That damn Jim Croce gets me everytime...

It turned out to be a pretty splendiforous, sunny day here today. The boys were cheery, the sky was sunny, and the windows begged to be rolled down as we rocked it in the rennievan on the way to the Farmer's Market.

Sammy insisted upon wearing his Halloween costume after finding it in the "too small, better find a new home" pile. He looked a little bit like an overgrown cowboy heading off to perform surgery, what with his fringed pants and green crocks and all. But like I've said, he owns the look.

Here is in October 2007 (6 months BC - "Before Crocs") to give you an idea.



At the Farmer's Market we enjoyed the warmest day in over six months by sitting out in the beautiful sunshine, munching on popcorn and feeling a cool breeze and the groove of the day. Sammy danced - with all kinds of style and "Jazz Hands"- to folk singer Ken who was entertaining us with the John Prine/George Straight hit "I Just Wanna Dance With You" while Max quietly read the John Deere catalog that goes everywhere with us. And both boys were delighted by the Summery goodness of a bag of fresh-popped kettle corn.

A then, in the midst of the sunlight and the dancing toddler and the guzzling preschooler, that damn Jim Croce song hit me in the gut like a fourth grader's first belly flop. You know the song - played on cheezy soft hit radio stations (aka Love Songs After Dark) -the tune that's all eerie because he wrote it for his son and then was killed in a plane crash months after he recorded it and every time you hear it you scramble for the dial, except that it's a button now (they haven't been dials in cars for years) hoping to change it before you even hear the first line because the cheese is sooooo melting out of your speakers.

Folk Singer Ken went right into it:

If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that Id like to do
Is to save every day
Till eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you

But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do
Once you find them
I've looked around enough to know
That you're the one I want to go
Through time with

And I found myself choking up, willing the kettle korn to find it's way down my throat without creating an incident that required a 4 year old to dial 911 on a cell phone.

Because I was in one of those moments: one of those "Time In a Bottle" Moments. I looked at my boys being so content with sunshine, popcorn, a tractor catalog, and an amateur folk singer.

And it was enough.

It was enough to make us laugh (and in my state, cry) and be very thankful for this day.

Thank GOD I had on my big black sunglasses, because if ANYONE ever caught my eyes welling up to a Jim Croce song I just might have to do something unspeakable.

And if that wasn't bad enough, I think Folk Singer Ken knew he had me in the palm of his hand. Because just as I was pulling myself together and getting ready to head over for one last sample of smoked salmon and call it a day...he busted into "Mr. Bojangles".

Which honestly, I could totally walk away from without a tear. But no, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band had to add that little extra bit of sorrow about Mr. Bojangles with "The dog up and died, he up and died."

Because I really needed to explain "up and died" to a 4 year old today.