New shiny shoes for Christmas.
Rollerskating on a smooth sidewalk.
Hot air.
Skate key swinging back and forth on the string around your neck.
Arms and legs in perfect rhythm.
The steel wheels adding to the sound in your head as they hit the concrete sidewalk.
Feeling so free and you could skate to the moon and back.
Playing jacks on the hallway floor.
you could pick up the jacks in the right order and not miss once.
Being alone in our bedroom.
Playing with your paper dolls.
Listening to the radio.
Carefully putting on the dolls cloths and not tearing off the little paper tags.
A new dress for Christmas.
Not knowing Mother spent hours cutting and sewing not only for you but your sisters also.
New cloths for school.
Mother took much care to see that they were sturdy and beautiful.
Always a new Easter dress for each of the three sisters.
Even spring hats and gloves and little spring purses.
Learning to ride a bicycle.
No one to help.
Falling, wobbly, couldn’t get the balance just right.
But soon you were riding with the wind.
Freedom, now the town was yours to explore.
The pain and agony of trying to learn to read.
Finally a kind teacher takes you under his wing and patiently gives you the courage and desire to find the Joy of Reading.
Playing Fox and Geese with your family on snowshoes up on the Mountain.
Not wanting to stop.
Finally it gets so dark and cold you are all ready to go home to hot chocolate and Mom’s home made chili.
Riding with Dad in his red pickup truck alone in the summer as he make his rounds to the farms and ranches to read their meters.
Listening to his poems and stories.
Singing his story songs.
Leaning against his strong body.
Drifting off to sleep in the hot dusty truck.
Seeing your Father bless your first child.
Knowing he has the authority.
Being so kind and loving.
Wearing the new dress you sewed yourself and getting an “A” from the Home Ec. teacher.
Barb, this is really lovely. It felt like a little like a hymn as I read it.
Lots of these are my favorite things still! Except for the rollerskating stuff; I never could get my big feet to cooperate enough to rollerskate without feeling like I was going to die!