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Queen of Hearts
A 30-day Series of Music Memories
A handful of songs take me back in time, around the age of six. One song, in particular, has me sitting in the back seat of my mom’s 1978 Ford Thunderbird. My knees didn’t quite reach the edge of the roomy back seat yet, so my legs stuck out toward the front seat more than they bent down toward the floor. I remember the shiny silver ashtray built into the back of the navy blue front-passenger seat. Sometimes I’d open and shut it repeatedly until I heard a frustrated command to “stop” from the front seat.
The fabric of the seats was soft. In my six-year-old mind, it was luxurious velvet. In reality, velour? Whatever it was, it seemed fancy. My little sister was in her car seat in the space next to me, and I remember her more than anything.
Kimberlee would’ve been around two-years-old. The song “Queen of Hearts” by Juice Newton would come on the radio, and my little sister would absolutely light up. It wasn’t just once, either. Every time the song came on, specifically during the chorus.
Kimberlee’s baby-head would start bopping up and down, her eyes would get wide, and she’d flap her little baby arms the same way we might flap our arms to imitate a chicken — only she was in perfect time with the beat of the song. And she’s sing, “Daa-daa-daa-daa”.
