#82 Hemlock Society (#1)

It is obvious she is becoming one of those New Yorkers. The ones that don’t care if their socks match, wearing an old skirt, ragged polo shirt without a bra, cracked sunglasses and a purple UV protected hat with sun tan lotion stains all over it.  There is no longer interest or objective style sense related to fashion or vanity. All she cares about is getting her old bones out of bed and onto the reservoir path, the one Jaqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir Path. In 1994 they dedicated it in her name. 1994. 

For all she cared she could’ve been wearing her pajamas.

 She was on her way to Frank E. Campbell Funeral Home on Madison Avenue for her father’s wake in 1990 when she saw Jackie O for the first time in the neighborhood. She was one giant head with a great jaw. A simple scarf and eyes completely hidden behind her sunglasses.

So when she walks around the reservoir, with her left ear to the water, she appreciates what Jackie has done to improve the place and hopes that if Jackie is interested in the Reservoir in her afterlife, she would not be offended by her clothes and judge her while peering down on the general vicinity of the upper east side.

There were some photos from the 70’s of Paul Simon and Arthur Garfunkle posing next to the chain link fence which surrounded the reservoir back then. She tried to visualize the Park in the 70’s. Whose idea was it to do that photo shoot there? A really good idea.

This morning some tourists asked her to take their photo. They picked a spot where the light wasn’t good, but they were so pleased when she agreed to do it. When she handed the camera back she noticed the woman’s fingernails were each painted a different color. She pointed to them and gave her a thumbs up, because she knew they spoke no English.  They really looked good. There was no rhyme or reason to her choice of colors. No pattern at all, but they were well painted and a daring choice which also showed a sign of fun and frivolity which she usually saw on younger women who did a much sloppier job painting their nails.

As she continues walking, people much younger than she are jogging past her. It is incredible how many inspirational athletic slogans there are on t-shirts: aiming to be the best, or congratulating the runner for a half marathon in 2009 for not giving up. What exactly is the significance of these slogans in the current context of their lives? Do they wear these shirts to inspire others or to brag about their athletic accomplishments?  Because for her they seem slightly ridiculous.

And this is when she realizes that she is aging. The idea of striving for a t-shirt  with a slogan to congratulate someone for running a race is funny. Especially because of who is wearing the shirt. But that’s neither here, nor there and they are gone fairly fast. She used to run, until the arthritis happened and there is no cartilage to protect her bones anymore.

So now she walks.

She enjoys hearing the fine gravel path kicked up and shuffled around like sand with imprints of every kind of sneaker sole design.

She enjoys tourists posing for their loved ones.

She enjoys overhearing a group of women in their 70’s strolling together and cracking jokes about where they will go for lunch and what they think the waitress will say about their visor-hats.

Her left ear is to the quiet water, ducks floating below and an apple tree full of fruit sagging above.