Alice Meyer lived on a farm a few miles from town. Her mom, God bless her, opened her doors to all and we all flooded in, usually for slumber parties. One spring evening in 1960, we ninth grade girls, found ourselves, once again, packed in Fritz Meyer’s (Alice’s big brother) car and on our way to the farm. Tucked in behind rolling hills of Allamakee County, in Northeast Iowa, their little white farm house stood. We crowded in with our duffle bags, grocery bags, and maybe an actual suit case, stuffed with pajamas, toothbrushes, hair brushes, books, 45 RPM records, and make up.

I wore a dress that Mama had just bought for me. Aqua thread intertwined throughout the cotton bodice of the same color. White lace accented the neck and waste line. The full skirt hung to just below my knees. Mama had helped me pull my hair back into a pony tail. A white scarf held it in place. A scatter of bobbie pins secured escaping strands. In those days, it wasn’t fashionable for strands of hair to hang loose. Some of my pals wore slacks and white blouses; some wore tight skirts and sweaters. We all wore bobby socks.

Card tables were waiting in Alice’s basement. Potato chips, and popcorn filled big bowls. We drank Coke and Root Beer. Large platters of Pizza were served, as we laughed, gossiped and did the twist, as Chubby Checker filled the room with his number one hit. We sat with our eyes closed, as we listened to It’s Now or Never by Elvis, and held back tears when Mark Dinning sang Teen Angel.

The number one song of 1960 was A Summer Place by Percy Faith. Someone had the record and we played it over and over. I remember descending the basement steps of the Meyer home. I was feeling a little shy, as I was terribly insecure in my teenage years. The melody of this song floated up and met me. For a moment I became Sandra Dee. The girls behind me giggled and pushed through. They loved my dress and pulled me into the room. We all felt like the little blond movie star so popular with the teenage girls.

I loved that song. Still on the top of my list of favorites, I have to pause and close my eyes, whenever I hear it. Dreams float around in my head and for a little while, I am a teenager from 1960, innocent and protected from the years that lay ahead. With my pals from the little town of New Albin, Iowa, we enjoyed our slumber parties and the songs that etched a permanent place in our hearts. Each of us had a favorite song; mine was Theme from A Summer Place.

Copyright-Kathleen M. Brosius-March 19, 2010