Wednesday, December 19, 2007
more memories
Daddy put us to bed early that night and said,"Now, kids, get to sleep because tomorrow we have a rough day ahead of us."
Ever the curious one, I piped up with, "Why,Daddy?"
"Well," Daddy said, "We are going to your mother."
That made us happy but Mickey started crying quietly because she missed Mother more than the rest of us did. That was just Joan and me. Mickey was always her little woman. She was only 8 years old but she already thought she was big.
We finally fell off to sleep just to be awoke by Daddy right at day break. Daddy made his coffee and the biscuits and salt pork and we all ate breakfast. We still had some sugar syrup so that made the bread taste great. Daddy had boiled sugar and water till it began to thicken then put in a spoon of vanilla and we thought we were right up town.
When we finished eating, Daddy got a flour sack and told all of us to get a change of clothes and put them in the bag, so we all did. Of course Mickey had to tend to Joan's cloths. Daddy called her Janzy, but Mickey was always Mickey.
Daddy gave us three each a news paper and said, "Now hang onto that because it will be hot on the road and you can put it over your head." Mickey was glad of that but really Joan and I didn't care if we did burn. We walked right out of that tent and just kept on walking.
Daddy carried a little bottle in his shirt pocket all the time and every once in awhile he would take it out and touch his tongue to it then back in his pocket. One time I asked him what it was and he said it was his medicine. Well,Daddy let me smell of it.- Okay, just one smell though.- He uncapped it and let all of us smell of it. I would have sworn it was coal-oil. I didn't learn until years later that it really was. Daddy had T.B. and none of us knew it.
The longer we walked the hotter the road got. A big red pickup came by and asked where we were going? "To California," Daddy said. "Hop in," the man said, "and I will give you a lift as far as I am going."
Will publish this now before I lose it.
Shike,-Prattling on...
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