First Thoughts

People often ask "What's your earliest memory?" So here goes...

I still remember it like yesterday. My mom was standing at an old style kitchen sink, the kind that was of cast iron and white porcelain, having a curtain drawn around the bottom part of it. It was white with a pattern of yellow flowers printed on it. I must've been close to two years old, for I remember how tall my mom was and I could barely reach the height of the bottom drawer of a cabinet that I was standing at. Pulling on the drawer while trying to stand, it slid open to reveal the treasures that were inside. The hard look on my moms face told me that I was doing something wrong but it quickly turned soft as she saw the fascination I had looking at all the treasures within.

Inside were bottles! Of all shapes and sizes and colors they were and all held my sight as I tried to sort them out. I would grab and hold each one up to my mom, and she would explain what they were. Of course I wasn't quite up to speed on the English language yet but I understood more from her expressions than the spoken word. One bottle caught my eye though, of rounded shape up top like a pair of shoulders and having a large capacity, but more important was the color. The deepest purple hue that when held to the light would change the way the whole world looked thru it. This was my treasure and my mom would gesture that I could have it as long as I stood with her by the sink.

Of course, of later years I would recognize Milk of Magnesia when I saw it again, but for me I can still recall the brilliant shades of colors, and how it changed the world when my gaze penetrated the colorful glass, making it all look mystical in my sight.

Rick Light