My Mother and My Middle Finger
I gave my middle finger to a particularly deserving driver and my mother (sitting in the passenger seat) about had a heart attack.
Her generation valued “being a lady.”
Mine decided “ladies” don’t get noticed/make history/climb the corporate ladder/etc. etc. . . . you get the idea.
As a child, I was not supposed to be dramatic. Drama was for others with fewer manners. That was usually phrased as “a less refined upbringing.”
I was to never create a scene. There were better ways to handle unpleasantness.
I was also not supposed to tattle. That was phrased as “don’t tell tales.” That included stories about our family, which were private and not anyone’s business.
Which brings me to the friend who didn’t/couldn’t share my love of family stories because her family’s history was “nothing but drama and the kind of stuff best kept in a closet.”
Really? The bad stuff is what makes us think, makes us figure out who we want to be. In the end, we are what we decide we are. So here’s to dusting off the closet stuff and not being polite about it.
Remember, you have to make a scene to be visible. Oh, and as my mother always says, “Don’t do it halfway.”
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Dear Jerri,
You don’t know me, but I discovered you when I was trying to do some research on Bone, Idaho sometime last year. I used to explore up there with my father when I was a child, and I am haunted by dreams which seem to vaguely recall those rolling hills and beyond. My father was one of those transplants that came to Idaho Falls in the early 50s to do the nuclear work in the desert and we-my family and I-stood out in that very conservative city that I grew up in. I also used to know a couple of people whose family had a a ranch close to Bone and I was searching for information on them as well because when I graduated high school in 1966, I left and never looked back. Now, of course, I am looking back with some regrets.
The world is a strange place and I put a fair amount of faith in synchronicity and finding you was such an event for me as I have lived in Boulder, Co and surrounds for much of the past 40 odd years and I too graduated college from CU in the early 70s. And as for closets, I have several that have not seen the light of day in many a year so I thought this would be a good opportunity to introduce myself and to thank you for sharing yourself and your stories for all to read and ponder.
Hi Lynn
Are you still in Boulder? We could certainly do coffee and talk Bone.