Dolly Madison
My mom, Dolly, came over to do my route with me this morning. She said she wanted to do a longer one with me, and Madison definitely fit the bill. It ended up being my second longest so far in total distance travelled.
When she arrived in my driveway, she was decked out in red, white and blue as a representation of Dolley Madison (slight variation in spelling of her first name). According to Wiki, Dolley Madison helped define the role of the first lady. She was noted for holding Washington social functions in which she invited members of both political parties, essentially spearheading the concept of bipartisan cooperation. We could probably use more Dolley Madisons today!
We started the walk at 117th, and soon we were passing Madison Park and Becks Pool. It was a warm one today, and both my mom and I agreed a trip down the slide would have felt wonderful. Luckily for the residents of Lakewood, the season opening of the pool is today (June 4th) at 5:00 p.m.
The walk turned into a group event after we passed Warren Road. Ava Olic, the Communications and Design Coordinator for Lakewood Alive, joined us for the walk. It was even more exciting when the Executive Director, Ian Andrews joined us near Arthur. It felt like we had our own parade walking down Madison. I still own a rental property on the corner of Arthur and Madison, and I took a pic of my mom sitting on the front porch steps between Ian and Ava.
The rest of our journey felt like a magical walk down Madison. We chatted with each other, talked to residents passing us by and Ian even introduced me to Glen at Lakewood Hardware (I told him I was there yesterday buying “hardware” to repair my tandem bike). The warmth and charm of Lakewood was on full display.
Finally, I would like to thank Dolly Madison for making the effort to join me today. I love that she dressed up for the occasion and talked to everyone she met with a smile on her face. This will be a moment with her I will cherish and always remember. I love you MOM!
