Good-bye and Good Riddance Book Excerpt
Snapshots
from Good-bye and Good Riddance |
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By chance,
the first postcard Maddie plucked out of the pile was from Mondorf-les-Baines,
Luxembourg, dated June 8, 1973–her daughter Janet’s starting
point |
Maddie succeeded in
landing at the base of the Eiffel Tower |
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She followed that
milestone experience with a walk around the gardens, taking note of
the many other observers like herself, finding delight in this passive
activity |
A clearing to the
right exposed a wide area taken over by mushrooms…She wanted to
inspect them at a closer range |
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There sat Maddie,
sipping her hot chocolate on top of a mountain. What a view! |
Herr Menzel’s
take on the Hungarian and Romanian gypsy families he encountered after
World War II was entertaining. Of course, their mode of travel was carts |
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Tiny violets, with
laser-bright yellow centers, dotted the shaded floor |
Mushrooms,
lots of them, ascended from the spreading roots and grew in stair-formations
up the trunks. “Don’t even think about it,” warned
Marcus, having followed her eyes. |
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After the Vatican,
she was hitting the road. Wouldn’t it be grand if she found renewed
faith there? Realistically, she worried there’d be bigger questions |