Leta had been waiting for ten minutes, fifteen minutes, actually, if one counted the extra five minutes she gave herself just in case.
“Just in case,” she said aloud and chortled a little. This was something her daughter always said. “I’m making an extra pie, just in case.” “We’ll get a 15 pound ham, Mom, just in case.” “I gave him an extra couple of dollars, just in case.”She understood the reasoning. After all, they had both lived through the Great Depression when “just in case” was beyond the capability of so many, and even themselves sometimes. However, “just in case” was also how they helped each other out; when they could, they had extra or they were early to provide support or they stuck around, as they said, “just in case.”
Her granddaughter Linda, only 21, was picking her up for a family Easter dinner—her daughter Vivian’s family, to be more specific. Already that day, Leta had attended early Mass at the Home, taken her breakfast with the other residents, then done herself up for the holiday gathering. “Leta’s going out,” the hairdresser noted to a colleague when she went to the salon on the previous afternoon. “Let’s make sure she catches the eye of every man she meets.”
Leta laughed. The only men she would be seeing were her son-in-law, two grandsons and two great-grandsons, but still, she liked to look nice. While many of their family gatherings were held at Vivian and Ed’s, with Vivian taking on the primary cooking chores, this time her grandson Don and granddaughter-in-law Patricia were hosting, with her granddaughter-in-law cooking the annual feast. She loved a good country ham and wondered how large it would be. A big one, she was sure. Pat was also a “just in case” sort of person.
She was dressed in a nice blue dress with some crepe to enhance the sleeves, wore her best costume jewelry. By this stage in life and owing to the general lack of security in the senior residence where she lived, she had already given away her fine jewelry and other valuables. Still her costume jewelry looked nearly authentic. While she always wore lipstick, for this occasion, she even put on a little rouge and, of course, some perfume.
The sun was reaching into the lobby of the residence through the large doorway, and at any moment, Herbert would come trolling up on his walker, as he did every day after lunch, to enjoy the warmth of the sun in the lobby. Herbert was a character: he would make several lecherous comments, raise his overgrown eyebrows and smack his lips lasciviously, sit down on one of the soft chairs and then promptly fall asleep. He was basically harmless, but inappropriate. Once he had snuck up behind her and tapped her on her behind. She turned instinctively and slapped him, which knocked him off balance. It took three orderlies to help pick him up and he had a bruise on his check for a month. Fortunately, most of the elderly folks in the center were lacking in short-term memory and forgot the incident. Even Herbert. Still, she avoided him after that. A second incident might not turn out as well for either of them. She wanted to be gone before he occupied the lobby.
Linda was not usually late, and Leta was trying not to get anxious. She was also getting hungry. The rest of the residents had already eaten, and the smell of ham, mashed potatoes and corn wafted in the air, setting her stomach to growl.
She thought she heard a muffled bang from outside, but then probably misunderstood. After all, the front doors and the building were basically soundproof. She pushed the thought out of her mind and wondered what kind of pie they would be having. She would really enjoy a piece of Patricia’s cherry pie.
Just then she heard the sound of the doors and turned her head. There was her granddaughter Linda, her bright smile and glistening eyes, highlighting her smooth clear skin.
“Happy Easter, Grandma!” she said cheerfully. “I see you’re all ready.”
The younger woman offered the older her arm, which was taken. While Leta could sit down and get up on her own, it wasn’t always easy. Her body creaked a bit and it was more work than she liked to do. A helpful arm always helped ease the stress of the transition.
After she stood, she made a quick check around.
“What is it?” Linda asked.
“My pocketbook,” Leta answered.
“On your arm, Grandma.”
Leta looked. “Yes, of course,” she said. “I just wanted to make sure nothing fell out.”
Linda looked around for her. “N’kay, looks like you have everything.”
As they headed out the door, Linda began to compliment her. “You’re looking very pretty today, New Hairdo?”
“Yesterday,” Leta answered. “New dress, too. Your mother brought it for me, and it fit perfectly. We both were afraid she’d have to take it in, but it fit perfectly.”
“And you’re even wearing make up,” Linda added. “Then you won’t be underdressed.”
To Be Continued.
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