whether it was the sound or the smell of bacon frying, i was awake. early. too early for the summer. outside the double-wide, leaves dove from their branches in a shimmer of delight and exultant triumph, skittering past the clothes line and onto the soil of east texas. i wandered into the kitchen looking more like a boy than my father preferred, or i preferred for that matter. vanna white was moving letters on the tv.
that's where i always knew i'd find her... behind a layer of bacon scent and popping over-easy eggs, a white cloud of hair, tired eyes behind too-large glasses, wearing a flowered nightgown and pink robe with matching slippers. her skin, thin and whiter than the untoasted bread she was buttering.
i sat and bacon magically appeared. then eggs, fried to perfection in the leftover, popping pig grease. toast, so perfect, soft on top, crunchy on bottom, unduplicatable ... trust me. i've tried. and last, coke. caffeine-free, in-the-gold-can coke. always purchased just for my visit. not because i liked coke, but she did. and i didn't drink caffeine, so it was a reasonable compromise.
after plates were cleared and dishes washed we played uno endlessly as she watched her soaps, and more leaves danced past the clothes line to the ground. she never went easy on me. that's why i'd keep playing.
tonight at 7:55 my phone rang. caller id: DAD. "oh no," was all i could muster as i called him back. small talk was pointless with such a large elephant in the room, so i appreciated his pointed greeting:
"your grandmother passed away .... it was peaceful."
and with that sentence ends a life and begins a memory of too few summers and too much coke, and too much bingo, for that matter.
mammaw mildred. i love you. i hope you knew that. i'm glad i mailed those pictures. you laughed because you asked for 2 years for me to send you 2 pictures, and i sent 54. "i bet she thinks she's real funny!" i think that's what dad said you said .... i'm glad we visited last fall so you could meet your great-granddaughters. and i'm glad i took the girls to get the hawaii quarter the day it was released to fill the quarter books you gave them.
love you.
see ya later.
11 comments:
I like this post. Sounds like you had a lot of fun with mammaw mildred. Great story.
aw.. i'll bet she loved all 54 pictures you sent! :)
thank heavens for the 'see ya later' part. miss you all
That was beutiful!
what a great tribute and so well written! i want to read the rest of the book. write it. :)
That was really sweet. My grandma passed away about 3 weeks ago. Even though you know its coming, it is still really sad. Sounds like your grandma was a sweet lady. Mine was too. You're such a great writer.
I agree with Stephanie I want to read the rest!
I love this tribute! Just Beautiful!
I'm glad you guys went out to Texas and your girls got to meet her! :)
those were beautiful words. you have a talent my dear.
she sounds like an amazing lady.
Oh! I know those calls that make you say, "Uh oh!" I'm so sorry for your loss but it's good to know that you'll see her again someday. I bet she'd love this post!
beautiful writing as always, i cried of course. i'm sorry for your mammaw. but you will see her later and that's always comforting. when i first started the post i thought it was a story you had written and it drew me in. you need to publish something!
I love memories! They are great!
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