North Bay Woman

12 NORTH BAY WOMAN S P R I N G | S U M M E R 2 0 2 1 By Pam Cook A s I sit and hope that North- gate Mall will come back, that the many malls that have struggled during the pandemic and battled on- line shopping will be able to somehow flourish, I reflect on their significance. You see, the mall is not just a place to shop. For many, it's a ritual, a place where memories are made. My mom and I spent many years heading to the mall for that perfect first day of school outfit. The mall is where we both got our ears pierced, and our first pedicures. We would often set out in the morning, wander around the stores, sit and have lunch, travel to two or three other malls, then return home to my dad who was baf- fled at how we could possibly spend so much time shopping! There was shopping, yes, but it happened as we talked about prob- lems with friends, worries over what the next year would bring, and embar- rassing moments at middle school. It was always our time together that we enjoyed so much. The shopping trips turned into the search for a dress for the eighth grade dance, then a prom dress, and my mom teary-eyed, as I came out of the dressing room. She would sometimes lovingly nudge my shoulder and say "stop growing up so fast!" Over the years, my mom and I would mark milestones at the mall, "wow, next year you'll be a senior in high school." "I can't believe we are shop- ping for your college dorm!" She helped me register for wed- ding presents at the mall, and then for the baby's room. My mom and I introduced my two daughters to the ritual of the mall. It was our first outing in the stroller. Soon we were looking for shoes for the first day of school, dresses for the daddy daughter dance, and watching people get their ears pierced, waiting for them to be old enough for their turn. I have a photo I took of my oldest daughter and her friends, when I dropped them off, to shop at the mall by themselves, for the first time. At that moment, I realized why my mom would nudge my shoul- der, urging me to slow down and not grow up so fast! Where did my mom want to go for Mother's Day, when my girls and I were taking turns pushing her wheelchair? To the mall of course, where we could relive some of those moments, and create new ones as well. For us, back to school, shopping for prom, supplies for college, and maybe now a first "real" job, is done at the mall. A place where we laugh over cra- zy outfits, things that don't fit, and for- getting which way is the Gap. A place where we cry over not finding the right outfit, things that don't fit, and friends who aren't real friends. So, when I see a mall, I see more than stores. I see memories and fun, tears of sadness, tears of laughter, times spent growing up, and times spent letting go. n Ode to the Mall A story of mothers and daughters A

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