Recap: On Hope’s first day at the dime store, three scary men come in, demanding Cokes and cigarettes. They see a little African American boy wearing a yarmulke and they trip him and tell Hope not to let “this kind of people” into the store. They leave without paying. She overhears them say they’re tracking a white Cadillac. Her scalp tingles with fear. They must be from the KKK.
Thankfully, they didn’t recognize me. I thought of my parents. No wonder that Father had to get away from them. They were horrible, horrible people.
“You okay?” Patricia asked. “You look pale.”
I nodded slowly.
“You want to go back home now, honey? I don’t mind closing up.”
“Thank you.” I was grateful to leave but I was nervous about walking home alone. “Do you think they’ve gone?” I asked.
“I saw them speed away. They’re not near here, I don’t think.”
I stepped outside and glanced in both directions before starting back to my new home.
…
Diana opened the door. She glanced at her watch. “You left early?”
I didn’t answer her and just pushed past. I wasn’t in the mood to take her mean bossing right now.
“My mother won’t be happy you left early.”
I headed downstairs.
Mrs. Bowers called from the kitchen. “Hope, is that you?”
I froze.
“I need you to take Bonnie to the park. She’s needing something to do, and I have to get supper cooked. The park is two blocks straight and then you make a left. You’ll see the playground.”
I was still wary about walking around but I helped Bonnie into her sneakers. “Do you want to walk?” I asked her.
She nodded. I held her hand and we started walking towards the park. Bonnie pointed at birds and squirrels as we walked. “That bird is the mother bird and that one is the sister. They are looking for their little sister bird.” She chatted away.
We passed birch trees and sycamores. I told Bonnie the names of the trees. She tried to repeat them.
The park was acres of forest with a playground in the front. There were lots of children playing on the swings and jungle gym. Bonnie bee-lined to the small slide. She kept climbing up and then sliding down on her stomach.
Another little girl who was wearing a skirt and a sweater was following Bonnie. The two started chasing each other up and down the slide. They slid down together and laughed and laughed.
A girl around my age came over to me. “Hi, I guess D’vori likes your sister.”
“She’s not my sister,” I said. “She’s my cousin.”
“I’ve never seen you here before. What’s your name?” the girl asked.
“Yeh, I’m just visiting.” I told her my name.
“I’m Rivka Jacobson.”
I noticed that Rivka was wearing a long skirt and a long-sleeved, button-down blouse. I wondered why she dressed like that on such a warm day.
“We live on Kingly Street.” She showed me where her house was. It was a few blocks from the park.
“We come here almost every day,” she said. “Where are you from?” she asked. “You have a Southern accent.”
“I’m from the South.”
“I love how you talk,” she said.
“I think you have an accent,” I laughed.
“What do you think of Pennsylvania?” she asked.
“It’s okay.”
“Tell me about where you grew up. I’ve never been to the South.”
It was strange how comfortable I felt talking to this girl I’d never met before. Somehow, I felt sure we could be friends. “I grew up in South Carolina. We had a gorgeous mansion.” I blushed; I didn’t want her to think I was bragging.
“A mansion? That sounds so neat.”
“My favorite part was our rose garden, and we had gorgeous southern magnolias. When I think of home, I think of the pink perfume of magnolia. Our garden had camellias and fuchsia hydrangea.”
“What is a southern magnolia?”
“Big pink blossoms with dark green leaves and light green leaves underneath. It looks like a bridal bouquet.”
“Sounds gorgeous. I like how your eyes sparkle when you talk about it.”
For the minute, I was imagining the flowering dogwood near the white and lavender roses and the southern magnolia, and I was back home practicing my tour jette and pirouettes in the backyard.
“Sounds like you miss your home.”
I sighed. “Yes.”
“Will you be staying here long?”
That was the question. “I don’t know.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re staying nearby. It’s lonely here in the summer. There aren’t any girls our age around here.”
We’d discovered we were not only the same age, but our birthdays were on the same day, May 18.
We chatted more. Rivka told me about her school and that she played the flute.
I told her about ballet.
“That sounds like so much fun, and you were really in a contest?”
“Yes, but I had to leave so I couldn’t be in it this year…”
“I hope you can be in it another time.”
“Thank you.”
She glanced at her watch. “It’s getting late. We have to head back.” The sun had started setting in soft flamingo pink and purple streaks. Rivka told her sister it was time to go.
I took Bonnie’s hand. “We’re going back now,” I told her.
Rivka handed her sister a slice of apple. “Does your cousin want an apple slice?”
Rivka’s sister mumbled some words and then bit into the apple. Bonnie stuffed it into her mouth. “What do you say?” I scolded her.
“Thank you,” she said between bites.
We strolled together with Rivka and her little sister past a path that followed a stream. There was a small waterfall.
“It’s pretty here,” I said, “but I wouldn’t want to come here at night. It’s such a thick forest.”
“We don’t come at night. My mother wouldn’t let us.”
We walked together back to the park entrance and then we strolled together down the street.
“Do you want to stop at our house on your way home?” Rivka asked.
I hesitated, but then I thought we’d just stay a short time and Mrs. Bowers wanted Bonnie out of the house anyway.
To be continued…
Susie Garber is the author of the newly released historical fiction novel, Flight of the Doves (Menucha Publishers, 2023), Please Be Polite (Menucha Publishers, 2022), A Bridge in Time (Menucha Publishers, 2021), Secrets in Disguise (Menucha Publishers, 2020), Denver Dreams, a novel (Jerusalem Publications, 2009), Memorable Characters…Magnificent Stories (Scholastic, 2002), Befriend (Menucha Publishers, 2013), The Road Less Traveled (Feldheim, 2015), fiction serials and features in Binah Magazine and Binyan Magazine, and “Moon Song” in Binyan (2021-2022).
