Legends.

I stumbled across the new show on Amazon called "Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street." It has a nostalgic feel to it, a mixture of "Are you Afraid of the Dark?" and "Stand By Me" with episodes titled "Gortimer vs. The Frog of Ultimate Doom" and "Gortimer and the Mystical Mind Eraser." Shaped around the three main characters, Gortimer, Ranger and Mel. Best friends in the tweens, every week they find themselves in the middle of some strange happenings in their neighborhood. It's one part mystery, one part feel-good adventures. 

Watching the show got me thinking of the mysteries of my own childhood. One memory in particular popped into my mind. The legend of the witch on Eastern.

One summer, when I was seven or eight, I participated in my school's summer camp. It was a day camp, so every morning we would gather in the yard. This yard happened to be in a partially developed neighborhood, meaning that immediately next to our school yard was desert land and what appeared to be one small shack in the middle. It was far enough away that you had to squint your 8 year old eyes to even get a good look at it. And far enough away to definitely imagine a figure standing on the porch. This figure would later be described to me as the 'witch who lives there' by some older kids, perhaps junior high since it was a K-8 day camp. "Did you know a witch lives there?" It was a brief conversation, but long enough to ignite my imagination for the summer. Who was this lady? Was she really a witch? What was a witch? Was she mean or just misunderstood?

Many, many years later, I found myself back at that old yard. I remembered the legend of the witch, which was probably just some lovely lady named Delores who was an excellent baker...or something. Through the fence, I squinted my eyes her way, only to see that this mysterious land was now a suburban business park. Wonder where she went? 

When I watch shows like Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street, I'm transported to a time when stories and legends filled my imagination.