Boolady: Pilgrimage

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Pilgrimage

Boolady is making the pilgrimage to Monroeville next week for the 50th anniversary celebration of To Kill a Mockingbird. I know it's wierd but it's just something I have to do...I'll let you know how it goes.

2 comments:

danh said...: Can't wait to read all your fascinating comments. We precariously live through your literary experiences. May Boos' wisdom touches us all.; June 29, 2010 at 2:20 PM
Barbara said...: I went to Monroeville today for the 50th celebration and had a wonderful time! It was my first visit and I bought one of your necklaces in the gift shop! I love it!! Hope you have a good time, too!; July 8, 2010 at 7:05 PM

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What is a Boolady?

What is a Boolady?

When we renovated our perennial garden, which fronts a heavily traveled sidewalk, I included a tribute to Boo Radley-the “Boo Hole.” It is a jar dug into the side of the slope. If you are curious, you will open the lid and you are likely to find some sort of treasure-a foreign coin, a skeleton key, a rhinestone ring missing a tiny bauble, an owl feather. If you take something out, you are morally obliged to put something back in. So unlike Scout and Jem, the 50+ kids that do this, get a chance to give in return. And for the most part, the Boo Hole never goes empty.

Last Halloween, I was sitting outside waiting for the onslaught of trick or treaters and I heard some kids yell, “LET’S GO TO THE BOOLADY’S HOUSE!” How cool is that?

So what is a Boolady? To use a Harper Lee line, “She is the straw that stirs the liquor.” She is curiously sitting up in a tree house observing. She shows up, stands up, and can throw a right hook if need be. She takes the hand of a little one to show her a caterpillar. She is surprise. She is a slight smile and a wink. She says, “Hey” and looks you in the eye. She is definitely irreverent and will kick you in the behind if you need it.

Maybe you’re a Boolady, too.