Magic Cookie Bars

You know how something small and seemingly insignificant can bring back a flood of memories? That happened to me today. My son brought home Magic Cookie Bars. If you don't know what they are, you are truly missing a treat, but that is not the purpose of this story. For me, magic cookie bars brought back the memory of a friendship, some mischief, and some great camp outs.

When our family first moved to Texas, I was a freshman in high school. I befriended a few girls, all a grade higher than me. We hung out together when we could. I think the one I was closest with was Claire. She also happened to be the Magic Cookie Bar maker. Maybe good food begets good friendships.

Claire was brilliant in school, but most importantly in the art of mischief. She had an angelic face, and she knew it. She also had a kind, sweet demeanor, which we used to our advantage on several occasions. I had a few pluses on my side as well. I was a preacher's daughter, didn't cuss, smoke, chew...run with those who do.... It was a perfect cover.

Our particular brand of mischief manifest itself in the form of locker rigging. In a small school, with the lockers in the center of the hall in front of the main office, this took careful planning. We would synchronize watches, feign foreign objects in our eyes and meet in the girl's bathroom. From there we would commence our locker rigging. Claire was a master planner. She rigged cardboard and cheerios in such a way that would bring about the best avalanche of cheerios on the unsuspecting locker owners. They would even bring the rig back to class and discuss it in front of her. She would offer up false possibilities and red herrings....it was great! No one ever knew we were the culprits of all of those riggings.

We also had amazing camp outs. Her family owned 95 acres, and so we had the run of the place. We would pull the horse trailer into a field, build a campfire, and she would bring out those wonderful Magic Cookie Bars. We would eat and eat, build up a sugar rush, go flour a neighbor's car or toilet paper a neighbor's porch, then crash for the night in the horse trailer and wake up bright and early to help the neighbor clean up the mess.

Funny what something as simple as a cookie can bring to mind. I lost track of Claire over the years. She's still brilliant, I hear. Probably off doing amazing things, looking as innocent as an angel, but I know her potential in the art of making mischief. Maybe some day we will partake again. Can you see it? Little old ladies with walkers TP'ing someone's yard? Who would suspect that?