"You Can Call Me Al"

The song “You Can Call me Al” by Paul Simon has an affect on me that I have never really been consciously aware about. I noticed that since I could remember I always sang and hummed the song. I never knew who sang the song or where I heard it from. To me, it was kind of like that song that gets stuck in your head but you don’t know what it is called. This use to drive me crazy…it was the tip of the tongue feeling.

My previous visit home I was humming the song in the kitchen and my Mom started singing the lyrics. I turned around in amazement and asked her who sings the song. I told her that in the most random times of day the song would magically appear in my head. My Mom turned to me and told me that it was a Paul Simon song and that his c.d. used to be my favorite when I was a baby. She said that when she played the c.d. Graceland I would bounce up and down, clap my hands and rock back and forth until I had exhausted myself out. As I got older my Mom would put the song on when I would through temper tantrums or when she was trying to cook or clean.

After hearing all of this information all the pieces started coming together. This song was a trigger, a cue that brought past childhood memories to life again. Then I began to realize, the random humming and singing would only happen when I would see things that reminded me of my Mom. The song had such a significant value to me because it represented important parts of my life; the memories that I had created with my Mom.

I asked my Mom to burn me a copy of the c.d. and send it to me. And so, I’ve been sitting here listening to the song, “You Can Call Me Al, Graceland, Diamonds on the Sole of Her Shoes” and thinking about all the smells, conversations and feelings that I had when these songs were playing. One of the fondest memories I have with my Mom is her baking chocolate chip cookies. It was raining outside and I had wanted hot chocolate and had asked my Mom to help me boil the water. I remember hearing our old 1960’s wooden cabinets clunk together (really 1960’s!) and wondering what my Mom was doing. Moments later I heard the mixer being used, so I went in the kitchen to investigate. She was making cookies and placing them on the cookie sheet. She smiled and told me that she would love my help. So that evening I helped my Mom make about three dozen cookies while Paul Simon played in the background. I also remember several instances when my Mom would put the c.d. on and quilt. She was a very creative quilter. She used to design quilts that she would see in her dreams or from her childhood. (which is ironic for this project.) Nobody to this day quite understands them or can follow the colors, design or story behind them except for her and those who know my Mom very well. I remember when she would quilt she and have Paul Simon playing she would tell me every story about every patch, color or stitch she made.

Also, my Mom taught me how to play Chutes and Ladders with Paul Simon playing in the background. She said that it always put me in a good mood even if I was a poor sport sometimes! Paul Simon songs make feelings and emotions that used to be regressed, surface. When I hear these songs I think about my family, dogs, friends, and especially Mom. I am the luckiest daughter in the world to have a Mom like mine. She has created lasting and unforgettable memories in my life that I will tell my children about one day. I know that these memories can always be re created simply just by putting “You Can Call Me Al” on in my ipod.