Sunday, October 10, 2010

Minutia!

Isn't it funny the random things that we remember from our childhood? Isn't even funnier how the memories pop into our minds at the most unusual or inopportune times?

I few days ago I was making my way to Manhattan. I cannot, ironically, remember where I was headed. When I  was on the 1 train, sitting down, minding my own business, this image of my grandmother (God rest her soul), popped into my head.  It was a long forgotten memory in which I wasn't any older than 10.  My mother, father, and I believe my siblings were there, too, standing on my grandmother's front porch, waiting for her to come outside. We were all heading out for the evening. 

We heard the doorknob turn and saw my grandmother standing behind the screen door.  It was August in South Carolina and the sun was especially brutal that day. The sunlight hit the screen in such a way that my grandmother's silhouette beamed with sporadic hues of red and black.  I noticed that my grandmother's  face, obscured by the translucent screen, seemed abnormal. It was a bit elongated and contorted. 

When she pushed open the screen door, my grandmother stood adorned in a red blazer, red pencil skirt, a white ruffle blouse and black patent leather pumps. She finished off the look with a textured gold broach that was pinned to the lapel of her blazer. My grandmother was old but had an implacable sense of style. 

When I looked at her face, though, I gasped.  She had dentures that where at least 2 sizes too big. Despite her best efforts, my grandmother couldn't keep her mouth shut. 

My smirk turned into a chuckle that crescendoed into a deep and hearty laugh. I laughed so hard that tears wailed in my eyes.  I almost had an accident ...