Portland, Maine

What is it about certain smells, feelings, names, and places that can evoke so many memories?  The brain makes connections based on senses and it seems that some memories are just waiting for a trigger to bring them back to our conscious thoughts.  I went to Portland to see my mom over this Mother's Day for a long weekend.  On the first morning, I went for a 5-mile jog from the East End to the West End of Portland and back.  Jogging up the hill on the East side, I remembered sailing in Casco Bay with my college team mates and our coach, and then instructing sailing for a summer. I remember that whole summer I refused to shave my legs because I was trying out being "natural." Thank goodness that didn't last too long. Jogging down Congress Street, I saw Zarra's Cafe was still there, and I remembered my college friend Ruthy introducing me to Zarra the first week he opened his Cafe about 7 years ago. I ran past the library, and the Longfellow Garden where my friends John & Jess got married. I ran past the Dunkin' Donuts and Portland Hall, places where I would go with my American and Japanese roommates during the Rissho Program. As I jogged past these places, I just saw them for a few seconds, but faces, feelings and the memories of doing these everyday activities came rushing back just from the blueprint of the place in my mind, like a visual combination that opens up a lock on the "memory" safe. Well, I also ran by the Dominican corner store that opened up shortly after I broke up with my Dominican boyfriend, who I lived with (along with his little brother) for a year or so in the back of that big blue apartment building on Park St. in front of Deering Oaks Park. I ran by there, too, and realized I had forgotten that the apartment where I lived before was right next door - my first place living with roommates.  They were both musicians, Alison and Nick.  I remember the last time I went up to Portland I ran into him. It was about 6 years after we had been roommates, but instantly we recognized each other.  Each time I go up to Portland, which is at least a few times a year, I'm always amazed at all the changes. There's more development on the Old Port and there's always new restaurants or different stores. But, I can see the old Portland in my memories wont go away. The only places, people and things that stay the same are in our memories. As a phrase I like says, "The only constant is change."