I have many friends, but perhaps the most special are the ones I’ve had since a young age. They know me better than anyone else. We shared confidences, cried with each other through the dramas of adolescence, even had an argument or two along the way. And even though we’ve been separated by time and distance, we’ve stayed connected, which has been much easier to do in this age of technology.
My younger years were mobile. Due to my dad’s health and his job, we left Tennessee and lived in two towns in Arizona, two in Texas, and finally landed back in Tennessee at the end of my sixth grade year.
That town was my home base until I was 23 when my parents returned to our hometown over 200 miles away. And that town is the place where I made friendships that endure to this day.
Two of my closest friends came to my part of the state last week for a girls’ trip (yes, we call ourselves girls) to Memphis. They wanted to see Sun Studio and Graceland, and I wanted them to see Mud Island and the Bass Pro Shop in the pyramid. I was tour guide, and they were willing followers.
The first stop was Sun Studio. I was amazed at the number of people there on a Friday, but we only had to wait about fifteen minutes for the guided tour which included an entertaining guide and the chance to post with and touch the same microphone used by Elvis, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and countless others. If you think the reason Memphis is called the birthplace of rock and roll because of Elvis, you are mistaken. If you want to find out why I say this, well…take the tour, and you’ll learn.a lot.
A drive through the beautiful neighborhoods on Mud Island and a light lunch at Miss Cordelia’s, a grocery store/”restaurant” in the quaint commercial district of the island, me pointing out areas used by film producers for a This Is Us episode and a scene from the award-winning Wedding at Graceland (a Hallmark production, and yes, I’m being sarcastic), and a stop at the Bass Pro Shop on the river was next. The pyramid houses Big Cypress Lodge and a massive store with restaurants, a bowling alley, huge aquarium, and an observation deck accessed by an elevator (a charge for that) that allows sweeping views of the river and the Memphis skyline.
The next stop was the impressive, multi-story hotel next to the Graceland mansion called The Guesthouse at Graceland. Warning to those of you who have never been there: Graceland is located in a run-down area of Memphis. When Elvis bought the house and acreage, it was in a rural setting, but as the city grew so did the developed area around it. It was once a nice area but now is not the best. I would not recommend venturing out at night in that area. The daytime hours, though, are fine.
If you’re curious about what the hotel looks like, go on YouTube, and you can see plenty of videos. When we checked in, we were given an information sheet about activities and amenities of the hotel. There are two restaurants: EP’s Bar and Grill which has burgers, fish tacos, salads, and that sort of fare. Then there is Delta’s Kitchen which is elegant and more upscale. Dressed in our jeans or yoga pants, we opted for EP’s Bar and Grill. Our salads were delicious.
We then went to an in-hotel theater where a different Elvis movie is shown each night. Viva Las Vegas was showing that night, but movies on other nights include Jailhouse Rock, Love Me Tender, Elvis on Tour, Aloha from Hawaii, and some I can’t remember. Live music in the lobby followed, and the group performed everything from Elvis songs to Johnny Cash to instrumental pieces like those played by Roy Clark. If you’re of a certain age, you recognized that last name. The final activity was picking up a”free” peanut butter and jelly sandwich at 9:00 P.M. before heading to our room. I put “free” in quotes because at the price of the hotel rooms, I can’t say anything there is free.
There is no breakfast offered in the hotel, but there is an in-room refrigerator if you want to store chilled items, and there is a microwave down the hall in a vending/ice area. There is also a coffee shop with pastries called Shake, Rattle, and Go for to-go items, or you can splurge on a big breakfast at Delta’s Kitchen.
A shuttle takes you from the hotel across the boulevard to Elvis Presley’s Memphis where you purchase tickets for the tours. Here are the things included in the package: a seven-minute introductory film, board another shuttle to go to the “mansion” (by today’s standards, it’s hard to think of it as a mansion), tour the house and grounds, back to Elvis Presley’s Memphis to the museums housing numerous vehicles and other aspects of Elvis’s life as well as clothing and items used in the making of the 2022 movie Elvis, and Elvis’s planes. All museums contain videos on large screens that are playing constantly. And, of course, there are numerous gift shops and more restaurants.
If you’ve read my blog this far, you are likely interested in what these places have to offer, so that’s why I’ve gone into so much detail. But all of this detail pales in comparison to the true fun of the weekend.
For just a few days, I was fifteen or sixteen again. I can laugh with these friends in a way I can’t laugh with anyone else. We told stories on each other. “Do you remember when you’–?” Or “Remember when he–?” and that sort of thing. Sure, we talked about our current lives, and they caught me up on the lives of friends I left behind physically and emotionally, but it was gratifying to be with friends who ave been with me through good times and bad, friends who know me in a way my “friends made in adulthood” never can. With them, there is no pretense. They know the real me.Even though we have lived apart since 1979 and not always been in frequent contact (until cell phones became common), we’ve stayed connected.
I value all my friends and consider friendship one of life’s greatest blessings. I hope each person reading this can know the blessing of true friendships.
Life As I know it 