My earliest memory of a vacation was the summer of 1975. I remember being with my brothers, sister, mom, aunt and “Munner” (my grandmother). We all piled in the big blue station wagon and put all fellow travelers to shame as we visited EVERY tourist trap imaginable in the Ozarks. Shepherd of the Hills (the fire)… the Fantastic Caverns (the trolley bus)… Silver Dollar City (lollipops)… well, this is all a 5- year- old can lock in her overactive brain for safe keeping 35 years later.
Of course, my favorite was Silver Dollar City. I took it all in. Grandpa's mansion- the huge lollipops, the tree bridge- and the huge colorful lollipops everyone had, the log ride- and the big huge colorful lollipops everyone had but me….SIGH- A vivid memory indeed!
By golly, I wanted one of those lollipops. The big round one, with blue and orange and pink and yellow on a long wooden stick just like the one everyone in the park seemed to be showcasing and devouring. Next thing I knew we were all in one of the stores with all kinds of treasures… t-shirts, stuffed animals, wooden games, glass animals, taffy , chips, different items you would find at a grocery store and (squeal!) BIG HUGE LOLLIPOPS!! It was then I knew…
Heaven exists in the Ozark Mountains.
Yes, I was in heaven and heavenly angels were shining their light on a tree of lollipops as I was blinded by one that was perfectly colorful, just low enough for me to reach (the angels planned it that way, of course- just….for….me). I grasped the celestial gift in my hand and took it upon myself to go ahead and unwrap the technicolor confection, sit on the closest “throne” I mean bench, and voila! It was just me and that lollipop. No one even came close to touching this dream, ‘cause I was officially royalty. This was my scepter. My tiara was in the back pocket of my dirty holey jeans and my smile implied...
“Yeah- y’all go ahead and settle for the Chiclets, this is my destiny.”
Munner knew her “rough and tumble” was in a good place, and paid accordingly. I remember.
Like I said….there is only so much a 5- year- old can lock in her brain for safe keeping 35 years later. ; )
Brian and I took our girls to SDC last summer and absolutely LOVED it. I, too, remember getting one of those lollipops from there when I was a kid. I'm sad that my girls aren't enamored with them. If I tell Caroline it's a scepter I'll bet shed go for it.
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