I was driving to get my toes splashed with color when the light flicked to “Whoa, now – you hear?” Off to my right a teen in pj bottoms was dancing a sign to life, announcing a Girl’s Club sale. I couldn’t help but smile and watch her as I pressed to a stop. When it was time to “Giddyap” I caught sight of another girl to my left hotfooting in slippers, waving a similar sign, completely devoid of self-consciousness or fear. White to the right of me, black to the left. Freckles. Giggles. Toes. It was as though God himself had opened up the Heavens and spat out a perfect moment just to remind me that he could.
I was warm and fuzzying myself into a Zen-like froth when but two blocks later I spied no fewer than six young men, only one white, giggling although I’m sure they would deny it and prancing and goofing with signs and a box one of them had turned into a makeshift car. Turns out the East Plano Football team had a fund-raiser going on at Sonic and they were there to siren us in.
It was all I could do not to pull to the side to double over with joy. It’s been that long, you see, since I’ve seen teenagers of any color unabashedly acting like children. Some preconceived notions I’d packed from California to Texas slipped out of me and seeped into the sewer where they belong.
Delight reared its ugly head. When I arrived at my destination I asked to have my toes painted a surly shade of OPI “Can you dig it?”
Turns out I can dig it. Ain't it cool?
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Heather Kephart. Heather Kephart said: Can you dig it? http://goo.gl/fb/BbavC [...]
ReplyDeleteRefreshing, isn't it? This is one of the things I love about Scouts, too.
ReplyDelete.-= Holly Jahangiri´s last blog ..My Books Won Awards, and My Publisher Threw Things at Me!? =-.
Love your little hoard of delights,but what is the surly shade of OPI?
ReplyDeleteI think we're all looking for photos of your surly nails, now.
ReplyDelete.-= Holly Jahangiri´s last blog ..My Books Won Awards, and My Publisher Threw Things at Me!? =-.
Cool. Like the OPI shades. I use to sell them when I had my SPA over in Portugal (somewhat expensive though). Many of them "dug" it, you dig:)
ReplyDelete.-= DiTesco´s last blog ..Google Releases Best SEO Tips Ever =-.
It's just so cool to see them having fun and not making too much of an attempt to seem "cool" and "unfazed" by it all.
ReplyDeleteHi DiTesco, I loves me some OPI! Nice to get a mani/pedi again. It had been AGES.
ReplyDeleteLOL! My nails have been taunting me since I made the decision to go with purple instead of something more conservative.
ReplyDeleteAwww! I can't wait to paint my little girl's nails. I think at that age they just like to paint everything. Maybe you could paint her nails with one of those washable markers? Stay away from surly and sassy shades, though. She may become addicted and nothing good can come from that.
ReplyDeleteAgh! Why did this go to SPAM? AGH! Sorry, just found it!
ReplyDeleteOPI is a brand, and "Can you dig it" is the color. Surly is the mood. My husband will tell you that "Can you dig it" is just another color for purple, but I have contended that there are subtle differences that are only able to be detected by the female eye.