The Purple Hippopotamus

"Let It Be" by the Beatles was playing on the radio at the beach:

And when the night is cloudy,
There is still a light that shines on me,
Shine on until tomorrow, let it be.
I wake up to the sound of music
Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be...

I was thoroughly ecstatic over the Hippopotamus that my Mother had purchased for me earlier in the morning at our local five-and-dime store because it was rare she was able to indulge either my sister or myself in such a capacity. Funds were limited since she was a twenty-something widow with two daughters. Even at such a young age I was cognizant of how trying it was for my Mother to toil at two jobs simultaneously, yet, barely manage to make ends meet nonetheless. This made my Hippo all the sweeter to receive because it meant she loved me enough to sacrifice even a bit more.

I thought he was just the prettiest hue of neon purple! Voluminous, multicolored polka dots adorned his torso which really made him stand out from the rest of the inflatable critters on the beach. The more garish the coloring, the more aesthetically enticing the toy, in the mind of a five or six year old. That alone made me feel extra special. As if, not only would the other children be compelled to take notice of my Hippo but certainly they would all examine my new friend with longing, too.

I decided to name him Charlie. After all these years I cannot recall precisely why. Most likely he reminded me of a friend of the family whom I was fond of. I huffed, and I puffed, until Charlie was fully inflated and prepared to sail across the waves. Spending a care-free afternoon at the ocean was my idea of Heaven! In fact, we resided so close to a beach during my youth back East that we even visited it on rainy days and during the winter prior to the water becoming solidified. When the acrid winds of that season made it too unbearable to go swimming we could still easily spend hours creating sand castles and playing on the swing-set...