CHANGES... good and bad (Part 131i)

CHANGES... good and bad (Part 131i)

There was nothing on the calendar or a note to say where they’d all gone so I was really puzzled. As 6:30pm approached I began to worry. They arrived a short time later and Elle seemed to be in a good mood... which was good to see. Before I could say anything Elle said she had some “interesting information”. She started by apologizing for not being home but quickly explained it by saying that she’d been over at Jeannette’s (the lady who’d driven Kaye and I to the hospital after her injury) delivering a “thank you” plant. I quickly grasped the concept but didn’t think that it qualified as “interesting information”. By now she was a bit animated and, excitedly, said that while there Jean had seen one of the boys who’d caused Kaye to be thrown off the round-about riding by on a bicycle. Elle asked Jeannette if she knew who he was and she’d pointed down the road and told her he came from the big house across the railroad tracks. THAT... got my attention! That “big house” was the one owned by our church and where the new minister lived. I was immediately mad at myself because, if I’d gone to the meeting the members of the Vestry had called for on the night Kaye got hurt it wouldn’t have happened. They had wanted to confront the minister about all the people who were now living in the house. With Kaye’s injury and all the “to-do” that followed, I’d never followed up on what had taken place when they met with the minister. But, more important, at that moment, was that a boy who was living there had caused Kaye to get hurt. I was ready to go and confront the minister and whomever else he had there right away.

However, Elle had pulled the station wagon into the garage and my car was blocked with the kids now riding their bikes. Elle told me that it could wait and that there was more “interesting news” that I would surely like to hear. She had me follow her into the kitchen and, with a sly smile, asked if I wanted to hear about her day. The smile got to me so I said “OK”, not sure where it was all going and I followed her into the kitchen.

At the end of a school year not much “learning” takes place especially with 1st and 2nd graders. Basically, all the teachers do is entertain the kids. On that day the 1st graders went on a field trip to a farm with all the traditional animals. There was a problem with the transportation and as a result, Elle had an “accident”. It was a working farm and there were no restrooms. As she was telling me about this I could see her smiling and I knew it was because she knew what was happening in my lower regions. What I found somewhat interesting was that she told me she learned, first hand, that “dribble panties” were for dribbling and NOT for a full out wetting. The added material in the crotch held quite a lot and it continued to run, in rivulets, down her legs for an extended period of time. I had to ask if anybody saw her or knew about it. She laughed and said the mothers who were chaperoning were too busy doing a pee dance to pay any attention. That was when I remembered seeing the skirt with the still damp spot on it in our bedroom so asked what happened when the bus finally arrived. She laughed again saying that she told the mothers that she’d go to the back of the bus to monitor the kids from there and got on first. That allowed her to pull the hem of her skirt and her slip out from under her bottom without being seen. Hearing that made me be very puzzled as I knew I’d both felt and seen the spot on her skirt earlier. I didn’t want to ask because she, quite uncharacteristically, was freely telling me about her experience without me pleading for more information or having to offer up  some sort of “bribe”. She went on to tell me more of the day. She said that she’d managed to stay standing for what was left of the afternoon at school which only puzzled me more about the spot... but I kept my mouth shut. Then she went on to telling me about buying the plant for Jeannette.

For both of us, the trip to work took us past a large commercial nursery. They had two sales for the public each year with one in the Spring and the other in the Fall. Elle told me she ‘d wanted to get something as a “thank you” for Jeannette but didn’t know her well enough to have any idea of her “likes”. Seeing the “SALE” sign on the way in that morning gave her the answer. Anxious to get to the nursery she didn’t use the rest room before leaving school. As she was telling me this that same smile was still there. Since the nursery wasn’t set up for retail business they would take the customers out into their gardens and Elle said she was amazed by all the plants she saw... and the number of people who were there. She said she picked out an azalea that she felt was of a reasonable price and started looking for someone to pay. She actually laughed at this point saying that there were others who also wanted to pay but couldn’t identify anybody that worked there. She said she started walking up and down the rows of plants looking when she got her “warning”... a small dribble. She said she looked around and the only buildings she saw were like tool sheds. Knowing that she didn’t have much time she said she went over by one that seemed like it might keep the other patrons from seeing her and spread her legs. By then I was hard as a rock and, fortunately, I was standing so it didn’t hurt too much. It was my turn to laugh and she laughed with me. She went on to say that when she finally got a young man to take her money the pee was still trickling down her legs. She laughed again saying she was trying to keep from laughing while she was paying him as the pee was tickling her as she did.

At this point I had to admit to her that I’d seen her skirt (and slip) and they had both exhibited evidence of pee. I wouldn’t call it a smile or a frown but her face did wrinkle up when I mentioned it. As she was putting the plant in the station wagon her school principal drove in right next to her, got out and started a conversation. She said there was no way for her to get in the drivers seat and to pull up the hem of her skirt with him standing there. It was about that time that she finished fixing everything for supper. As I called the girls in from playing I decided that, after supper, I’d pull out the box with the swing. After a day like she’d just experienced I felt she’d appreciate a nice surprise.

After we’d eaten and without saying why, I gathered them all out in the driveway. I opened the garage door and proceeded to pull out the box that contained the swing. There was nothing on it to identify the contents so they all just stood there staring at it. I’d brought the page from the Sears catalog out with me so that when I ripped open the side of the box I handed Elle the page. The “shriek” that came from her could’ve been heard down at the fire house. She showed the girls the picture and they started dancing around the box wanting to know when they could use it. That turned out to be a good question because, as I emptied the box there was one thing missing... the instructions on how to assemble it.

To be continued...