An Evening with Old Friends

Tonight we spent a couple of hours with some old friends.  We all went to the new Muppet Movie and it was wonderful.  There was singing and dancing and cameos and ill timed explosions.  There were a few new friends like Walter and the cactus, but most importantly, there was Kermit. 
Kermit the Frog has been a friend of mine for as long as I can remember.  I wasn't a viewer of Sesame Street, but was a faithful follower of the Muppet Show.  I used to watch it with my oldest brother, Bobby.  I don't know who enjoyed it more!  There was always the anticipation of what Gonzo would do in the opening number.  It was never as planned, I am sure.  And the guest hosts, that had to be the highlight of their careers. 
Then there was the Muppet Movie.  I recall seeing that in the theater, maybe the World downtown, but most likely the Plaza out at Linndale.  The opening notes of the banjo are some of the sweetest notes ever written.  Every time I hear those notes, I cannot help but smile.  My heart is warmed and my soul is rejuvenated.  Though in the Muppet Movie, I always felt so bad for Jack.  He was just a moment too late to catch a ride to Hollywood.  But he made it in the end!
There were other Muppet movies, but none that tugged at my heart like A Muppet Christmas Carol.  It was the first Muppet production after the death of Jim Henson.  I remember Jim Henson's death in 1990.  It was like losing a true friend.  Because losing Jim Henson also meant losing Kermit.  Watching A Muppet Christmas Carol for the first time was hard because the voice was not quite the same.  My kids couldn't tell the difference and enjoyed the movie as it was.  But I knew that there was a different man behind the frog and it was bittersweet.  But A Muppet Christmas Carol has now become such a favorite.  I probably watch it a dozen times between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  There is something about singing fruits and penguins that really cuts to the core of Charles Dickens message of love and friendship.
I have seen Kermit at the Smithsonian and last year in Chicago.  I cannot describe what it was like to walk around the corner and see my old friend.  And to share that with Danny, Ashlyn, Hayley and Jacob.  At the exhibit in Chicago, it practically took my breath away to see him sitting there.  And then turn another corner and see Rowlf, the Manamana Muppets, and Bert and Ernie.  
Seeing the Muppets tonight on the big screen felt good.  It brought back such a flood of happy times and was really what I needed as I head into such a busy period of the year.  It is hard to be irritable when Animal is there ready to play the drums, breathing heavy, furrowing his brow.  Or when Kermit rallies the gang with one of his amazing pet talks.  I feel very lucky to have grown up with the Muppets and I think my kids feel the same way.  In the words of Kenny Ascher and Paul Williams through the voice of Kermit the Frog...
Life's like a movie, write your own ending
Keep believing, keep pretending
We've done just what we set out to do.
Thanks to the lovers, the dreamers, and you.