Two Mockingbirds

Every month I have lunch with my friend Jared. I met Jared through my employer and worked with him for many years before our lives became irrevocably linked. Jared’s wife, Lana, was diagnosed with colon cancer approximately one year before Amy’s diagnosis. I would occasionally bump into Jared at the UW Cancer Center at ProHealth Care amid our wives’ tests and chemotherapy.

Lana and Amy passed within two weeks of each other in the fall of 2022.

Like Amy, Lana celebrated and embraced life. She was a delight whenever our paths crossed at a local restaurant or shop. Jared, Lana and their two daughters, Maddie and Isabel, encourage everyone to Live Like Lana, much like our family seeks to inspire everyone to Choose Joy every day.

During our October lunch, he mentioned that he had purchased season tickets to the Marcus Performing Arts season including a production of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird featuring Richard Thomas as Atticus Finch. I was hit by a tsunami of memories and emotions because this book had special significance for Amy and me.

Early in our relationship, Amy and I would often pass time together reading to each other. One of the very first books we read together was To Kill a Mockingbird. The timeless story of Scout, Jem, Dill, Jim, Bo, and Atticus resonated with us. We both thought it was a masterpiece highlighting the loss of innocence (in many different ways) using humor and storytelling. The phrase “to kill a mockingbird” is actually only mentioned once in the book. The mockingbird represents innocence as its only function is to sing sweet melodies for everyone to enjoy. To kill one (an innocent) is a sin.

The book continued to influence our lives. Claire’s middle name is Louise, a nod to Jean Louise, the main character of the novel. Her nickname, Scout, also became beloved in our family after we named our second English Springer Spaniel, Scout.

As a stay-at-home Mom for the early infant and toddler years, Amy’s life was filled with diapers, meals, playtime, and interaction with other neighborhood kids. She LOVED being a mother. But it was an exhausting and demanding role. One year, I bought season tickets to the Marcus Performing Arts Center for us. I theorized that having the tickets in hand would force us to get a babysitter at least once each month to have a date night away from the kids.

Our first outing we had dinner at Benihana’s in downtown Milwaukee before taking in the performance. The show was Anything Goes, a musical featuring the music and lyrics of Cole Porter. Despite the musical numbers, Amy was asleep on my shoulder by the middle of the first Act.

Our neighboring seatmates turned and gave me annoyed looks as Amy began to gently snore. I didn’t mind. I just gave a small shrug and smiled. She deserved every minute of extra sleep she could get. We left during intermission and grabbed a custard treat before going home and resuming our parental roles. After that episode, we changed our tickets to matinee shows followed by dinner to avoid the post meal siesta.

Another strategy employed by Amy to get more adult interaction involved our good friend Peg. Amy and Peg, inspired by Oprah’s Book of the Month Club, started their own book club. The first gathering was on April 15, 1999 where a small group of women read Where the Heart is, by Billie Letts.

My first experience with the group was at their second meeting the following month when Amy hosted. The book was A Separate Peace, by John Knowles. At some point in their discussion and after a few glasses of wine, they were interrupted by noises in the front yard. The group en-mass exited the house to investigate the noises. A few wild turkeys had wandered into our front lawn and were strutting around. When the excitement abated and they returned to their discussion, it was decided the book club would be named The Wild Turkeys Book Club.

Amy enjoyed her time with this strong group of women. As the years progressed, they added an annual retreat to the agenda that included destinations from Charleston, South Carolina to Door County, Wisconsin. There are approximately 15 members of the current group and a new generation is being welcomed with Claire, Hayley, and other daughters now beginning to participate.

Of course, To Kill a Mockingbird, made the list of books read by this group (2008). I could not pass up an opportunity to see the stage adaptation with Jared. I purchased a ticket and Jared and I shared a meal prior to the production.

After the show, I was elated at their adaptation. Unlike the movie released in 1962 starring Gregory Peck, the stage adaptation retained much of the humor of the book intertwined within the serious underpinnings of the story.

As I reflect on the book and play, I realize that Lana and Amy’s lives were like the Mockingbird’s song, a beautiful melody of love and joy that enriched the lives of family, friends, and even total strangers. The loss of that song leaves a void in the world.

But I hear the notes of a new melody, still faint, but growing louder each day. Claire, Morgan, Carson, Maddie, and Isabel will one day make it a symphony. Amy and Lana. Two Mockingbirds. What a magnificent legacy.