Can't Wait to Get to Heaven

A Visitor for Elner

12:48 PM

Over the past months, Mrs. McWilliams, La Shawnda’s mother, and Elner had written each other several times, and today La Shawnda had driven her mother all the way to Elmwood Springs for a visit. When they arrived at Elner’s house, she was waiting on the front porch to greet them.

“Hey, Mrs. McWilliams, you made it,” she said to the small black lady, who scurried up the sidewalk toward her, grinning from ear to ear and carrying a large black-and-white striped hat box with a caramel cake inside.

“I did,” she said, “and I made us a cake!”

They had a nice long visit and between the three of them ate most of the cake that the old lady had made, and it was almost as good as Dorothy’s.

Later, as they were sitting out on the porch, Mrs. McWilliams said to Elner, “I’m so glad we got to come out today. I’m going to be moving back home tomorrow, back to Arkansas, but I wanted to meet the cake lady before I went.”

“Well, I’m so glad you did too. Us old country women have to stick together. These youngsters don’t know what it’s like to wake up and hear the birds, do they?”

“No, they don’t…. All the young want is to listen to all that nasty hippity hop music and run their cars up and down the road day and night.” She looked over at her daughter and said, “I’ll miss my baby here, but I’ll be so glad to be home.”

La Shawnda said, “I’ll come and visit you, Momma.”

“I hope you do.”

Mrs. McWilliams looked out in the side yard and remarked, “That’s a mighty fine fig tree you got out there, Mrs. Shimfissle.”

Elner looked at it and smiled. “It is, isn’t it?”

As the two visitors got up to leave, Mrs. McWilliams said, “I hope I get to see you again someday.”

“Oh, you will,” said Elner.