The Lines on My Face

I've probably heard the song 'Who Says You Can't Go Home' a hundred times before. This time when I heard it on the radio one section jumped out at me:

I went as far as I could tryin to find a new face
There isn't one of these lines that I would erase
I left a million miles of memories on that road
Every step I take I know that I'm not alone

Bon Jovi/Sugarland

Two memories came to mind: First, when I was in high school I performed in a production of The Sting. I played the narrator who is approximately 60 years old. One night I was sitting in a chair in front of the woman putting on my old woman makeup. She told me to scrunch my forehead. I did. "You sure have a lot of lines" she said. I didn't know how to respond, and my eyebrows were already raised, so I just did nothing. Maybe a minute later she says, "Oh, I meant you have a lot of lines in the play!" Which I did, but I also have quite a few lines on my forehead when I scrunch it up.

Second, I remember sitting in my Grandma Smith's kitchen making cookies (soft gingersnaps - so good!) preparing for a fishing trip we were taking with Grandpa Smith the next morning. I was probably 10 years old. I noticed that she has a lot of lines all over her face. Honestly at this point I don't remember if she called them smile crinkles or if I did. But, the point is, I remember thinking "I'm going to be proud of my 'smile crinkles' someday - they will tell the story of the life I've lived and the joy I've felt."

I still feel that way - and echo Bon Jovi's sentiment: There isn't one of these lines that I would erase."