A Real Best Friend
by Linnea Heaney
Going up the stairs to the library, Annie held onto the air. Suzy tagged along. Suzy was like a friend from a book—real only to Annie.
“Pick out one book,” Annie’s mother whispered inside the library.
Tall books of all colors lined the story corner. Annie tugged out a picture book. She scooted into the big leather chair, leaving enough room for Suzy, and pretended to read.
Floor boards creaked as grown-ups disappeared between rows of books. A girl appeared. Annie had seen her somewhere before, but where?
“Annie, time to check-out your book, we have two more errands,” her mother said.
Crossing the street, Annie held onto her mother’s and Suzy’s hands. Cars trying to turn inched forward, but Annie made it across, and so did Suzy.
In the entry of the Stewart Hardware store, Annie wondered about the birdhouses, oscillating fans, leaf rakes, and sled in the window displays. Annie imagined sledding upon a snowy hill with Suzy and coasted into the store.
Annie breathed in the hardware smells and heard grown-ups talking all around. She found her mother talking to old Mr. Stewart.
“Hurry up, Annie,” her mother said.
Mr. Stewart gave Annie a penny and put his hand on top of the gum ball machine. Annie slipped the penny in the slot and down into the machine. She pushed the lever across and one blue ball rolled out, but no ball for Suzy.
“Thank you,” Annie said, wishing . . . .
The girl from the library came in.
“Hello, Mrs. Clements, hello, Jane,” Mr. Stewart said. He gave Jane a penny.
“Hi.” Annie put both hands on the smooth, round glass to hold it steady.
“Hi.” Jane put in her penny. A pink gum ball rolled out. “Thank you, Mr. Stewart.”
Annie remembered Jane from the playground at her new school and smiled. Together, they crunched into their sweet gum.
“It’s time to get school shoes, Annie,” her mother said.
“We are going to get shoes, too,” Jane’s mother said.
Annie skipped ahead, up the sidewalk, and Jane followed. Annie felt Suzy tugging in her heart.
Annie bounced down the shoe shop steps. Then, she giggled at the cartoon dog and boy on the sign.
Jane hopped down the steps and giggled, too. They looked over black patent with buckles, penny loafers, and saddle shoes.
Jane got her foot measured. Annie got her foot measured. Suzy did not need her foot measured.
Annie knew that she needed a real best friend.
Annie and Jane tried on shoes. Their mothers talked together while buying the new school shoes.
With their new shoes put in boxes, Annie and Jane ran up the steps together and twirled outside to the sidewalk, into falling leaves.
Annie stopped—and smiled at the small shadow twirling after her. The shadow disappeared into Annie’s bigger shadow.
Annie turned around to Jane. “Will you be my friend?”
“I will be your best friend.”
“A real best friend?” Annie said.
Jane smiled back, “Yes.”
Author’s Note: The Real Back Story
Writers and artists often have imaginary friends when they are very young children (Taylor, 1999). When I was about four years of age, I did. I grew up in the 1950s in the small town of Indiana, Pennsylvania and that is where this story comes from.
Indiana, Pennsylvania was also the hometown of actor James Stewart (1908-1997). The landmark J. M. Stewart & Co. hardware store, built after the first family store burned down in 1927, carried Jimmy’s grandfather’s name. Alex Stewart, Jimmy’s father, was proud of his son and kept movie and personal memorabilia at his hardware store. For many years, the storefront window display included the Academy Award for Best Actor, which Jimmy Stewart won for The Philadelphia Story (1940).
As a young child, Alex Stewart gave me pennies for the gum ball machine in the magical hardware store. My early memories are intertwined with family stories, including how my Flexible Flyer sled was from the Stewart hardware.
The Indiana Free Library still stands and the Jimmy Stewart Museum is located on the third floor of the building. Across the street, the hardware store has been gone since 1969. A statue of Jimmy Stewart is in front of the nearby county courthouse. Further down Philadelphia Street, past the shoe shop site, is the old county courthouse, best remembered as the backdrop for the Life magazine cover of Colonel Jimmy Stewart returning home from World War II.
Small town America remains alive. No matter how far we travel, imagination, friendship, and home remain important in our stories and to writers and readers of all ages. And some of us begin with just an imaginary friend.
References:
Fishgall, Gary. (1997). Pieces of Time: The Life of James Stewart. New York, NY: Scribner.
Stackpole, Peter. 1945. Life Comes Home with Jimmy Stewart. Life, 19, (13), 126-131.
Taylor, Marjorie. (1999). Imaginary Companions and the Children Who Create Them. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Website:
The Jimmy Stewart Museum: http://www.jimmy.org
Selected Imaginative Movies of Jimmy Stewart for grown-ups:
Harvey (1950) is about an imaginary friend; not rated.
It’s A Wonderful Life (1946) focuses on imagination and friendship; not rated.
The Philadelphia Story (1940) is a romantic comedy; not rated.
Rear Window (1954) is a Hitchcock mystery; rated PG.
Visual Concept:
The setting is Indiana, Pennsylvania about 1954. The first touch of fall colors is evident. An “Oscar” is standing among the hardware items in the storefront window display. Old Mr. Stewart’s son, Jimmy, is on the phone near the cash register, similar to the one in the Life magazine photo essay noted in references. A shoe-fitting fluoroscope is in the shoe shop. No text is in the last illustration of Annie and Jane sledding that winter with a Flexible Flyer sled, no. 55H, Airline Chief.
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Charming story, beautifully captures that cozy small town feel. And the end notes are fascinating. Thanks!