Illinois Fairy House

Today was a short drive geographically but a half-century emotionally. I returned to my alma mater, Lake Forest College, north of Chicago around the corner from Michigan City. As luck would have it, this was the first day of freshman orientation and the place was hopping with eager bright eyes and their misty-eyed parents. Took me back. I climbed to the top of College Hall where the college darkroom was back in the day. No longer. Because what's  a darkroom? The campus has grown, one dorm had sprouted a second story. Lots of rain and Philly-style humidity, but it was good to look around and remember back in the day.

Then I traveled a half-hour to the home of Steve and Suzanne, two friends from the aforementioned day. They had just met when I knew them. Now they've been married 50 years They are really lucky because, in their yard there is this really cool fairy house with a little door and a mirror. And the fairy keeps little trinkets like little horses and stars and hearts and diamonds and other things and the kids in the neighborhood come around and they know, because there is a little sign, and because their friends tell them, that they can take only one thing away every day. And the kids come around every day to check on things and to see what the fairy has left for them. Sometimes as many as 20 kids show up in a day. So yes, they are very lucky that they have a fairy in their garden and because they have eachother.