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Sharon
Member
since 2001-06-04
Posts 53
Within a whisper

0 posted 2001-06-06 09:01 PM




From the time I could remember, I spent my childhood summers on the farm with my grannie and granpop. The first time, I was about 4 and when my mom and dad got in the car and drove off, I became hysterical and ran down the dirt road after them. My grannie followed slowly, knowing that my legs would tire and I'd need to be carried back to the house. Then she took me into the quiet, cool kitchen, washed my face and as I hiccuped sobs, she brought me the biggest piece of pie I'd ever seen. I loved pie! I remember looking at it with wonder..it was all mine! Needless to say, grannie kept me well-fed during the summer and that was the first of many reasons why I loved going there.

The year I learned about sex education, I was seven. I was sitting on the front porch with granpop as we watched the cars go by. The farm (barely 10 acres) was located so far out in the country it was a wonder they even had mail service. As it was granpop and I would see maybe 3 or 4 cars a day…if we were lucky.

A beat up old truck rattled down the road from the west, leaving a trail of dust behine it. As it passed in front of where we sat, a cloud of dust billowed out and hit us.

"Damn, fool cuss!" granpop said. I think he said other words under his breath, but I ignored them since I got in trouble once for repeating one.

"Why don't you have streets like we do?" I asked in my best sophisticated city child voice.

"Why would we want that?" he asked. "Them things get too damn hot! How could you walk to the pond barefooted?"

"But granpop, we don't have a pond on my street."

"Exactly!" he cackled as though that was the perfect answer.

I squinted my eyes up and looked at him to see if he was teasing. Granpop was big teaser. I used to get really upset when he did stuff like that. Like the time I asked him a question about why the sky was pink at sundown.

"Child," he said, "you'll be the death of me!"

Being five and very literal, I began to cry. And I cried for hours. Neither grannie nor granpop could figure out what started me off, and no amount of pie or lemonade would make me stop (though I did stop just long enough to eat a slice of warm peach pie and a cool drink of lemonade..I was five but I was still smart enough to know a good deal when I saw one!).

Anyway, later that night, after another piece of the pie had been placed in front of me, I calmed down.

"Missy what on earth set you to cryin'?" Grannie asked.

I looked at granpop sadly. "I'm going to be the death of granpop." I said seriously. " And I don't want granpop to die!"

My lower lip began to quiver (which gave me an excuse to lick some stray pie juice off my chin with my tongue).

Grannie and granpop looked at each other as though I'd gone crazy, then as though someone had pushed a button, they realized what I'd meant.

Immediately grannie rounded on granpop and smacked his arm.

"Jim, I told you this teasing around would get you in trouble some day! You got this poor child thinking she was killing you!"

I nodded quietly, glad finally to be understood.

Granpop come over to sit beside me at the 'child's end' of the table.

"I'm sorry Missy," he said. "It was just a joke, a way of saying that the questions you ask just boggle my old brain. Do you forgive me?"

"I do." I said solemnly and gave him a peach pie kiss.

When I went home after that summer, I drove my parents crazy saying "you'll be the death of me" at every turn. I even got my mouth washed out with soap when I wouldn't stop. It always amazed me! Not a swear word in the whole sentence and I got punished! Every fall after that I brought home a new phrase from granpop, to my parents constant dismay.

This summer I learned the most I ever did. I learned about sex.

We sat watching the bees buzzing around the hollyhocks next to the porch. It was our second favorite pastime, and there were more bees than there were cars.

"What are those bees doin'?" I asked.

"They're kissin' those flowers."

"Why?" I asked, turning to look at granpop.

"Cause they are going to run home with the kiss still on their mouths and make some honey."

"Do they kiss each other like momma and daddie?" I wanted to know.

"Now, I don't think I've only seen your parents kiss but once or twice so I don't think I can say for sure."

"Must not," I reasoned. "cause we don't ever get any honey."

Granpop snickered and I squinted my eyes at him again.

"Why are you laughing?" I asked.

"I'm not!"

"You are granpop, I can tell!" I said.

"I was just thinking about something else," he began. Then he cut me off as I opened my mouth, "and it's something you'll have to wait til you're older to learn."

"Why?" I wanted to know. This was a phrase my parents used. One I hated, because it made me feel like a baby and I wasn’t I was seven!

"Never you mind."

"But I want to know…"

"Missy, you'll be the dea….." he stopped suddenly and smiled. It was our private joke and I knew then that he was teasing me. So I smiled back and let it go.

A while later, a couple of dogs walked into the yard. They belonged to the man nearest my granpop's farm to the east. They often came to visit. Between the cars, the bees and now the dogs, this turned out to be a busy day for me!

The dogs walked around the yard sniffing. From one end to the other. Up to the steps to the porch - sniff! Back to a tree - sniff!

"Granpop?"

Granpop sighed deeply.

"Why are they sniffing like that?"

"They're looking for old bones buried here by their ancestors." He said.

I looked at him to see if he was teasing and his face had a far off dreamy look, so I figured he was thinking of those ancestor dogs.

Then suddenly the dogs started chasing each other. One would sneak up behind the other and nip at the back end of the first one. They danced around like this for a few minutes. Then the bigger dog reared up and jumped on the back end of the other one.

"Look!" I cried. "They're doing a piggy back ride!"

Granpop focused on where I was pointing and jumped up. He walked to the side of the house and dragged out the long green hose. He turned it on and started spraying the dogs until the big one jumped off the little one and they ran off down the road.

"Why'd you do that?" I asked. Granpop had spoiled some exciting fun for me, it wasn't every day I got to see dogs playing piggy back!

"Let them do their business in their own yard!" granpop muttered as he put the hose away.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Nothing, just forget it."

"But…"

"Missy, it's not something you need to worry about. They was just playing a game and it was goin' to get out of hand so I stopped it."

I looked at granpop's face and could tell he wasn't in the mood to continue discussing the dogs. So like a good girl, I shut up.

For five minutes.

When he came back and sat down, I turned to him.

"Were they going to hurt each other?"

"Now, Missy, I tell you I am not going to talk about it!"

I pursed my lips as though I'd eaten a sour lemon candydrop. Granpop turned and saw my face and burst out laughing!

"Child, you are a treat. A real treat. Don't ever play poker when you grow up!"

I continued to keep my lips puckered tightly.

Granpop turned away and I could see his body shaking quietly. He was laughing at me! For some reason, this made me mad. So I puckered my lips even tighter! Granpop turned back to me and saw the tightened pucker and couldn't hold back any more. He bent over and laughed so hard I thought his head would fall off!

Grannie came to stand at the screen door to watch. Granpop laughed hard for almost five minutes. When he tried to stop and wipe his eyes, he'd glance at me and start up again. Finally he had to stand up and walk over to the steps where he closed his eyes until the deep laughter became small chuckles.

"What on earth?" grannie asked.

My lips had relaxed enough so that when granpop turned to look at me, he just smiled.

"I think this young miss needs some chocolate cake tonight!" he said. And I quickly agreed with him. My motto at seven years of age is 'never turn down chocolate anything'.

Later, after a large wedge of chocolate cake and a glass of milk, I lay on the floor of the living room. My grandparents sat in twin, side by side rockers with one floor lamp lit between them. My grannie sewed (something she always did, though to this day I never saw a thing she finished) and my granpop just rocked. My lids grew heavy and I laid my head on my arms.

"What set you off today?" grannie asked in a hushed voice, when she thought I couldn't hear her.

"You should have seen her face!" granpop said with a chuckle.

"Shh, you'll wake her!"

"Nah, she's a sound sleeper, takes a good shake to wake her!"

"Ok, so her face was funny? Why? I don't see the joke here."

"Well, here she was, tryin' to be serious and she puckered up her lips. The more she puckered, the funnier she looked. Then it hit me!"

"I'm gonna hit you in a minute if you don't tell me!"

"Well," granpop began. I could hear the smile in his voice and felt warm and happy, I knew it wasn't going to be bad. "Looking at those little lips all puckered up, they reminded me of Old Millie Filburn. Remember her?" he asked. When grannie replied 'humph', granpop continued.

"Well, I remember Old Millie would stomp around the churchyard while you and me and our 'gang' would run all over hiding behind the trees and sneakin' kisses and squeezes."

"I don't remember that at all!" grannie said.

"You do too! You was chasin' me if I remember right."

"I never!"

"Woman, you chased me down so many times I figured I better stop and let you catch me before you broke a leg jumping over a log!"

Grannie stuttered something that I could hear and I feared that she had somehow learned some of those words that granpop said that I wasn't supposed to know.

"Get on with it!" she hissed.

"Well, I remember that one night of the box supper. Old Millie caught us behind a tombstone and started shaking her finger at us and telling us some day we'd burn in hell for wickedness."

"And Missy's puckered lips made you think of that?" grannie asked. "I don’t see the point."

"Well, when I looked at those tiny lips all squished up tight, I thought they looked as tight as Old Millie's arse!"

Grannie gasped and nearly choked as her hand flew to her mouth! Unable to keep her laughter in check, she got up quickly and walked into another room. Granpop followed and I could hear them chuckling and giggling for quite some time.

As I drifted off to sleep on the floor, I knew I'd found that summer's phrase. My mother would hate it!! 'Tight as Old Millie's arse!"


© Copyright 2001 Sharon - All Rights Reserved
serenity blaze
Member Empyrean
since 2000-02-02
Posts 27738

1 posted 2001-06-06 10:18 PM


well...I loved this...I think I just found my catch phrase for the summer! Enjoyed this very much, and would love to read of more adventures. The relationships were warmly painted and the dialogue was easy and natural. Well done!!!  
Sharon
Member
since 2001-06-04
Posts 53
Within a whisper
2 posted 2001-06-11 12:16 PM


Thank you! I tend to write like O. Henry - love those zingers at the end!  
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