop, so I will either continue sharing the posts from Provence that I had prepared in advance or smartphone snaps while I am in the States…
And I would also like to express my gratitude to the extremely generous David Terry, who has sent me two care packages of fascinating books to entertain me during the rest of my time in States and beyond…Merci, David!
Oh Loree, I wish that I had that quality! Of my various memory problems, the most embarassing for me is that of forgetting people's faces – which, when you live is such a small town as Arles, can really be a problem. I have offended more people than I mean to!
Oh how funny. What a small, small world it can be at times. My Mom and Sister are here and I love visiting – although this is the first time that I have been in summer and it is just gorgeous. As I am usually here for either Thanksgiving or the Christmas holidays the weather is quite different! Ann Arbor is such a fantastic town and full of such good restaurants – of which we have been making the most of – that is why I am frustrated not to be able to download my photos. So far, the Slurping Turtle, Aventura and Grange have been my favorites of the "new" (to me) crop plus we did my "must" visit to Jolly Pumpkin for truffle fries. 🙂
Glad you loved Arles and that you are enjoying the blog – bienvenue!
Such as your fine self! I brought the beautiful shoes that you sent me on this trip and wear them all the time!!
It is, Marsha. It is so lush – everything is so green and the birds are singing non-stop. I love it! And my Mom is a strong woman and yes, an adventurer – last year she went on a gruelling trip through India and Nepal to retrace the path of Buddha and was the only one who was not sick the entire time.
It is driving me crazy! Mainly because I am eager to share what I have with you all! 🙂
I think that you would have loved this evening Jeanne. And I bet you held your own just fine in those corporate elevators!! 😉
A generous response from a generous man. And yes, I am often telling Remi that he has to "refill the well" because you can't just endlessly give away your creative output without, as David Hammond said "feeding." But what I especially loved about your gifts – beyond just the sheer luxury of so many words in front of me, so much promise – is that they are not books that I would have necessarily found on my own. Actually I am sure of it! So thank you for opening doors as well…
I would love to!
I can't say that I have! But then again perhaps people have been too polite to mention that idea to me. 😉 And your mentioning the possibility of walking down the street in a nightgown made me think back to my years in NYC where it was a point of pride to never look at either a) a celebrity or b) anything unusual. I remember walking past a man who was standing stark naked (he didn't seem crazy, I think he was performing an art piece) on 5th Avenue and absolutely no one would give him the time of day!
Yes, that is what meant the most to me about it as well. My Sister has said that it is always like that but that we were lucky to have such perfect weather to top it off. Michigan, as I remember from the few years living here in my childhood, is a land of extreme weather! Yesterday there was a thunderstorm that rattled the bones of the house. So I will take whatever of that gorgeous breeze that I can get. 🙂