We are lucky enough to have such great fans of the festival. Jennifer Weber from Columbia, SC, shared her memories with us, enjoy!
REMEMBERING RAVINIA
At first I thought I needed to peruse
My coffee-table retrospective,
In order to properly conjure your memory.
I was mistaken.
All I had to do was picture
Those first two manila-paper tickets
The gift of a friend who was unable
To attend that night's concert.
It was June, 1984.
I was 27, a denizen of the hinterland
And eager to be a part, however itsy-bitsy,
Of Chicagoland's artsy sophistication.
I remember what I wore: the blush eyelet.
And how the rain purred around us
Worrying us -- would it matter?
Then the Chicago skyline heaved itself
Onto the horizon, flinty, silk and steel.
The sky was once again a symphony
Of rampant summer splendor
When we exited for Highland Park.
We parked in an unassuming field.
I don't need help to remember the first glimpse
Of the wood arch lined with white bulbs
And that single otherworldly word: RAVINIA.
Portal to the exquisite.
Then the meadows dotted with picnickers
The asphalt lanes pristinely black, the hush
The twinkle of uplit trees, beguiled us.
And when the first notes drifted up
To kiss the leaves, the lights, the stars,
Our joy rose too.
There was belonging.
We were your children, come home.
Copyright Jennifer Weber 2009. All rights reserved globally.
If you have any stories, or poems, to share about your Ravinia email us at Ravinia@ravinia.org and you could be published on our blog!