The Redwoods

The steady rain falling on the roof reminds me of the mountains. I would sit in the front room of our family restaurant and watch the rain streaming down the hills that led to my school. The soaked redwood floors permeated our lives. It was always damp, even on the hot days. I would sip mint tea amongst the diners, daydream about my next adventure into the forest with my friends. We always explored the woods, streams, highways?, without an adult but always with a "dog stick". Those were the days! We tried to get lost but somehow always made it home, albeit wet most of the time. The restaurant was the heartbeat of the town and some interesting people came in on a regular basis. Buzz, Beast and Butch to name a few. Of course many people know the name Bo Diddley, he fixed a busted pipe in the kitchen for us during rush hour once and came in pretty regularly. Growing up in the middle of this mountain town, in a restaurant didn't always have it's perks but it was never lacking in goings-on.