Flies can walk upside down
When I was three, I lived in a little town called Mahomet, Illinois. Back then it had one tiny main street. My parents rented the upstairs of what to a child's eyes was a glorious mansion (which I found out many years later was actually what had previously been the town mortuary.)
One day, I was outside with my trike and I decided to go visit the grocer downtown and get an apple. I pedaled my trike the two and one-half blocks there, parked it outside on the sidewalk and went in. I walked to the apples, picked one out, and went to the counter
and said, "I would like this apple, please."
I had their attention. They asked who I was, I said I was "Carol". "Well," they said, "Where do you live?" "With Mommy and Daddy, and Grandma and Grandpa Morrison," was my answer, although the Morrisons were not really relation, I just thought so.
Ahhh, a collective acknowledgment from all of them. The old Morrison Mortuary. The store owner lifted me up and sat me on the counter and said I could have the apple. They telephoned Grandma Morrison who got my mom who had been frantically looking for me.
About 10 minutes later, my mom showed up. Really, really mad. She thanked them, got me out of the store, told me to walk behind her and to pull my trike; she was too mad to let me ride. She walked very fast.
When we got home, we went upstairs and she was ironing in the kitchen. She pulled out the old yellow Cosco stool and said, "You sit there for the rest of the afternoon and don't move." Well, I was mad because I thought I had had a good time. I'd had a good trike ride, met nice people, and had an apple. So, I sat on my stool and I wouldn't look at her. I looked anywhere but at her. I looked at the ceiling.
And, on the ceiling was a fly. How was that? Upside down! How could that be? He was walking all over the place, really easily. And then he would fly a bit and land back on the ceiling and walk some more. It was magic. I wanted to ask my mom so bad how that fly did that but when I looked back down at my mom, her iron was working so hard on the ironing board and she still looked so mad I didn't dare, and I didn't want to be the one to talk first anyway.
But, that day when I was three was when I learned flies can walk upside down.
One day, I was outside with my trike and I decided to go visit the grocer downtown and get an apple. I pedaled my trike the two and one-half blocks there, parked it outside on the sidewalk and went in. I walked to the apples, picked one out, and went to the counter
and said, "I would like this apple, please." I had their attention. They asked who I was, I said I was "Carol". "Well," they said, "Where do you live?" "With Mommy and Daddy, and Grandma and Grandpa Morrison," was my answer, although the Morrisons were not really relation, I just thought so.
Ahhh, a collective acknowledgment from all of them. The old Morrison Mortuary. The store owner lifted me up and sat me on the counter and said I could have the apple. They telephoned Grandma Morrison who got my mom who had been frantically looking for me.
About 10 minutes later, my mom showed up. Really, really mad. She thanked them, got me out of the store, told me to walk behind her and to pull my trike; she was too mad to let me ride. She walked very fast.
When we got home, we went upstairs and she was ironing in the kitchen. She pulled out the old yellow Cosco stool and said, "You sit there for the rest of the afternoon and don't move." Well, I was mad because I thought I had had a good time. I'd had a good trike ride, met nice people, and had an apple. So, I sat on my stool and I wouldn't look at her. I looked anywhere but at her. I looked at the ceiling.
And, on the ceiling was a fly. How was that? Upside down! How could that be? He was walking all over the place, really easily. And then he would fly a bit and land back on the ceiling and walk some more. It was magic. I wanted to ask my mom so bad how that fly did that but when I looked back down at my mom, her iron was working so hard on the ironing board and she still looked so mad I didn't dare, and I didn't want to be the one to talk first anyway.
But, that day when I was three was when I learned flies can walk upside down.
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