Making Memories

The cycle of life is absolutely fascinating.

My youngest brother, Carl, and his family are here this week on vacation. Last night he and his twin daughters and our Dad joined me, my younger son, Ben, and two of my grandsons for an evening at Camden Park.
Some of my happiest childhood memories revolve around Camden Park (http://www.camdenpark.com/) which is West Virginia's only amusement park. The park is over a century old, and was originally built as a destination to boost ridership on the early street car line. In the era of huge theme parks, Camden Park is a quaint throwback to more simple times. It has more than 20 carnival type rides including the "Merry Go Round" which is 100 years old this year.

As a child growing up in the east end of Huntington, it was always a treat for us to make the trip down to the western city limits for a day at Camden Park. My earliest memories of the park are of the brightly colored lights against the black night sky. Eating "Pronto Pup" corn dogs and cotton candy and riding the rides with my dad was special. I still remember his big hand holding on to me as we zoomed around the ends of "The Whip" and into the big drop on the old wooden roller coaster, "The Big Dipper." As I grew, the memories include the special times I had there with my brothers and friends. We would visit the park a couple of times per summer, and sometimes more when we had cousins visiting from out of town. Later it became a place to take a special girl for a great date. I have lots of wonderful memories of Camden Park.

Once Linda and I married and our family grew, the Camden Park tradition continued. Now I was the Dad and I was holding on to my own boys as the rides zoomed, spun, and dipped. Jay and Benji grew older and now have families of their own. Soon we were making the trip to Camden Park with GRANDSONS! Where have the years gone? The visit to the park last night brought s many memories and a flood of emotion.

I spent five hours with some special people. There was my baby brother and his 13 year old twin daughters, Kate and Alex, whom I get to see maybe once a year. My younger son, Ben was there, along with his two sons, Will (6) and Asher (2). Kate, Alex, and Will had a ball - running from ride to ride - squealing with delight - eating nachos and popcorn and just having a great time. Asher rode some of the Kiddie Rides but he was pretty anxious about all the new sights and sounds. It was sensory overload for the little guy. He alternated between delighted smiles, and screaming bloody murder. Yet when I asked him today if he would like to go back to Camden Park, his face lit up as he gave me an emphatic, "Yes!" The same reactions I remember from my little brothers, my own sons, and now my grandson.

Then there was Dad. He is 80 years old now, and hobbled by broken ribs and legs that don't carry him as fast as they once did. Still you could see the satisfaction on his face while watching the kids having such a great time. He rode a few rides (the train, merry go round, and the whip) but he spent most of the evening moving from bench to bench, watching the kids. I thought the highlight of the evening was seeing the joy on his face when Asher decided to help him eat his ice cream cone. Sure wish I had brought my camera.

So there we were - me, my dad, a brother, two nieces, a son, and 2 grandsons. Four generations of my family - doing one of those special things we've done for over fifty years. Making more memories.

Life is good.