I live in a fairly rural area. In spite of housing developments all around and working at a major medical facility, sometimes I am met by a herd of deer as I walk to my car. They never seem frightened of me. They have never run. They just watch. There were 7 tonight.
They make me think of my Nanny, my dad and Billie Holiday. In that order.
When I was in the fourth grade, we were living in Southern Pines, North Carolina. My mother was working for Social Services and my sisters would have been about 4 and 2 years old.
One of my weekly chores was to clean the bathroom.
One day I came home from school and there was black mud around the edge of the tub. I was a latchkey kid. So, I had to wait little while for my mom to get home and, when she did, I took her to the bathroom to show it to her and tell her I had cleaned the bathroom and it was not my fault it was so dirty.
She said, “That’s my fault. I had to take some children to a foster family and they were so dirty, I just couldn’t take them to their new home like that. I’ll clean the bathroom. You don’t have to do it again.”
I said, “OK. I just didn’t want you to think I didn’t do it.”
She added, “I gave them some of yours clothes, too. And some of your sisters’. I’ll replace them. The clothes they were wearing were filthy and I didn’t want to put them back in those nasty clothes after I got them clean. I hope I didn’t give away something that any of you will miss. I don’t think I did.”
She looked so sad for those children as she told me a little bit about them. I think there were 2 girls and a boy, who was the youngest. They were all younger than me so having clothes that fit them between all the sizes of the 3 of us was pretty easy.
I asked about her putting the boy in girl clothes and she said that he was so young that the difference between girl clothes and boy clothes was just who was wearing them.
I think that’s why I remember the incident. It was very much not our usual life. And I think it may have been the first time I realized she was a person outside of our family.
IF you have good china that is in good shape, run it through the dishwasher (or just wash it in hot water) once a year. That will keep if from the teeny cracks that can mess up old china, according to my mother.
Tonight’s my night because it’s been a minute. These pieces are 64 years old and there is no crazing yet.
I am the Audience 