Blanket on Concrete

My grandparents moved to Cumberland on a donkey.

They padded the donkey, placed two baskets on each side, and in one basket, they put uncle Lee and in the other, my mother.  

There was a hole in the basket that carried mother. Halfway through the journey, my mother fell out, and wasn’t missed until my grandparent’s arrived at their destination three hours later. 

When my mother was seven years old, my grandmother gave her to a barren friend. Of the thirteen children, my grandmother bore, it’s still a mystery why and how my mother was chosen. 

Given away and molested by the time she was twelve, my mother became hardened and vigilant. Time has softened her over the years, but at her core, she has grit, true grit. 

She landed in the United States after being taken off the plane four times.

She worked hard as a nanny, wiping white noses and asses. 

She left her day job and took night classes. 

She raised three teenagers after her husband died. 

She smiled, we frowned.

She cried, walked, and prayed. 

She worked hard to keep a roof over our heads and food on our table. 

On Saturdays, she woke us with a song and the scent of breakfast in the kitchen. She spread a blanket on concrete and turned our backyard into a spa. She cleaned our faces with Neutrogena and cleaned our teeth with her dental kit.

On Sundays, before we’d leave for Sunday school, she held morning worship. She sang from the hymnal, recited her favorite scripture, and prayed for far too long. My siblings and I opened our eyes, stole glimpses, and made faces. But, my mother kept on praying for her children’s children, her siblings, and their spouses, for immigration papers to be approved, and for her to keep the faith. 

In retrospect, my mother took one step at a time to overcome all the barriers. She took one step at a time to be present. 

When life gets hard, I know she is praying for me. When I call she answers the phone, listens, then encourages me with a story, a psalm, and the reassuring words: “You are strong, you will get over this hump by the Grace of God.” 

♥

Kadine Christie