Watermelon Muscles
Sunday, October 2, 2005
It was Collette’s turn to work in the nursery that morning, and Rose would be accompanying her in it. All the little tykes would be running around with balls, story books, and wide eyes, eager to learn – and occasionally to battle it out with their fellow companions over a toy. But in general they most often behaved themselves.
And Mom had shared a little news of the Ravens over hot chocolate in the parking lot the night before. Janek was in his second year of law school in Louisville, already. Nevermore was a senior. Sylvester was also at Louisville and Janek kept an eye on him, insisting to their mother that he was trouble. And he made sure that Sylvester did his laundry. Kelsie was preparing to get her driver’s license. They all seemed to grow up quickly. But the good news was, they were keeping the farm – the house and the land, for whenever anyone wanted to stay out in the country and “play farm”.
The afternoon was gray and quiet. Before Sunday School, Linnea had come running to class.
“So did you get breakfast this morning, hun?” Collette asked, setting out a box of crayons.
“Yeah,” she began. “It’s terrible. We had cereal again. Mom got ten boxes of Total from the grocery store because they were on sale.”
Linnea smiled wide in disbelief with her front tooth still gone.
During Sunday School, OLeif had been teaching about Cain and Abel. The subject of killing was close at hand.
“A brother killed a brother,” OLeif was saying to all the kids. “Now, you’ve never murdered your brother or sister...”
There was a ghastly look of horror over all the children’s faces and an immediate buzz of thoughts. Apparently it had never occurred to any of them before, just how wicked Cain really had been!
“I don’t even know how to kill anyone!” John Smith exclaimed with wide eyes, “I do know how to kill ants, though.”
And at home, over “mock” chicken cordon bleu and pasta, Carrie was raving over her mounting anticipation for The Bravery concert that night.
“It’s going to be the second-best day of my life!” She exclaimed dreamily, clasping her be-ringed hands together in sheer happiness.
Meanwhile, Mom brought out the oven stone filled with pastries and rolls warmed from the oven, courtesy of the Hobcoggin’s grandma who often had bread and other tasties from the St. Louis Bread Company. There was also a dish of warm pastry sauce to pass around.
Meanwhile, as the kids left for youth and Carrie prepared to leave for the concert (with Elizabeth and Joseph), Dad finished his nap while Francis and Linnea watched a little of the horribly infamous Spongebob with Carrie (over watermelon).
Speaking of watermelon, Dad found himself calmly eating his lunch at the table, when he was requested by Carrie to show off his “watermelon muscles”. Dad giggled silently and shook his head.
“Oh, come on, Dad,” Carrie urged him. “You know – ‘He went that ‘a way’.”
(A family joke).
Soon the whole table (minus OLeif who seemed a little conveniently confused, and Mom who was in the kitchen), was banging their fists on the table in unison, shouting:
“Watermelon muscles, watermelon muscles!”
Eventually, he conceded, to the cheering of the whole crazy throng.
“Oh, I’m so excited!” Carrie kept pacing up and down, out of breath, slowly preparing her make-up, hair, clothing, and jewelry over the space of three hours…