My Map Home

 Dream from Last night:

I am in South Williamsport, it's that time of year again. The Little League World Series are started and the town is alive. I'm there with Abe, who is on a work call. "I'm going to go to the stadium while you do your work thing," I tell him, and he waves me away but walks behind me as I go. I make my way up to this gift shop at the top of the hill, and there was so much candy in it. "I've dreamt of this place," I think. I try to tell Abe that this is the place where I had that dream I told him about. I am so excited, because everything is exactly as I remembered it. 

I look out the window over Lamade stadium and see the kids sliding downhill on pieces of cardboard. I don't know why this was the funnest thing in the world when we were younger. It was like sledding with no snow.  I wanted to be out there. I wanted to try it again now that I'm older, even though it seems ridiculous to me now. But I felt like I was stuck in the store. I could see the stadium and the hills rising behind it, I could see the green grass, and suddenly I could see South Williamsport from a birds eye view, like I was looking at it on Google maps. I looked at the neighborhoods, and saw a house with a pool in the back. "Wow, I didn't know they had a pool," I thought. "They were wealthier than I thought."

I could see East Mountain Ave, looping around to meet Southside Park. There's the hill we used to bike down. We thought it was the steepest hill alive, and prayed that we'd make it to the bottom, but now I knew it probably wasn't steep at all. Everything was so lush and glowing in shades of vibrant greens. From the map I was seeing, I mapped a path back home. I used my finger like a Stylist on this screen and drew an exit from this store, the Stadium, and then the complex. A sharp left and then up the winding road, and then I'd be there.

I set out on this path, twisting through the store like a maze. I got out of a window and made it to the stadium, quickly making my way back. When I exited the complex, I was on a street I knew. There was a rusted, dome shaped bridge that I'd dreamt about! In that dream I was trying to go home with two friends, but it was dark and raining, and one of them got hit by a car. Now it was bright and clear, with no traffic in sight. I continued to walk up it until I was on my street. 

I stood there, on East Mountain Avenue, when Abe came to me and expressed, "You said you were just checking the stadium out while I was on my call." He was angry. He was mad that I'd spent so much time frolicking around, and he didn't want to be there. "I'm not here for this," he said, "so I've booked a couple nights at a hotel nearby." I was very taken back by this and told him I was done, and I'd go with him. But then I saw this small hotel room. It was dark and felt suffocating. Just like that he was gone, and I was there alone, staring at my childhood home. 

I walked right past it. I walked to the end of the street, to where my best friend lived. It was less of a dream and more of a memory. I looked at all my neighbors' homes and remembered each of them. I could smell the pine trees and see the cracks on the sidewalk that we always made sure to jump over (you know, so we wouldn't break our momma's backs). As I got closer to my best friends house, I could see her with her parents, and with a child. I assumed this little 6 year old brunette was her niece, although her brothers weren't in sight. She stood by her side, while her family all embraced each other. It looked like they were having a reunion. I could feel the joy and the warmth, they were glowing. They kissed and hugged, and in that moment I decided not to interrupt. I let them enjoy it, and I enjoyed it from a distance too. Then I turned around, and walked back down the street, back home.