Mementos From the Road
strawberry, moose tracks, butter pecan
Once a week, without fail, little Thalia Winchester would awaken to find a puffy white envelope resting on her nightstand. At only five-years-old, she was no skilled reader, but that didn't seem to matter. She didn't need to be able to make out the letters; she already knew what was hidden inside the package and exactly who it was from.
Her daddy always told her how her Uncle Sam had to spend most of his time on the road traveling for his job, how he didn't have a house like the two of them did, so they couldn't visit him in the same way that she'd have sleepovers with the girls in her kindergarten class or the way they'd drive up and spend the holidays with Miss Jody.
Though she loved her uncle, it made her sad that she never got to see him. Every time he got a chance to visit, he'd grab her by the waist and thrust her up so high into the air that Thalia felt like she was flying, like if she reached out, she'd be able to feel the clouds sticky like cotton candy between her fingertips. Other times, if the weather was nice, Thalia, her daddy, and Uncle Sam would walk to the ice cream parlor in town. Thalia always asked for strawberry because pink was her favorite color, Uncle Sam ordered a scoop of moose tracks, and her daddy would get butter pecan.
Now, her uncle mostly just sent her these quirky t-shirts from all the cool places he visited, shirts with phrases like:
"I left my heart in San Francisco."
"Somebody in Austin loves me."
"I wasn't born in Kansas, but I got here as soon as I could."
Still other shirts featured state flags or local tourist attractions like the world's largest rubber band ball, an alligator wrestling show in the Everglades, and a Hollywood diner frequented by celebrities. Getting these packages in the mail made every week feel like a little slice of Christmas for the child, but she still missed her Uncle Sam.
Her daddy always told her how her Uncle Sam had to spend most of his time on the road traveling for his job, how he didn't have a house like the two of them did, so they couldn't visit him in the same way that she'd have sleepovers with the girls in her kindergarten class or the way they'd drive up and spend the holidays with Miss Jody.
Though she loved her uncle, it made her sad that she never got to see him. Every time he got a chance to visit, he'd grab her by the waist and thrust her up so high into the air that Thalia felt like she was flying, like if she reached out, she'd be able to feel the clouds sticky like cotton candy between her fingertips. Other times, if the weather was nice, Thalia, her daddy, and Uncle Sam would walk to the ice cream parlor in town. Thalia always asked for strawberry because pink was her favorite color, Uncle Sam ordered a scoop of moose tracks, and her daddy would get butter pecan.
Now, her uncle mostly just sent her these quirky t-shirts from all the cool places he visited, shirts with phrases like:
"I left my heart in San Francisco."
"Somebody in Austin loves me."
"I wasn't born in Kansas, but I got here as soon as I could."
Still other shirts featured state flags or local tourist attractions like the world's largest rubber band ball, an alligator wrestling show in the Everglades, and a Hollywood diner frequented by celebrities. Getting these packages in the mail made every week feel like a little slice of Christmas for the child, but she still missed her Uncle Sam.
♠ ♠ ♠
I've kinda always wanted to write something that's told from more of a child's perspective, and the idea presented itself, so I rolled with it.Feedback is always appreciated.