I introduced our granddaughters to the glorious music of ABBA when they were barely able to process sound. They both recognize the intro to several of the famous ABBA hits now and know it’s time to dance with Nana and Naynay when Alexa cranks up the volume to Dancing Queen. When they came to stay with us last weekend, I thought it was time for them to have the full ABBA experience with the movie version of Mama Mia – you know, the 2008 version when everybody in the picture could sing except Pierce Brosnan. Love him, but singing? Not so much.
Ella and Molly wanted to watch Enchanted, but I asked them to try Mama Mia for me because I knew they would love it. If they weren’t “enchanted” with it, we’d watch their favorite.
Four-year-old Molly immediately went to play with her ice cream cart and babies.
Six-year-old Ella was giving the movie the benefit of the doubt but refused to sit down to watch. She said she’d rather stand. Ok. I got that.
“Naynay, is this age appropriate?” she asked me.
“Of course, it’s age appropriate,” I said. “Would I ever ask you to watch something that’s not age appropriate. And, more importantly, who talks to a six-year-old about age appropriate?”
She continued to stand as the first scenes opened with a young teenage girl talking with her two friends about trying to discover who her father was from among three guys who’d had sex with her mother back in the day. I had forgotten about that little hiccup.
“Naynay, this movie is not age appropriate,” Ella said and looked at me with disappointment. I felt foolish and guilty at my inability to provide proper censorship – to be fair, I had focused on the music and not the storyline.
“Let’s all watch Enchanted,” I said. Ella sat down in Nana’s lap. Molly brought her baby to watch with Nana and Ella on the sofa.
*************************
Two years ago I published this piece on June 17th. It’s age appropriate.
Dancing Queen? Just kidding. Anyone who has seen me on a dance floor from the time my mother tried to teach me how to rock n roll with Dick Clark and American Bandstand after school in the living room of our home in Richards, Texas, to dancing with Pretty and our granddaughters in their kitchen to Roe, Roe, Roe, your Vote – anyone who has seen me try to dance will say gosh, Sheila can still carry a tune plus she’s got rhythm but Lordy, that old woman can’t dance.
I may not be a Dancing Queen, but ABBA will always be my favorite musical group, my go-to songs when I think I can dance.
Last week I watched the movie Mama Mia with Meryl Streep and a bunch of other people I know and like because it’s on my list of all time favorite movies and because I had a round of the epizooti. It was so good I watched it twice and then moved on to The Devil Wears Prada. I only watched it once, though, you’ll be pleased to know.
Since I was in a prone position with no urges to dance, I listened to the words of a beautiful, slower tempo song from Mama Mia that Meryl sang in a poignant scene with her daughter. Beyond the obvious feelings I have now with my granddaughters, I can also connect the words to my relationship with Pretty. Life is often slipping through our fingers all the time.
“Slipping Through My Fingers”
Schoolbag in hand, she leaves home in the early morning
Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile
I watch her go with a surge of that well known sadness
And I have to sit down for a while
The feeling that I’m losing her forever
And without really entering her world
I’m glad whenever I can share her laughter
That funny little girl
Slipping through my fingers all the time
I try to capture every minute
The feeling in it
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Do I really see what’s in her mind
Each time I think I’m close to knowing
She keeps on growing
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Sleep in our eyes, her and me at the breakfast table
Barely awake I let precious time go by
Then when she’s gone, there’s that odd melancholy feeling
And a sense of guilt I can’t deny
What happened to the wonderful adventures
The places I had planned for us to go
Well, some of that we did, but most we didn’t
And why, I just don’t know
Slipping through my fingers all the time
I try to capture every minute
The feeling in it
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Do I really see what’s in her mind
Each time I think I’m close to knowing
She keeps on growing
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Sometimes I wish that I could freeze the picture
And save it from the funny tricks of time
Slipping through my fingers…
*************************
Think about life slipping through our fingers all the time. Do we wish we could freeze the picture and save it from the funny tricks of time. Gosh, I know I do.
Stay tuned.
I'll Call It Like I See It 
You must be logged in to post a comment.