A few days ago, my friend, Amalia called me to ask if I was going to the fourth of July parade and festivities that takes place in my town at Memorial Park.  

When Jimmy was still alive, we would go with him as he loved the music and meeting people he knew there.  So, in memory of Jimmy, she and I went.  

Michael happened to be here, so we relied on him to help us get there.  He took the folding lawn chairs there for us to sit on and parked his car in one of the few spots that were available to save it for us. 

 When we arrived in Amalia’s car, we just switched to the spot he was in.  

The chairs were already placed in a prime spot for viewing.  We didn’t miss a beat as we arrived in time to see the entire parade.  

 There were two Bag Pipe bands and another band that was on a flatbed truck and a marching band, plus scads of fire trucks.  

Besides the ones from River Edge, there were many from neighboring towns that didn’t have any celebrations in their towns.  There were police departments, American Legion Troops, many other veteran groups, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Ball teams, etc.  

 We went to the park for refreshments and to listen to some of the bands that were hired to play for hours after the parade. I did some dancing in front of the platforms. 

 A woman who was about the same age as I am made a point to come up to me and tell me how much she enjoyed watching me and told me to not ever give it up.  

My son tracked me down and gave me a lecture when he saw I had drunk only a few sips of water from the water bottle I had...  He said I must be dehydrated and that it was 90 degrees, and it was a wonder I hadn’t passed out.  

When I complained to others about how he was bugging me, every single person took his side and said he was right to be so concerned.  When we got home, he gave me a huge glass of water and then told me I was taking too long to drink it. 

I notice my threshold for feeling thirsty has diminished with age.  I will be paying more attention to this in the future.  I will also try to be more patient and thankful for Michael’s help. 

If I succeed in those endeavors, I may march myself down Fifth Avenue in a special parade at a time when the weather has cooled.