Rylant, C. (1994). Waiting to Waltz: A Childhood. Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
Waiting to Waltz by Cynthia Rylant is a collection of thirty short, free verse poems, each one encapsulating a memory of a vignette in her young life. The pictures are drawn by artist Stephen Gammell, are sparse and impressionistic in their black sketchings, romanticizing the vignettes that are shared about people, places, and memories of Rylant’s childhood. This poetry compliments her memoir in their autobiographical point of view, and of their own memories.
Having read Cynthia Rylant’s memoir But I’ll Be Back Again I come to this book of poetry with some background knowledge. I know that she grew up in the Appalachian culture of West Virginia in a town called Beaver. The book opens up with a poem entitled “Beaver.” I liked the lines that follow some descriptions of a simple country town:
“Beaver Creek holding it all together,
And me on the edge,
Like the water, muddy and rolling.”
From the poem “Wax Lips,” I can see Rylant’s hinting of flirting as a young child that I read about in her memoir:
“and walked the streets of Beaver,
Our teeth sunk hard in the wax,
And big red lips worth kissing.”
In the poem “Holiness,” I again hear echoes from her memoir, where you hear that she struggles somewhat with her understanding and view of what God means to her. In this snapshot in the poem, she recounts her Pentecostal babysitter, who is boisterous at church, and it seems like the rambunctious way of praise adds to her confusion and resulting intimidation of religion as a child.
“And on the church bus back
I looked out the window, away from her,
Because I didn’t understand
Such noise
And was frightened
By God.”
In the poem “The Rescue” she tells of once when she guided a younger girl home that she comes across because she is frightened of the oncoming storm that they already could hear the cracking thunder of. A full page bleed of the endless field and house is portrayed when you turn the page, emphasizing her need to find internally a source of braveness in a seemingly very lonely setting.
“I turn around
And walk in the storm
Slow and straight,
But inside,
A little girl crying.”
Although not emotionally charged, the memory Rylant shares in “Band Practice,” which once again echoes from her memoir about being a majorette. As a side bar, I was a majorette, and I still twirl today with my Baton Twirling after school club for girls in grades 3-5 at Matthew Whaley. I call it my “secret talent,” although I don’t know why I bother because I am “famous” for it. ;) I don’t know what possessed me to overlook the fact that I was tossing a steel rod in basically a 300 dollar sequined bathing suit, but I loved it. High tosses, two baton, and even fire baton for Homecoming halftimes. I like how she ends it:
“Forgot a lot about playing
Trumpet.
Learned a lot
About
Playing.”
The source of the book’s title is within the poem “Teenagers,” where she talks about that transition time where it’s a fuzzy line between being a child anymore, and when can she hurry up and be a teenager with all of its trappings, the kissing, dating, using makeup, and such.
“Waiting to shave
And wear nylons
And waltz.
Forgetting when
I was last time
A child.”
Never knowing
When it
Ended.”
During my Spring Break this week, I traveled through West Virginia on my way to Ohio, and before leaving, I mapped out my journey and wrote down directions to follow along the way. When I looked near the town of Beckley on the map, I realized that Beaver was located nearby. Even though I had a ten hour road trip ahead of me, I knew I had to at least take a quick tour of the heart of Beaver. I couldn't come so close to Rylant's roots that have inspired her writing so much and not a least take a good peak. It's located near a major town of Beckley, which has become a big tourist pit stop, and so I am sure that has had quite an modern influence on the town of Beaver. I did take the main exit for Beaver and drove to a "big part" of town, where your typical off the interstate fast food restaurants and mom and pop eateries are located. There were several churches around, and you could tell that this was located in the Bible Belt with the church signs and such. I wish I could have known where her childhood home was, or if I was near the stores and church she spoke of, but I at least got a quick feel for the rural West Virginia old homes and farms that dotted the road to the shopping center and places to eat. I have included some photos I took of the interstate sign, the nearby mountains, and the "Beaver Creek" antique store, a place where I am sure it holds onto the memories of a town of yesterday. Enjoy!
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