Mother ’ s Story
near apocalyptic : black rainclouds illuminated in the far distance by a deep crimson sunset . She knew the simple truth : they were driving into Mordor .
Water droplet snakes wriggled across the windowpane . Abby liked to trace them with her eyes and occasionally with her fingers . The window was like a movie screen : water snakes entered on one side and tried to slink across to the other side . Some made it straight across from one side of the windowpane to another ; these went to Purgatory , she thought . Others collided with each other and grew fatter and fatter until they got too heavy and dropped to the bottom of the windowpane ; these went to Hell . Still others managed to curve their way to the top of the window and disappear out of view . These , of course , went to Heaven . “ Mom , we need more light bulbs . My night light isn ’ t working .” “ Okay , we ’ ll get some at Target . Need anything else ?” “ Uh , we ’ re running out of Band-Aids . And chocolate . We need lots of chocolate .” The driver grinned as she cast her mind forward to the probable events of that evening . In her mind ’ s eye she saw herself and her daughter , sitting on the couch after dinner , watching Willie Wonka , surrounded by silver candy wrappers . In a few minutes , Abby would be crying because of the sugar , and her father would come home and see the mess , and the boys would walk in and want a share of the saccharine booty . “ Mom , how do you spell carry ?” “ C-A-R-R-I-E ,” she spelled out . “ You mean cousin Carrie , right ?” They passed a car pulled off to the side of the road with emergency lights on . She crossed herself and tightened her grip on the wheel . “ No . Like I ’ m carrying something .” “ C-A-R-R-Y .” “ Thanks .” Lightning struck in the distance as the van pulled into the Target parking lot . Inside , they would chase each other ’ s tails for forty-five minutes : Abby trying not to pass out from boredom , her mother trying to get her constantly changing nine-year-old opinion on whether or not this or that purple top was ‘ bleh ’ and would therefore be shoved to the back of the drawer and never worn . The rain suddenly let up and the windshield wipers squeaked . They sat together in the car , the
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