Swirl

 A youthful remembrance....

Music played in the background at the party.  A soundtrack playing half noticed and casually acknowledged with the occasional lyric sung and some part danced to by some of those gathered at the event. The music creates an atmosphere that is familiar and welcoming to the group gathered.  Sounds become louder or dampened depending on one’s proximity to the sound source.

I remember a party that we tagged along to once.  My friend knew some people who were having the get together at a house and we were allowed to attend.  The major attraction was that there would be live music from a rock band.

The band members didn’t all show up so the band never played.  There was a novice guitar playing kid who played “Ain’t Talking Bout Love” by Van Halen on an electric guitar as the organizers tried to decide how to salvage the evening.    The kid was learning the part so he started and stopped often and would start repeating the opening riff again.    

My buddy and I looked at each other.

“Why does he keep playing that riff?”

“Probably doesn’t know anything else.”

We had gotten semi wasted before entering the place and decided we would go back out to the car we arrived in a sip on our beers.  We were a little tired, bored and drunk.  We went to a safe haven away from the strangers, our car.

The party people started playing CDs to fill the silence which appeared after the kid with the guitar stopped his noodling.  The music swirled skyward.

We only stayed about another hour but the memory stuck with me over the years as it was another adventure during my teenage life. 

We would never visit that particular place in time again.