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Show CHRYSALIS pAQE 237 We run out to meet them, putting our arms about their necks and kissing them. "Wow! Let me look at you!" "I'm glad you finally made it." "Did you think we wouldn't?" "Where"d all those white hairs come from, Susie?" Papa has called me "Susie" for as long as I can remember. "It's heredity, Papa!" I say. Mama is very small and slender - almost girlish. Her hair is tied back in a chignon. She holds my hand tightly. Mama is stronger than we imagined. I think we are stronger than we imagine. I have been close to my mother, but we never talked much about things intimate or personal. I carry her inborn reserve. The minor problems of adolescence, boys, pimples, the first menstruation, the first brassierre - all great embarassments to me were taken care of quickly and with a minimum of fuss, and I kept my feelings to myself. She has always been there if I needed her. She never understood ray revulsion toward the dresses and pretty clothes she wanted me to wear when I wore faded blue jeans and too-large T-shirts, or why I let my hair go long and wild and stayed by myself, obstinate and sullen and full of unshared fantasies. I never meant to be rude or |
