My best friend growing up on the farm on Heath Creek outside Barboursville, West Virginia was Gary Childress. On Elvis Presleys 80th Birthday I had to think of him and the fun we had in the days of yore. Gary Loved Elvis! It was a warm summer day in 1956, the sun riding high amongst puffy scattered cirrus clouds. Upper Heath Creek was running low and the Crawdads avoiding the heat under heavy rocks. The asphalt of West Virginia Route 10 was soft and steamy as it wound past our home along the creek. A game of solitaire Croquet, boring in the least, occupied my time on the front lawn next to 10. Across the creek that traversed our property running to the road and into Upper Heath Creek, was a steep West Virginia Hill running a mile east to Paul Morrisons store. Opposite our home was a single home on the creek, and flat fields above and below a mile each way. I first heard a muffled sound, a sound coming down the valley, in the direction of Paul Morrisons store. At first staccato in fashion, then becoming clearer and clearer, as I stopped my game to listen more intently. Familiar the voice, though Willow Trees guarding Upper Heath Creek masked the voice, and of course the face with it. At a point where the creek made a sharp right turn to cross the field he burst through an opening into my view. From a hundred yards it was clear, my best friend Gary Childress, was excited and bounding toward me at high speed. Even a youngin Gary was fast, easy to see, a ballplayer he would surely be; but ball was not on his mind this day. I could not hear him clearly now! Elvis made a slow song! Elvis made a slow song were his words. It was two miles he had run! Two miles with the excited news. For me who listened to classical music; I was amused I liked Elvis, but only because Gary did. Love me Tender seemed a bit gay to me at that. Rachmaninoff, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky were my thing. Conservative then as now, Gary said I needed to modernize my music tastes. My best friend was ahead of his time. I did fall in love with Elvis, but not until 1960 while walking by the Keith Albee Theatre on a Saturday night. Another friend let me in free to see Jailhouse Rock and the rest was just part of history. Gary and I had long parted, me moving to Huntington High, and he staying at Barboursville High. But that night watching Jailhouse Rock, I remembered that day long ago and my best friend blown away by Love me Tender.. https://youtube/watch?v=qQAgidZW0LY
Posted on: Thu, 08 Jan 2015 05:06:58 +0000
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