Growing Up With the Pheasant Lane Mall (and Reminding Myself That Change is a Good Thing)

On a visit home from UNH this past weekend, my little sister, Libby, and I decided to make the slow, grueling trek down the Daniel Webster Highway (or anti-highway) towards the shopping mecca known as South Nashua.  We were determined to find a red toaster as a Christmas present for our mother, who had been searching desperately for one to match the rest of our kitchen decor.  What better place than the Pheasant Lane Mall to find something as obscure as an apple-colored home appliance?

Since I left for school in late August, I had avoided the Pheasant Lane Mall on my trips home to see my family due to the chaotic construction that had been underway since the beginning of the summer.  As soon as it was announced that the mall was remodeling, the building that had always been so familiar to me began to transform.  First, the construction of Dick's Sporting Goods, next the tearing down of the middle section of the food court, and then the mysterious disappearance of the large staircase in the center of the mall.  

Of course, I had seen other changes at the Pheasant Lane during my lifetime, but nothing as drastic as this overhaul.  I remember a time when the Target super-center was a Lechmere department store, when lockers lined the walls below the elevators, and when a dark, dingy arcade loomed next to the food court.  Those were the days when I'd instigate my little sister to go hide under the mattresses in Sears, putting my mother and grandmother into a state of sheer panic and eventually leading to a total store lockdown until the toddler was found.  Those were the days when I refused to stand anywhere near the second floor railing, due to my irrational fear of falling through the grates to my death.  Those were the days when my sisters and I would waste our Christmas money at KB Toys, Pawsenclaws, and the Discovery Store - may they all rest in retail peace.

When Libby and I entered the mall through Dick's on Sunday, I wasn't expecting the plush carpeted floors or the clusters of couches where senior citizens sat and chatted.   There was a brand new staircase and food court set-up, along with a variety of stores I had never heard of  like Itz a Puzzle, Teavana, and Red Robin - so long to the Body Shop, Debby's Pet Land, and that creepy place where they whitened your teeth in front of all passersby.  We strolled through the mall and I took in the new scenery, reminiscing on the mall of my past and the mall of today - and realizing that they're not that different after all.

I guess visiting the mall you went to as a child is just part of this complicated process of growing up.  People change, stores go under, and renovations are made, yet this 870,000 square foot edifice remains standing.  I'm no longer a 5 year-old begging my parents for a Mickey Mouse stuffed animal at the Disney store, or a high school freshman getting dropped off by my parents because my friends and I have nothing better to do on a Friday night.  No, I've grown up and so has the Pheasant Lane.  Sometimes you have to remember that change is a good thing.  No matter how discombobulating or frustrating it can be, I'm glad I visited the mall this weekend.  Even though dealing with rabid shoppers can be overwhelming, and I never found that damn toaster I was looking for, it's good to take a walk down memory lane, especially when that lane is freshly carpeted.