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Show -3- Peppermint Monday tree is kind of a joke in our family. The first time ma's relatives came to visit, they didn't know how to find her. There might have been street names once, but nobody uses them anymore. Ma's family stopped at Chester's store for directions, and he told them south of the dogwood tree. Gainesville has a lot of trees, most of them oak, elm, or hickory, and an occassional Black Willow, but ours is the only dogwood. Of course ma's family didn't know that, or even what a dogwood tree looked like, so it took them awhile to find our house. Ma says grandma was furious, and pa just sat back laughing until he was too sore to move. Anyway the tree is a sight to behold. It blossoms each spring; its lacy buds paint the whole yard pink, the color of peppermint. I've always loved peppermint. "Where's Russ?" I spun around, suddenly aware of my present surroundings. Jason was watching me curiously, his hands buried deep in the pockets of his jeans. "I dunno. Probably with Jake," i said. His cinnamon hair, the exact shade of my own, glistened in the afternoon sun while he bobbed his head in agreement. Even with my braces, and the fact I'm a girl, we look a lot alike. Besides the hair, both of us have round blue eyes like ma, a generous supply of freckles, and we're about the same height. "Ma wanted to know." He dug the toe of his boot into the dark soil of the flower bed. Actually it wasn't a flower bed yet, but ma had dug up some meadow roses and had prepared the ground for some spring bulbs. "The guys talk about old Jake a lot. Nobody likes him." He paused, a little embarrassed, then blurted out. "Do you think Russ should be with old Jake so much?" When I didn't answer immediately, he asked again. "Well |