26 August 2012
It was a long hot summer that year. The heat hung heavy in the air, relentless. We spent most days swimming at the river. We spent so much time there, I'm amazed we didn't grow gills! Those were tough days for me, what with my buds beginning to form and all. I took a lot of guff from the boys for that. They were nasty little buggers! But, it was the only swimming hole around for miles and I just might have died from heat stroke had it not been for those dips in that river. Right around five, Momma would send Milly round to collect us for dinner and my goodness, that always created a ruckus! Milly was about seventeen and had only been with us for a few months. There were whispers that her Daddy was a white man and I believe it because she was the lightest darkie I'd ever seen. And Millie was real pretty too! She already had her buds and sometimes I wanted to ask her about girlie things but my Momma always said darkies are different, not like us, so I figured it wouldn'ta done me any good. I bet Millie hated havin to come down to the river. Those boys terrorized her. There really is no other word for it, I know that now, and I guess cause she was pretty, they paid extra attention to her. At the time though, I really didn't understand the humiliation poor Millie must have felt at the hands of those boys. Not until the day that stranger happened by. That was the day Billy got his limp. Just like any other day, at five o'clock Millie appeared on the banks with extra towels in case ours got soaked through. Stuart was the first one over and started in on her. Wasn't anything special, just the usual stuff. Flicking her hair, and trying to peek down her blouse. Sure enough, by the time all three of them were over there, they had her down on her knees, teasin' her 'bout how they were gonna pull their willies out. Millie used to cry but she figured out quick that just made it worse. Billy was dancin round in front of Millie singin "kiss my willie, kiss my willie!" and wigglin' his hips all around. He looked like some crazy white monkey with his arms waving around over his head! I learned that day just what Millie was made of. Her face barely changed as that stranger came up behind us and walloped Billy in the leg with that tree branch. Billy went down like a sack of potatoes, screamin and cryin on the ground. Stuart and Johnny hightailed it towards the road. But that stranger wasn't done. He threw the branch and Stuart went down. He grabbed Stuart by his shirt and hauled him over in front of Millie. He forced him down on his knees to apologize and told him exactly what to say too. The whole time Stuart was blubbering away in front of her, Millie stood like a statue, her chin lifted high, looking over her left shoulder directly into my eyes. Her and I lived an eternity together in that moment. Our eyes were locked, and the world melted away. As we stood there, with Stuart sniveling like a baby on the ground in front of her, our hearts went out to each other. I saw into Millie's soul that day, and I'd like to think she saw into mine too. That was the day Millie became my Sister.
The next five years were hard for Millie. Those boys had it out for her. We both knew she couldn't stay. That was why I worked any odd job I could. You see, Millie had a cousin in New York who just opened up a tailor shop and he was willing to give Millie work. The day we went to the train station together to get Millie's ticket was the happiest and saddest day of my life. I was happy that she wouldn't have to take anymore trouble from those boys but ripped up inside because it felt like I was losing a big chunk of myself. I was seventeen when Millie left. The same age as she was that day at the river. We must have been quite a sight! A skinny white teenager and an elegant young colored woman blubbering away hangin on to each other for dear life! And when Millie walked onto the train that day, I knew I would never love anyone as much as I loved her. And I never did. Well, not in the same way anyway. No one ever touched my soul the way my Sister Millie did. Down deep, we were just the same.
My Sister Millie • Opuss № I