Those 70ish Girls

What was an ordeal for my mother and me, has now become a fond memory.

It was back in the fifties when little girls had long pretty ringlets or short pixie curls.

I wanted long hair, but none of the fuss. Mom thought pink plastic curlers a must.

Once a week we went through the routine. I leaned over the sink while Mom scrubbed my head clean.

I thought I would drown. I shut my eyes tight. It was hair washing day. We were in for a fight.

“The water’s too hot! It’s burning my head.” Mom surely approached this day with dread.

She wrapped a towel around long wet hair, and sat me on books stacked high on a chair.

She picked up a comb and began to wrangle, each section of hair and each stubborn tangle.

“Ouch! that hurts!” I cried out in vain. Didn’t Mom know that I was in pain?

Then came those curlers Mom rolled up so tight. I didn’t think she put them in right.

“They have to be perfect,” I always insisted. “My curls won’t look good if not evenly twisted.”

“You look like a rag muffin most of the week,” Mom said as she continued to curl and tweak.

“You fuss and complain from beginning till end, and I tell myself never again.”

But your curls look so pretty at least for a day. The rest of the week they all fly away.

That routine belonged to us alone. When was the last time? Do I wish I had known?

There are so many things in our lives that we experience for the last time, but we don’t know it’s the last time. It’s not always a bad thing not to know. I’ll never play golf again and even though I can’t remember that last time, I don’t really care.

I do remember the last day I spent with Mom. We watched five hours of music on the public television station and Mom sang “In the Garden” to me. It was her favorite hymn. Once I was listening to my voice mail messages and there was Mom singing her song.

With this covid virus consuming our lives and now the total unrest in our country, I’m becoming aware that last times can sneak up on you and I should make good use of each minute God gives me. Who do I need to spend more time with, and how do I make that happen?

***I primed the outside of the cottage from 7 am until 5 pm. I’ll be back at it tomorrow and Kip is getting to the final stage of completing the deck.