The light is fading fast on this winter day and a chill is chasing away the Sun’s heat. Both Lonnie and Archie are dressed in bib overalls and long-sleeved men’s work shirts. They walk side by side toward the Johnson family home. Archie shivers from the cold and looks up at the face of his benefactor. He sees a kind face but he also sees deep creases all over that sun-burned face--the guy looks like he’s a hundred years old. And he’s got something really bad wrong with his left leg; he limps low to the ground when he puts his foot down, then he swings it in a wide circle when he takes the next step. He smiles a lot just like Andy.
“So you know old Andy, huh? nHow’d ya meet old Andy?"
“He gave me a pop bottle so I could go to the picture show."
“That’s Andy for ya. You’ll never find a better friend than Andy. Come on. We better step it up 'afore it gets dark."
Archie has to run to keep up with the fast moving Lonnie. This is the guy that his dad said was dead in the ass and ain’t worked a day in his life? Cab Cleebo said, “That Lonnie Johnson was born no good and he’s gonna die no good. If it weren’t for his wife, Molly, that whole family would be in the poor house. And he went and murdered that rich man’s son. I don’t know how he got outta that one. He should’a fried in the chair a long time ago."
Grandma Johnson, tiny, toothless, wrinkled, and dressed in a long flowered dress and sun bonnet, pours hot water from the tea kettle into a cup. “Ya want some tea, Archie?"
Archie, sitting on the couch, leans forward and looks around the corner into the kitchen. “No, Ma’am."
Grandma sits beside Archie and stirs tea leaves into her cup. “That’s what I like about you, Archie.
You’re the politest boy I ever met. And you know how ta have fun too. You can laugh with the best of 'em.
Lonnie and Andy do a lot of joking and laughing but they don’t mean it; they can turn mean in a second. And Paulie, his face would break into a thousand pieces if he ever cracked a smile. You don’t know it but you and me are just alike."
“We’re alike?"
“Yeah. Look at us. We both got freckles and our ears stick out to the sides more than anybody in history. You know what I was told when I was a little girl?"
“What?"
“ They said there was this old mule who had too much bran to eat and when he farted it hit me in the face and caused all these freckles."
“Ha! Ha! They told me the same thing, Grandma."
“See? I told ya. You got a Ma and Pa but they’re never home. I never had a Pa and my ma died when I was a baby so I don’t remember her. I grew up in a home for orphan girls. Do you wanna hear about how I grew up and got married and all?"
Archie nods his head as he smiles directly at Grandma; he loves her so much. And he’s the only one in the whole-wide world who can understand her because she talks so bad with her teeth gone and all. Ever since Lonnie brought him home for dinner he has been coming here after school to stay with Grandma.
Lonnie and Paulie don’t come home till dark. Andy and Molly are staying on a farm working. He slides across the couch and wraps his arms around her, laying his head on her breast. She pulls him close and hugs him tight.
“It was back in Topeka Kansas, they say my mother was walking down the road and carrying me. It was wintertime and she laid down on that road and froze to death. Some farmer come along picked me up and took me home. But he was too old to have a young’un around the house so he took me to the Emma Broward Home for Girls. They named me Emma Broward because no one knew my name or where I come from."
Grandma pauses and takes a loud slurp of tea. Archie laughs to himself: Cab Cleebo would hit the ceiling if he heard somebody slurp like that.
“The women that run that home were mean, very strict, and never had nothing nice to say about anybody. And the food was awful. Even us that knowed nothing else never liked it. The only thing I liked was oatmeal and milk with sugar sprinkled on. The desert was nasty, tasted like something rotten. When a new girl showed up we would give her our desert. She’d be happy 'till she found out what it tasted like. Then she’d be in trouble 'cause you couldn’t leave the table till you finished all your food. It seems like they would figger out what was going on and put a stop to it, but they never did."
“Grandma, you ain’t ugly." Archie raises up and looks at her with tears in his eyes.
Grandma pushes his head back down. “I am too. But that didn’t matter when one day one of the richest men in Topeka come by with his wife. They weren’t looking to adopt nobody but they wanted a girl to keep house. Miss Frawley, the head mistress, told them I wasn’t much to look at but I was a hard worker and their most docile charge. Docile? I didn’t know what that meant but I was ready for the job."
“His name was Hugh Spaulding and his wife was Mrs. Spaulding; I never learned her first name. He was a big fat man who cared only about himself. He never talked to me or looked at me; any thing he had to say was told to his wife and she told me what he wanted. My job was to serve him his meals in bed, mostly breakfast but sometimes dinner too. When he and the Missus ate in the dinning room I served there too except when they had guests then I was supposed to stay outta sight. I had to change his sheets every day and make his bed. I emptied the chamber pot and laid out his clothes on the bed for him. When he come back from hunting I had to pull his boots off and put his slippers down for him; my work was easy."
“They gave me the closet under the stairwell for my bedroom and I ate in the kitchen after everybody was finished. Big Ned Washington, the black cook, always heated up the leftovers for me and that was the best eatin' I ever had. Never got fat though: I been skinny all my life."
“Most times I got done early so I was free to wander out back. There was stables, a barn, and horse pasture. There was pigs, chickens, horses, and cows. There was one mean billy goat with big horns you didn’t dare turn your back on. Further on there was a big apple orchard. Sometimes I’d talk with the coach driver or hired hands but mostly I kept to myself. One time I got brave and walked all the way to the river. It was so nice I took my clothes off and sit down in that cold water."
“You got bare-butt naked with no clothes on? Grandma!"
“Hush child 'afore you get me a blushing. There weren’t nobody around and besides I didn’t have nothing for somebody to see. I always wished I learned how to swim though."
“Things was so good that I should’a been happy but I wasn’t; I wanted to have somebody to talk to. I wanted to see somebody my own age. I was gitting paid two dollars a week but I never saw any of it. The Missus said that she was saving it for me. Don’t get me wrong I didn’t wanna go crazy I jest wanted somebody to notice me."
“Hee! Hee! You just wanted to meet some boy and swap spits with him."
“You little rascal you got me blushing for sure now. You’re gonna git yourself in hot water with your teasing. You learned all that teasing from Cab Cleebo. He’s the biggest and meanest tease in the county. It’d be best if you forgot about teasing and just say nice things about folks."
“I’m sorry."
“Jest remember don’t go laughing at folks, don’t make fun of 'em and you'll get a whole lot further in life. Let’s see where was I…oh yeah…One day Ned told me there was a circus in town. He said there’d be lots of folks there, young and old. I went to the Missus and said I wanted to go. She said she would ask Mr. Spaulding at dinner. When she asked him he didn’t know who Emma was even though I was standing right there. When she kept after him he said go on and let her go but if we all go to the poor house she can’t say he didn’t tell her so."
“The Missus gave me three dollars and told me to be home before dark 'else she couldn’t be responsible for me. Bradford, the coach driver, took me down to the trolley stop. I had tokens so I didn’t spend any money for fare. I been downtown before but never by myself. Ever' time I turned around folks was bumping into me; I couldn’t even stop and look around. I went in a ice cream parlor and spent five cents for a bowl of chocolate ice cream; I never had chocolate before always vanilla or peach. I asked the woman dressed in fancy clothes sitting at the table next to me where the circus was and she told me she was going by there and would give me a lift."
“That woman had the grandest carriage I ever saw; it put the Spaulding’s coach to shame. It was mahogany brown and sparkled in the sun. Her driver looked like a king, dressed in his fancy uniform. The horses was Clydesdales and strutted with their noses in the air. She was the only nice rich lady I ever met. She told me not to talk to strangers when she let me off at the circus."
“Oh! I gotta stop now and fix dinner. I’ll tell ya more tomorrow. Grandma releases Archie, gets up, and walks into the kitchen.
Grandma Johnson is standing on her front porch watching Archie run toward her. When he stops she says, “You’re late and you’re coming from the wrong way."
Archie hangs his head and looks at the ground. “I know, Grandma."
“It’s Paulie and all those other boys. They been chasing you. Ain’t they?"
Archie raises his head and looks Grandma in the eye.
“Yeah but they ain’t gonna catch me. I got everything figgered out." He turns and runs out on the sidewalk, pointing his finger north in the direction of Washington School. “When school gits out they all guard the front. I go out the back door and climb the back fence. I walk out past all the streets and houses to the canal. I walk on the canal 'till it goes towards town then I climb through the fence and walk through cow pastures and stuff like that. Nobody sees me 'till I have to cross Paradise Road but once I cross that everything's OK. I can come straight here 'cause nobody figgers that I come from back that way." While he's talking he sweeps his arm in a wide arc with his finger pointing from north to west to south. “They always guard my house 'stead of yours so I wait -'till supper time to go home."
Grandma shakes her head. “ This ain’t right. And to think my own grandson’s involved in this dirty business. I’m gonna tell Lonnie. He’ll know what to do. This ain’t gonna go on much longer. If Lonnie don’t do sumthin' I’ll take my skillet to him." She puts her arm around Archie. “Come on. If I put lots of sugar in the tea will you have some with me?"
Archie and Grandma sit on the couch cradling mugs of hot tea in their hands. Grandma takes a loud slurp and Archie giggles. “Whatcha’ laughing about?"
“Sorry, Grandma, I can’t help it."
“You little dickins you’re making fun of poor ol’ granny." She sets her cup on the floor. “Come here to me so’s I can squeeze the daylights outta ya."
Archie sets his cup on the floor and scoots into Grandma’s arms, wrapping his arms around her, and burying his face in her chest. “Archie, I don’t know how I lived my life without’cha. You make me feel so good when we’re hugging each other. That Ma and Pa of yours don’t know what a treasure you are."
“I love you, Grandma."
“I don’t talk so good with my teeth gone. Seems like only you, Lonnie, and Andy understand me anymore. Paulie and Molly either can’t or won’t understand me. Where was we on the story telling?"
“ That nice rich lady just took you to the circus."
“Oh yes... I had waited my whole life to go to the circus and I was so excited. I wanted to see the bearded lady, the fat lady, the pretzel man, the tiny people, the sword swallower, the fire-eater, the trapeze artists, the clowns, the tigers, and the elephants. I wanted to see everything. I wanted to do everything but I couldn’t. I just couldn’t go up to the ticket window and buy a ticket with everybody watching. I was so scared all I could do was walk and get bumped around by all the folks rushing here and there. Finally, I bought some pink cotton candy and I didn’t like it."
“You don’t like cotton candy? I seen it in the picture show and it looks good."
“Too sweet for me. Reminded me of the desert we got in the girl's home: lots of sugar to cover up the nasty stuff underneath. Anyways I kept walking, just letting the crowd push me along and I ended up in the section where you could play games for prizes. You know, throw baseballs at wooden milk bottle-like things and knock 'em over. Stuff like that."
“I seen that in the picture show. I seen the circus there too."
“You kids nowadays are too smart 'cause ya seen it all in the picture show. Without the movies you wouldn’t know nothing."
“What’d you play, Grandma?"
“I didn’t play nothing, at least for awhile. I just watched and walked around to see all the games. There was this one game that was crowded and lots of hootin’ and hollarin’ going on. I walked over there and the purtiest man I ever saw was in the stall running the game."
Archie picks his head up and looks Grandma in the eye with a big smile on his face. “I knowed it."
Grandma pushes his head back down. “Hush. It ain’t what ya think. This man was not only handsome but he had a way about him that had everybody wantin' to listen to him. And he talked. Oh how he talked. He talked a mile a minute, calling out to folks that was hanging back, telling them to come over and throw a ring around some purty little doll. He even give away free throws just to get 'em started."
Grandma looks at the ceiling with tears in her eyes and a far away look on her face.
Then he said sumthin' I will never forget. He said, "if any of you young bucks are feeling frisky come out back with me after I finish here. I’ll give any man that can whip me in the boxing ring twenty dollars. Hell, you don't have to whip me. I’ll give twenty dollars to the man that can last three rounds with me."
Grandma uses a hanky to wipe her eyes and blow her nose. “I looked around and none of the fellers looked like they wanted to go for the money. There was two big men standing next to me. One of 'em told the other, Don’t tangle with him; he’s a pro. I didn’t know what that meant but I figgered it was sumthin' mighty powerful because they was bigger than him."
“Then that circus man turned and looked right at me. He pointed his finger and said, That pretty little lady right there. Come on up here and try your hand at winning a prize. Don’t be shy. I’ll let you play for free until you get the hang of it."
“Nobody called me pretty before. I tried to get away but the crowd pushed me right up front. I was shaking so bad that I couldn’t come close to those dolls. He took hold of me and I quit shaking. I throwed a few and I was comin' close so he started charging me. I used all my money up and didn’t win nothing. He said, "I can’t let this pretty little lady go away empty handed. Choose a doll, any doll on the shelf. I picked the littlest one he had and he said, No, only my best doll is good enough for you. So he gave me the biggest doll he had."
It was gittin’ late and I had to be home before dark so I walked over to the trolley stop and sit on the bench. I still had my tokens so I figgered to git home on time even if I had to walk from the end of the line. Then his voice come from behind me.
“Pretty little lady, fancy meeting you here."
“I knowed he followed me but I didn’t care; I jest wanted to hear him talk and he looked so good. He had a new suit on with a tie and shiny black shoes. His Stetson was sparklin' white, without a smudge on it. With his big shoulders he was perfect. I jest didn’t know what to say. But that didn’t matter 'tall 'cause he did all the talking. He told me his name was Tom Johnson and he been with the circus all his life. His folks died before he was old enough to remember them. He talked on and on and I didn’t want him to stop. Purty soon it was dark and the last trolley had already left so he took me over to the circus and hitched up a buggy."
"I told him I was in trouble for coming home after dark and he said he would talk to the Spauldings for me. But when we got there the porch lamp was lit and the door was locked. My belongings was sitting on the steps with a note pinned to 'em. Mrs. Spaulding said I had disgraced everybody by staying out so late and if she ever saw me again she would call the police."
“Hey! Anybody to home? And where’s my supper?" Lonnie sticks his head around the corner and grins at Grandma and Archie.
Grandma, followed by Archie, leaps to her feet and follows Lonnie into the kitchen. “Lonnie, you gotta do sumthin'. Paulie and all those other boys are chasing Archie home every day."
“Ha! Ha! I thought you had sumthin' hard for me to do." Lonnie roars with laughter as he looks down at Archie. “I’ll just get the ol’ boxing gloves out, line those boys up, and Archie can fight each and every one of 'em till they don’t wanna fight no more."
Lonnie stands in the tiny kitchen facing Grandma and Archie. His wide grin weakens under the shocked stare of both. “Hey! You two love birds! Don’t look so serious. I was only funnin'."
Grandma's tone is harsh. "This ain’t nothing to poke fun at. Those boys are gonna hurt Archie bad if they catch him. And Archie's too little ta fight those big boys. Those boys are always fightin' and Archie never has had a fight in his life. He's just too nice a kid to have all those no-goods chasing him."
Lonnie’s habitual smile disappears. “Is that right, Archie? You never had a fight?"
“I had lots of fights back in Denver."
Lonnie turns back to Grandma. “See there? He knows how ta fight."
“Hogwash! He was just a baby when he lived back there. He ain’t never fought nobody. Ya gotta do sumptin’."
Lonnie smacks his fist into his open hand. “Well he’s gonna have ta learn how ta fight. Those monkeys are like a pack of dogs. They’ll chase ya till ya stop runnin’ and fight back. You’re gonna have ta teach him, Grandma."
“Me? I’m too old for that kind of shenanigans."
“Ha! Ha! You taught me and Tommy and Andy and ya woulda’ taught Paulie if he wern’t too ornery ta listen."
Archie is standing in the alley behind the Johnson’s house. He is wearing faded brown leather boxing gloves. The surface of the gloves is hard, cracked, and worn. The gray wool-like stuffing is pushing through some of the cracks. Grandma says, “Keep your gloves up around your face. Don’t drop 'em for an instant. Ya gotta learn ta get used to having those on. They’re gonna get hot and heavy but ya gotta not let that stop ya. Keep your hands up. For now, you ain’t gonna do no punching. If you hit me I’ll have your hide. Jest sidestep to one side or the other when I come atcha. Don’t let me git close enough ta hit ya."
Grandma steps towards her pupil and Archie throws his hands in the air and leaps backwards. “No! No! That ain’t the way ta do it. I see we’re gonna have ta start at square one."
Two days later Archie and Grandma are sitting on the back steps while Archie, wearing boxing gloves, cools off. Grandma says, “Remember when ya met Andy? Well ya didn’t know it but he was testing ya. He tests everybody all the time. He said you showed spunk when he said sumptin' ya didn’t like about your mama. And when he shot a punch atcha, ya pulled your head outta the way like a real fighter. The capper was when he run with ya. He said ya could run fast and that showed that ya was stronger than most your size. He said for a little piss pot you had all the makin’s of a fighter and I never knowed Andy to be wrong about sumpthin’ like that. So don’t worry about nothing. Just do what I tell ya. By the end of next week you’ll know how to move around and we can start teaching ya how ta punch and ever’ thing else."
Archie listens but his mind is in turmoil: what does dancing around in a circle have to do with fighting? He has begun to understand that holding his gloves up will help but moving around without punching just ain’t right. He studies Grandma and decides he’ll do it to please her.