Tuesday, May 15, 2007

Little black spell....

She flew into the driveway, aiming for her spot, wreckless, and not at all caring if someone else might be parked there. It belonged to her, of course. That gravely, patchy grassed, dusty piece of drive way. She irrrrrkkkkked the brakes just shy of slamming down the pink park benches, threw open the crinkled driver’s door and screamed…… “I’m home!” I looked out the kitchen window in time to see her fanny and feet only, the rest of her lunged face first into the back seat, her tiny hands flipping Samsonite and garbage bags blindly out behind her! Thunk! Plunk! “Oh, this is just junk!” Make-up bag hurled over her shoulder. “Mom! I’m home” she screams a little louder, with her “Are we losing this damn game?” cheerleading voice. “I’m right here, baby girl, you just clobbered me with a ghetto blaster”…..

We hugged and
lugged
It all up the drive-way.

Home for the summer.

Giant Tupperware tins with leftovers and graduation gifts line my hallway. “Why do you keep hauling this stuff back and forth?” I asked her with my best garage sale smile on. “It’s sentimental, Mom” “…‘kay” I mutter, the one who taught her memories are priceless.

An hour later, she’s unpacking and rearranging her room. Lining little perfume bottles and mascara samples up on the vanity. Choreographing her private world. Shoving “please don’t tell me this is you” pictures into the frame around the mirror. Yet another summer, I’ll have to ban her grandparents from her room.

An hour and a half later, I stand in the hallway…pacing. Waiting on the ice cream truck. And then she starts. A halter flies out the door and lands at my feet. A pink bra, three socks, a fake diamond ring. Two hot curlers, a pair of size 0 jeans, an Ohio State sweatshirt. A little black dress with the tags on it. Two plastic champagne cups and a bag of aquarium marbles.

“Is that it?” I offer, my toes stretching to lift the pink bra up and drop it in the black garbage bag. “Yeah”
“So you don’t know who this stuff belongs to?” “Nah” “So we don’t need to save it?” “No, Mom, I’ve told you that before. It’s not mine. And I don’t know who it belongs to so I can’t return it”

This is a ritual. The cleansing.

The pitching of the “it accidentally ended up in my room” stuff.

I lift the heavy bag of marbles up and shove them in the hall closet. Skinny just got two new goldfish. Christmas is only seven months away.

I kick the little black dress. Cat hair swirls in a current and latches on for safekeeping . I reach down and pick it up, the tags jingle a little. Size 3.

I hold it up in front of the bathroom mirror. Dust it off. Traipse barefooted into my room and grab a hanger.

I can’t wait for Friday.

25 comments:

skinnylittleblonde said...

It’s not mine.... pink bras, black dresses, costume jewelry ... like the little lost souls that somehow always seem to make it into our homes , like they know we will find a home where they really do belong...
GILYSVM. From trash to treasures, my fish can't wear size 0 jeans ;)

Dan said...

You paint a story so beautifully with your words.

And I love the way you color (literally) the dialogue. I think you're pretty cool for attending to this type of detail!

A belated Happy Mom's Day! Hugs!

Scott from Oregon said...

(Methinks dan may have a crush...)

Size #3?

That's like one of my socks...

singleton said...

SweetSLB....LOL! Fatten those fish up! ILYSVVM

Dan...I went back through the bag, no Speedos!

Scott....well, the sock and the marbles are spoken for! Any need for size 0 jeans, hotcurlers, plastic champagne cups or a fake diamond ring?

Anonymous said...

Wha....? An Ohio State shirt? I married a Buckeye-send it my way!
Another nice post I might add.

SpongyBones said...

What did you do with the hot curlers! I need them for my new beard I'm growing. A man never can have enough curlers!!!

Angela Marie said...

Oh I love this! Will we read these kind of stories all summer long!? I won't have to get a summer novel! I am smiling ear to ear for you!

So singleton! How many kiddies do you have? and grandchildren. You must be the coolest mom and grandma!

Me said...

I keep forgetting how beautiful yours and Paige's writing can be. It is so smooth and welcoming.

Your daughter sounds so very precious, much like you and Skinny. Your memories are so colourful and engaging.

I love it.

singleton said...

wreckless....OK, it has Rumrunner stains on the front and the elbows are little smudgy, but otherwise, it's good to go!

spongy...okay! You'll have to heat em up in the microwave, they don't have plugs! Cool! This stuff is going fast!

Angela marie....oh you're gonna need a novel, 'cause when I REALLY start having fun, um, i might skip a few days!
The family tree is a good one:
Three youngin's, three cats, one dog, two grand babies. Like a rollin' stone, always gatherin' the love....

singleton said...

Orhan...Tink! Typing in tandem! She's the bomb! We think all the women in our family rock! Which is absolutely incredible since we were all thrown into this world together, not born into it! Thank you!

Gypsy Purple said...

Hillarious

Anonymous said...

Hey Rumrunner stains are nothing. As long as the stains don't come from after the booze has made it in the body-then we have probs.

SHE said...

love how you make every moment matter with words

e-peeks into open arms and closets too

great read! ~as always

singleton said...

gypsy....thank you, I love your name!

wreckless....um, this is stuff that came home for the summer for FSU...I can't make any quarantees on the "hows about it got here"! LOL!

she...."open arms and closets, too" ! love it!

Shrink Wrapped Scream said...

Oh, you just CRASH on to the page, bonny lass! I'm breathless. Love, resignation, and unconditional patience.. 'tis a mothers lot, eh?
I stand back in awe.

mindy said...

hey.. i'll take the plastic champagne glasses! :)

Scott from Oregon said...

I have a need for some size O jeans that are filled, yes...

The fake diamond ring might come in handy to help fill that need, so yeah, I'll take that too...

singleton said...

shrink....Crash! I knew you'd hear the trainwreck between the words!

mindy...their yours!

scott....You're welcome to the lot, but I just want you to know the bubble gum ring is about the same size as the jeans!

kj said...

been there. done that. wouldn't trade it.

your summer will be hopping, no doubt. keep the pink bra in case you need an extra form of communication at some point. you could hang it up as a partial surrender....

enjoy, singelton.

:)

singleton said...

kj...are you psychic? :)

singleton said...

LOL! Late night spellings.....

kj said...

maybe singleton. at least i kind of know how to judge who's friend-worthy, and you and skinny would definitely make that cut with me.

time, place and circumstance. it makes all the difference.

and why? are you psychic?

:)

singleton said...

KJ! LOL! Im only psychic when I'm wanting to be! But I meet need the extra forms of communicado and the surrender flag this summer! Just so you know......

kj said...

singleton, you need them this summer. so you'll have them this summer. good! there!

:)

singleton said...

I'm draggin' em out right now! The time has come!