We listened to NPR on the trip down to Arkansas and to some hip “music” station on the way back.
That was the deal we worked out.
Well, we didn’t exactly work out a deal as much as the deal worked itself out. I did listen to National Public Radio on the way down to Arkansas, but my 10-year-old daughter, Emma, did not. She watched a movie on her portable DVD player, but I’m sure, since I tend to play the radio louder than most folks, that she did sort of listen to NPR on the trip down to Arkansas. But mainly, I guess, she listened to the movie on her portable DVD player.
Emma and I drove to Arkansas because she is involved in some sort of American Girl doll fashion show in Springdale. I’m not sure what it is, exactly, that Emma is doing in the fashion show. I just know that, since my wife was busy Saturday morning, I had to drive Emma to Springdale.
It’s a lot easier to drive to Arkansas than it used to be. It used to be that driving to Arkansas was like ... well, like driving to Arkansas. But now, driving to Arkansas is more like driving to Neosho, except with more golf courses.
For the first part of the trip, I listened to the news on NPR, and for the last leg of the trip, I listened to the Car Guys. I think they’re called the “Car Guys,” but I’m not sure. They might be called “Click and Clack” or “Tom and Ray” or “The Tap-It Brothers” or “Meet the Press.” All I know is the guys make me laugh. They don’t, so much, make Emma laugh, which is why she opted to watch a movie on her portable DVD player.
So I drove and listened to the radio while Emma watched a movie. It reminded me of similar car trips years ago, when Emma sat in a car seat in the back while I drove. In those days, Emma wasn’t much into talking. Mainly she was into sleeping. So I would drive and listen to the radio, and Emma would sleep.
Now, she sometimes sits in the front seat, and she watches DVDs or reads a book and sometimes (gasp!) talks to me. As we got closer to Springdale, Emma pulled out the directions to the Arts Center and told me when I was supposed to turn. I’ve made the drive before and pretty much knew where to go, but I think Emma liked the idea that she could tell me where to go — just like her mom does.
We arrived at the Arts Center with plenty of time to spare. Emma walked up to the main table, found her name tag, walked into the auditorium and took her seat next to some other girls. I followed Emma into the auditorium and asked her if she wanted me to stay. She looked at me as if I had made a rude noise.
“Go, Dad,” Emma whispered.
So I went.
I walked around Springdale for a while. I had breakfast at a nice little restaurant, and then I walked back to the Arts Center. I stuck my head into the auditorium. Emma was sitting in the same seat with the same group of girls. I thought she might be bored, but she didn’t look bored, so I pulled my head out of the auditorium, found a place to sit and started reading a book. It was one of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher books. I like Lee’s books.
At exactly 11:30 a.m., girls started walking out of the auditorium, so I closed the book and stood up. After the first group of girls walked past, I saw Emma and waved. She waved back and smiled. I’m not sure, but I think she looked around to see if any of the other girls were looking before she waved.
When we got into the car, I changed the car radio to a station that plays “music” Emma likes. Emma thanked me. I told her that I changed the station because, for some reason, the NPR station wasn’t coming in. Emma laughed.
We left Springdale and got on the highway. Emma opened a book and started reading. I drove and tried to ignore the “music” on the radio. Occasionally, Emma would stop reading and tell me about something she read. Or about something funny that happened at school. But mainly, she read while I drove.
And wondered what happened to that little girl in the car seat.
