“Everybody does it!” I remember saying to my mother,
“Everybody except me that is!”
And she said to me “If everybody was jumping off the viaduct
would you jump off too?”
Well, no, but everybody (the girls, that is)
had suede jackets and poodle skirts
and charm bracelets
and cashmere sweater sets
and were allowed to date
at the age of fifteen, while I
wore an old corduroy jacket
that was my sister’s
and never had a poodle skirt
or a charm bracelet;
My sweaters were Orlon
and I was not allowed to date
Until I was sixteen.
Somehow I survived these major
Omissions in my life;
My brother attempted to make it
up to me by sending money for
a Suede jacket.
My mother gave me half of the money
And I found a jacket for that amount.
I had to wear a sweater underneath
The suede was not very warm
but I wore it even if I was freezing. **
“Everybody does it!” my sons said to me
whether it was going to an unsupervised
party or smoking marijuana and I said
“If everybody jumped off a bridge,
would you?” hearing the echo
of my mother’s voice even as
I said the words. **
“Everybody does it!”
I heard my granddaughter complain
to her mother
who responded
“I don’t give a rat’s ass what everybody
ELSE does, I just care about what YOU do!”
I thought hmmmm–
Maybe because there are no bridges
or viaducts around here?
What a great answer!
And now….my grandson
just turned 16. I’m keeping
a low profile this time around.
Sandra lee Smith
February, 2009
