I haven’t written anything in a very long time because I
have been sad and missing Lucy#1. Now, though, I am at the point where
it will make me happy to write about her. Next up -- some stories from the vaults (vaults of my memory, that is). Some of these stories have been famous in our family for as long as I can
remember.
This story has always cracked me up. Picture a small-for-her-age, tow-headed little girl in this one.
We all know Lucy#1 smoked for many years. What is not
common knowledge is that she had her first experience with tobacco the summer
she was six years old.
Lucy#1 had a brother four years older than she, and as is
typical, Lucy#1 always wanted to do everything her brother did. Her brother (at 10 years old!) sometimes would “borrow” a plug off their daddy’s tobacco and chew it. Lucy#1
talked him out of a “chew” one day. He gave it to her with the understanding
that if she told anyone where she got it, he would beat her up.
It happens that Lucy#1 was playing on stilts that day.
She was walking around the yard and enjoying her chew until she got distracted
with her stilt-walking and instead of spitting out the tobacco juice, she
swallowed it!
Naturally, after swallowing the tobacco juice, Lucy#1
ended up leaning against the house (still on her stilts), and lost her
breakfast, as well as anything that may have been left from any meal the
previous day or previous week. She retched and retched, so violently, so much,
and loudly that her babysitter came out to check on her.
When queried, all she would tell the babysitter was that
she didn’t feel well, so she ended up spending the rest of the day in bed being
pampered and treated for an upset tummy.
Her brother made fun of her for swallowing
the juice, washed his hands of the whole thing, and never gave her any more
tobacco to chew.
As an aside, Lucy#1 was extremely athletic and could do
any physical activity. She was small, but she could play all sports very well
and could hula-hoop, jump on a pogo stick, walk on stilts, etc. She put all my
friends to shame playing basketball when I was in junior high and high school,
and I would have flunked every sport in P.E. without her constant tutoring. She
was amazing!! I have never understood how I can look just like her, yet have
absolutely zero natural physical ability.
