Ravinia

Jake loves A Prairie Home Companion.

On any given Saturday evening, he would be content in front of the radio for two hours listening to Garrison Keillor and tales from Lake Wobegon. We were able to go a live performance of A Prairie Home Companion this past weekend. Dream come true. Yes.

The performance was part of the Ravinia Festival. We went with our friends, Matt and Lisa, and it was really a night I'll never forget. Sure, Garrison was great, but the atmosphere screamed summer. Summer in all of it's glory. The perfect evening one reads about in books, and hears about in days gone by.

We entered the gate and were greeted by other Ravinia-goers spread out on an expansive lawn with tables and chairs and blankets set up. Picnics all around. And the smell of wine. We found our spot under a tree, spread our blankets and began sharing good food. The show began. We laughed, exchanged glances, felt the truth in the music of John Prine. The show ended, but the evening did not.

We read passages from Dandelion Wine, bits of James Agee, and took part in meaningful conversation. I thought about and mentioned how long it had been since I'd seen the moon. After a while, the double in double feature began. It was a piano concert filtered through speakers out to us. Everyone was quiet. Cora wanted to dance. Lisa, a dancer herself, danced with her, for a long time. It was beautiful to watch. We walked down the dirt road along the train tracks back to the bus that took us to our cars that would take us home. We saw a few fireworks going off in distant places in Chicago.We stepped onto our street, the smell of wine still lingering in the air.

I will miss Matt and Lisa. A lot. They're some of our all-time favorite friends.

Leave a Comment