finger!” Well, you can call me Ms. Hushmouth, cause I sure know when to do that!
My husband had been dead five years or so, then. Worked hisself to death, in the cold and damp, days and nights of our life. Making food, finding food, going for medicine at nights in the rain, walking babies when he needed his sleep and I was sick and couldn’t, so many things. He was a good man … my good man and my world. But one night my world slipped away from me and I was alone to raise my children. Course, I had my mama’s help, but I got to know a little more what Letta was going through, had gone through all her life. You could call me Ms. Tired and Sad, cause that’s all I remember bein … tired and sad.
Letta’s father lived on another four or five years then he passed away too. She buried him lovingly, too. I began to look at Letta kinda funny then. Was somethin wrong with her? I mean, how can one person do everything right? Was she human? This was goin too far! She was too good to be true! I got kinda mad at her … not jealous … mad! She was my friend, but I didn’t like her bein so good! Well, you can just call me Ms. Shamed cause I’m shamed I forgot all she had done been through ALL her life. The Lord had to have given her strength and there I was getting mad at her for havin it! Just call me Ms. Shamed! How I know how tight she was holding on? Or how close she was to lettin go, losin herhold? Well, I done already told you once, you could call me Ms. Senseless!
Two or three months after the father passed, Letta came by my mama’s house. I had done lost mine, my husband built for me. Had taken a few loans out to help my kids in some personal and sickness problems and taken a few more later on for some police problems and the kids had done moved away somewhere else and I couldn’t pay them notes and so they took my million dollar home for $400, and I moved back to my mama’s. She was down and I was taken care of her anyway. I loved her and she had been good to me. She was dyin too tho. Well, she was old. Hell, I was old! Seemed like I was always just between life and death, life and death. Scared of life and scared of death. Call me Ms. Scared, cause that’s the way I was runnin then.
Anyway, Letta stopped by the house one day and said, “I want you to bring me some of them fancy ladies clothes magazines from your job sometimes, if you will, Ms. Friend.” She always call me “Ms. Friend.”
I said, “I sho will, Letta. You mean the real fancy ones?”
“Real, real fancy, Ms. Friend.”
“You want some of the recipes magazines?”
“Yea” she smiled, “bring some of them too, I got a plan!”
“You got a plan?” My ears perked up.
“Yes.” Her smile was what you would call BRIL-LI-ANT . “Been thinkin about my life … now that it’s mine to do with whatever I want! All mine!” I looked at her and she did look rested and better and I would say younger except you don’t have to be younger to look good! So I asked her, “You ain’t gone fly off to no big city and leave me here is you?” I laughed, but I sho didn’t want her to go. Misery lovin company I guess, but … well, shame, shame, shame. She laughed back, “No, I’m too tired for a big city. I just want a good husband and I got a plan to get the kind of man I want … I think!”
“Plenty of these men roun here want to marry you now,Letta!” She frowned up her face “Yea, now that I ain’t got any problems! But they the ones with the problem now … they are all poor, cept for the ones already married, and I have decided I do not want a poor man or a poor nothin! I have already done all the poor I can take! Sides, I want to be in love and be loved!” I was gettin excited cause I wanted to talk bout things like this and never did know I had anybody to talk bout them with! I said, “I would just like a man of my own!” She answered me right back, “I don’t just want a husband, a man, Ms. Friend, they
My husband had been dead five years or so, then. Worked hisself to death, in the cold and damp, days and nights of our life. Making food, finding food, going for medicine at nights in the rain, walking babies when he needed his sleep and I was sick and couldn’t, so many things. He was a good man … my good man and my world. But one night my world slipped away from me and I was alone to raise my children. Course, I had my mama’s help, but I got to know a little more what Letta was going through, had gone through all her life. You could call me Ms. Tired and Sad, cause that’s all I remember bein … tired and sad.
Letta’s father lived on another four or five years then he passed away too. She buried him lovingly, too. I began to look at Letta kinda funny then. Was somethin wrong with her? I mean, how can one person do everything right? Was she human? This was goin too far! She was too good to be true! I got kinda mad at her … not jealous … mad! She was my friend, but I didn’t like her bein so good! Well, you can just call me Ms. Shamed cause I’m shamed I forgot all she had done been through ALL her life. The Lord had to have given her strength and there I was getting mad at her for havin it! Just call me Ms. Shamed! How I know how tight she was holding on? Or how close she was to lettin go, losin herhold? Well, I done already told you once, you could call me Ms. Senseless!
Two or three months after the father passed, Letta came by my mama’s house. I had done lost mine, my husband built for me. Had taken a few loans out to help my kids in some personal and sickness problems and taken a few more later on for some police problems and the kids had done moved away somewhere else and I couldn’t pay them notes and so they took my million dollar home for $400, and I moved back to my mama’s. She was down and I was taken care of her anyway. I loved her and she had been good to me. She was dyin too tho. Well, she was old. Hell, I was old! Seemed like I was always just between life and death, life and death. Scared of life and scared of death. Call me Ms. Scared, cause that’s the way I was runnin then.
Anyway, Letta stopped by the house one day and said, “I want you to bring me some of them fancy ladies clothes magazines from your job sometimes, if you will, Ms. Friend.” She always call me “Ms. Friend.”
I said, “I sho will, Letta. You mean the real fancy ones?”
“Real, real fancy, Ms. Friend.”
“You want some of the recipes magazines?”
“Yea” she smiled, “bring some of them too, I got a plan!”
“You got a plan?” My ears perked up.
“Yes.” Her smile was what you would call BRIL-LI-ANT . “Been thinkin about my life … now that it’s mine to do with whatever I want! All mine!” I looked at her and she did look rested and better and I would say younger except you don’t have to be younger to look good! So I asked her, “You ain’t gone fly off to no big city and leave me here is you?” I laughed, but I sho didn’t want her to go. Misery lovin company I guess, but … well, shame, shame, shame. She laughed back, “No, I’m too tired for a big city. I just want a good husband and I got a plan to get the kind of man I want … I think!”
“Plenty of these men roun here want to marry you now,Letta!” She frowned up her face “Yea, now that I ain’t got any problems! But they the ones with the problem now … they are all poor, cept for the ones already married, and I have decided I do not want a poor man or a poor nothin! I have already done all the poor I can take! Sides, I want to be in love and be loved!” I was gettin excited cause I wanted to talk bout things like this and never did know I had anybody to talk bout them with! I said, “I would just like a man of my own!” She answered me right back, “I don’t just want a husband, a man, Ms. Friend, they
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