SEPTEMBER... On into the fall... (Part 27c)

I knew I’d be in trouble for not making the meal (the pledges were the ”entertainment“ at the evening meal) and was set to walk back to town at that point. I stopped at the barn to thank Mr and Mrs T. and to tell them that I hoped I’d be able to get my things out of their way the following weekend. When I did Mrs T. asked if I’d eaten yet and the answer was ”no“. Actually, other than the little bit Elle had gotten for me at lunch I‘d not had anything to eat at all. I think that just the thought of food made me say ”yes“ when she asked if I could hang on for a few more minutes. I did so gladly and proceeded to watch as both she and her husband hooked the mechanical milkers up to the waiting cows. I’d only seen it done by hand by my great aunt when I was a little so this was an interesting thing to watch.

When they were finished they both took off their coveralls and left them in the barn office. They were both wearing regular clothes under them and as we walked to the house I began to wonder why the daughter hadn’t done the same. Inside, we all washed up and then Mrs T. went to find Joanne. She brought her back into the kitchen and reintroduced her to me. Again, no eye contact. It made me feel uncomfortable. The girl now had on a cotton skirt and her hair was no longer in a pony tail. She was prettier than I’d seen her up to that point in time. I just wished she’d say something to me.

Since they had their main meal at noontime on Sundays they ate light at night. I didn’t care as, by then, anything was going to taste good. The only thing I do remember eating was a piece of delicious warm apple pie. I also remember it was the first time I heard Joanne speak. I had complimented Mrs. T on the pie and Joanne spoke up to say she’d made it. I was surprised by both her speaking and that she’d done the baking. Mrs T. then said that Joanne did all the baking in the household. At that point I wished I could have another piece. Mrs T. got the job of driving me back to town and, as it turned out, she gave me the missing information on her daughter.

She apologized for her daughter saying that she had some ”problems“ and because of that was very shy. I didn’t say a word as Mrs T. proceeded to give me Joanne’s history. She was late in learning to walk and talk but she went to kindergarten with kids of her own age. Because of where they lived (on a farm) she really didn’t have any friends her age to play with. Her two sisters were four and six years older than she was and it wasn’t that they shunned her but they were never close. Joanne had a hard time fitting in with the others but made it through the year. It was when Joanne started 1st grade that problems started to arise. Kindergarten was basically unstructured and 1st grade was. Joanne didn’t respond well to it and, when she was scolded for something she’d have a temper tantrum... and would sometimes wet her pants. It surprised me that she would tell me about that but, in a way, I was glad she did. Her social skills did improve but she wasn’t able to keep up with her schoolwork. The school wanted her to stay back and repeat the first grade. Mrs T. said she was concerned what that would do to Joanne's psyche because it would mean she’d be leaving her newly made friends. So, she went on to 2nd grade.

By this time the car was parked in front of the house I was living at. I didn’t want her to stop so I didn’t say anything. She went on to say that by the end of the year it was painfully obvious that Joanne wasn’t capable of keeping up so this time she was left back. Mrs T. said she didn’t take it very well. Mrs T. admitted that she and her husband hadn’t really helped the situation because they’d continuously compared Joanne with their other two girls who were excellent students. The result was that Joanne retreated into a shell. Any time she perceived she was being scolded she’d start to cry and just fall on the floor and have a tantrum. Because the family had friends who worked at the college they were steered to having Joanne evaluated. After testing it was found that her IQ was in the 80’s.

I don’t know why I was so fascinated with the story but I just sat and listened. She went on to say that after the initial disappointment about the results of the test that Joanne was treated differently at home. She and Joanne’s sisters worked with her trying to help her out. It was a struggle and it remained that way right up to the time Joanne was to move up into Junior High School. But with the change came some serious problems. In grade school you had the same teacher for all subjects. Joanne’s parents worked closely with each teacher and it seemed to help, especially in the social aspect. In Junior High it was a totally different school with all new teachers. Each subject was taught by a different one. Mrs T. said that she tried to explain Joanne’s situation to each in the form of a letter. It didn’t work as some of the teachers made fun of Joanne’s shortcomings. It didn’t take long for her new classmates to pick up on it and started teasing her by calling her ”Dummy“. Joanne wasn’t able to handle it and relapsed into the crying and tantrum stage again. She reached a point where she just wouldn’t go to school.

From that time on she pretty much stayed at home with Mrs. T. Even though she didn’t like farm work she was required to do some chores as a compromise to going to school. The rest of her time she spent in the kitchen where Mrs T. taught her how to bake and she seemed to find herself in that element. The first year she entered one of her products in the County Fair she won a ribbon. In fact, as we sat there in the car one of her apple pies was at the State fair being judged. When Mrs T. told me that I was truly impressed. I also noted that she seemed somewhat relieved having told me about her daughter. I didn’t know why that would be but I was glad that she did. I was tempted to ask if Joanne still had temper tantrums but I didn’t.

Somewhere during the telling of the last part of the story I saw my roommate Bob and John, another pledge at the fraternity who had rented the single room, return to the house. From the time we left the farm until I got out of the car well over an hour had passed. I thanked Mrs T. for the ride and for sharing the information about Joanne. I also told her I’d see her the following weekend to pick up my car and boat and then headed into the house. As I walked up the steps I found myself thinking about Joanne and her troubles with school. Something just didn’t seem right. But as soon as I walked into my room I had to change focus.

To be continued...