Snowing Down South

I had the opportunity to meet and briefly interact with Vanessa Redgrave when I was in my early teens. I attended a high school that used experimental teaching techniques and Ms. Redgrave was doing some sort of documentary about progressive education. While a reception committee was waiting to greet the Camelot star from the acting dynasty at the front of the school, Redgrave slipped in the rear. By coincidence I was entering at that exact moment and place from a class in the annex and the thespian asked little ole me to walk her to the front office. I knew who she was at that time and the anti-Israel position she had embraced, but I gritted my teeth and led her at some point actually by the hand (you can touch her, she only played a queen) to the welcoming throng who I suppose were beside themselves thinking she was not showing up. Much parental objection was voiced by University School's influential Jewish parents because of her PLO support and in the event, the school backed out on participating. What I remember most about the five minutes I spent with Guinevere was nothing in particular about her, but on the way to the office I had happened upon my favorite teacher at the school, Polly Fields, and had naturally introduced the ladies to each other. "Ms. Redgrave, this is Ms. Polly Fields, the most excellent instructor of Western Civilization in the Western Hemisphere. Ms. Fields, this is Ms. Vanessa Redgrave, formidable presence of stage and screen and certainly the greatest luminary to grace these hallowed halls today." The teacher, who was among the two most influential in my life and the actress exchanged their pleasantries and yes at thirteen, I really talked that way and said those things. Well, after depositing the star with her audience at the office, I went back to Polly Fields and she was nonplussed and unimpressed. She said, "Daniel, did you notice it was snowing down south?" I said no and asked Ms. Fields for clarification because in point of fact, I had no idea what she meant. She explained for me that snowing down south meant the performer's slip had been showing which I had indeed noticed. Perhaps, the Grand Dame of the classroom was just a tad disappointed that the belle of stage and screen was merely human.