Reunion
By FlatDaddy
OPEN: It is sometime in the early mid 1950’s in Waco, Texas. A little boy comes through the door of a garage to the dusty interior. There is something under his shirt. He goes to center stage where he stops, pulls a large volume of the “Encyclopedia Britannica” from beneath his shirt (volume “S”), squats on the floor, and opens the book. He begins to practice ASL, known then as “deaf mute sign language.”
BOY (with accompanying hand signs): A, B, C, D … (he notices something crawling across the floor). Hey, doodlebug, what are you doing in my granddaddy’s garage? You could get squashed in here! (he picks it up and holds it gently in his palm) You’re lucky Papa Jim doesn’t park his car in here anymore. There’s too much stuff! I don’t even know what a lot of it is. I think it’s mostly stuff from when he was in the Army. Papa Jim fought the Germans! (makes machine gun sounds) He gots lots of medals. I seen ‘em. Mama Mae used to keep ‘em in a big glass case in the living room, but Papa Jim didn’t like ‘em there ‘cause he sits there all the time watching TV and I think they make him sad. Why would they make him sad, doodlebug? He was a hero! Mama Mae keeps ‘em in her sewing room now and I go in there to look at ‘em sometimes.
(There is a loud noise from somewhere outside)(startled) What was that? (picks up book, runs to corner) I’m not supposed to be in here, doodlebug. I’m supposed to be playing. “What are you doing in the house?” Mama said. “It’s such a beautiful summer day! Why don’t you go out back and watch the hummingbirds on the back fence or something? You shouldn’t be cooped up in here! What are you reading, anyway? You’re always reading!” I don’ know why that makes her mad, doodlebug. I like to read. Sometimes the stuff in books is a lot better than anything else.
Mama Mae would skin me alive if she knew I had her ‘cyclopedia out here in this dusty ol’ garage. Hey, you wanta help me, doodlebug? Here, let me show you what I’m doing. (squats on the concrete floor, opens book) See, this is called “sign language.” It’s how deaf people talk to each other. They have to use their hands to talk ‘cause they can’t hear sounds, not even bombs or police sirens or anything! Boy, that must be weird. I don’t think I’d like it if I couldn’t hear anything, doodlebug. I couldn’t hear Mama singing real low to herself in the morning when she’s getting dressed, or Papa Jim cussin his cowboy boots when he’s trying to get ‘em on ‘cause his feet got too big when he got old. (giggles) He says some words I never heard before — and I’m not supposed to say ‘em or Mama will wash my mouth out with soap! She did that once and it was nasty!
See this? (He makes an ASL “A”) This is how you make an “A” and this is (he looks in the book) “B” and “C.” It’s got the whole alphabet in here! I’m learning how to do it ‘cause my Daddy’s coming to see me. But it’s real hard. He’s coming this afternoon and I don’t think I can learn very much more by then. But I’ve been studyin’ and studyin’ for two days now, ever since Mama told me he was coming.
I guess I’m a little scared, doodlebug. I haven’t seen him for a long time. I ‘member the last time. That was before Mama got married to George and we moved to Indiana. I didn’t like it there, doodlebug. It was too cold. But George lost his job so we came back to Waco. I think it was because he drinks so much beer. He and Mama drink an awful lot of beer and once he did something and the cops took him to jail. I wasn’t supposed to know, but I heard him and Mama fighting about it when he came home. Then all of a sudden we were throwing stuff in the car and we drove and drove and drove and then we were back in Waco. Mama says that George will have another job soon and we will find our own house. We live here now with my grandparents. Mama Mae doesn’t say so, but I think she’ll be pretty glad when we we do. I heard her tell Papa Jim that George just sits around and farts all day. (giggles) I never heard Mama Mae say “fart” before. She was real mad!
I was little when I last saw my Daddy. That was after him and Mama got divorced. We were living … somewhere close to Brook Elementary. I used to go to school there. I was in first grade. I don’t ‘member exactly, but we lived upstairs over a garage. It wasn’t a nice garage like this one, doodlebug. It was big, but it was old, and in the bathroom you could see through the floor to the garage below where the owner worked on cars and trucks all day. It didn’t smell very good in that bathroom, doodlebug. I was playing outside with my friend Arnie, and Daddy drove up and didn’t even look at me an’ he ran up the stairs real fast an’ a little while later he ran back down the stairs and he still didn’t look at me an’ he jumped in his car an’ took off real fast an’ there was gravel flying ever’where! I went up the stairs an’ Mama was lying on the floor an’ her leg looked funny and she told me to get a dime from her purse an go down to the 7-11 and call the cops. (pause, then he continues quietly) And I went down there an’ I called but when they answered, when they said, “police,” all I could do was giggle. I couldn’t stop giggling, doodlebug, and pretty soon I was laughing real loud, an’ I was crying, too, an’ I couldn’t stop, an’ then I got dizzy an’ fell over.
When I woke up, Arnie said he had called the cops for me and there was an ambulance coming, too. He even used his own dime. Arnie was a good friend. An’ then there was flashing lights and sirens everywhere an … (he stops for a moment and wipes tears from his face, then continues slowly and quietly) that’s all I can remember. I know there was something else — but I can’t remember. I remember my stomach hurt, real bad. It hurt real bad!
I’m scared, doodlebug. But it’s not right to be scared, is it? I mean, he’s my Daddy! You’re supposed to love your Daddy! I can’t tell Mama or even Momma Mae I don’t want to see him! But what if he does something, doodlebug? What if he does something real bad? I heard Mama talking to George and she said Daddy might take me somewhere and never come back but she couldn’t stop him ‘cause the law said he had a right!
That’s why I’m studying sign language, doodlebug. I figure if something happens, and if he takes me somewhere and I know sign language, then I can send a signal to someone and I’ll be rescued! I haven’t learned much, but look at this (he begins to sign). See, this is an “S” and this is an “O”. And if I go like this: “S.O.S.” that means “help.” See? I can send an “SOS” and somebody will see and they’ll know what it means and they’ll call the cops, just like Arni! And everything will be okay, doodlebug, so I shouldn’t be so sc…scared, should I? Everything will be okay!
Well (big sigh), I guess I better go now, doodlebug (he puts the small creature on the floor). I have to take a bath. Mama said she wants me to be real clean for my Daddy. I have to wear my new clothes, too — and Mama gave me a dime, too. She just looked at me real serious and didn’t say anything. I just nodded my head at her. I knew what it was for (sighs again, and hugs the book to his chest). You be careful too, doodlebug. Don’t let nobody squash you.
BLACKOUT
