1-20-09...SNOW CREAM AND TOILETS
WINTERS IN THE SOUTH
I was always sickly when I was a kid. So even though I dearly loved winter snows I was not allowed to play outside much. When I did my Mama would always say, "Now, Clydene do not eat any snow it will give you a sore throat". I don't know if it did and to be truthful I just didn't believe it so I always tried to sneak a bite of that fluffy white snow. Mama usually was watching and stopped me. I was just sure Mama had eyes in back of her head. Someone (probably my Papa) had told me that. I know I did have a lot of trouble with sore throats and fever. (They call that flu now. Then it was just a sore throat and fever). I was sick a lot even in the summer. Mama made snow cream for us when she had what she needed to make it. Daddy would always say, "Now Lucille don't make it outta' the first snow cause' it's poisoned from the stuff in the air. (Today that is probably true, and just as true then as far as My Daddy was concerned).
One day I had to go to the ol' outside toilet and there was snow on the ground. I knew Mama would be watching so I just ran right on out there and went in the toilet. When I got in there and sat down I looked in the floor and there was a mound of beautiful white fluffy snow. WHOOPPEE! I got me two bites of that snow and really enjoyed it. Yep, Sure Did. Right off the floor of that toilet. Now I think YUKKY! but then it was a treat. By the way it was the first snow no less. HE HE!! I went back to the house just pleased as I could be cause' I'd got me some snow. I had no more than got inside the door when Mama said, "Clydene I told you not to eat snow". "I didn't Mama". "Yes you did, I saw you", she said. "No Mama I ran out there really fast and didn't stop, weren't you watchin"? " Yes I sure was watchin' and you got a bite of snow off that dirty toilet floor". Well now good grief howd' she know that? I thought. Even with eyes in the back of her head she can't see through a toilet wall. "Mama you can't see inside that toilet from here" I argued. "Clydene did you eat snow in the toilet? I know you did so tell me the truth". Well heck fire I guess Mama could see through toilet walls too. I had to fess up and I got a spankin' but I puzzled over that for a very long time. I was braggin to Brenda one day that my Mama could see through walls and we got in a squabble over it, hittin' and scratchin'. She went and asked my Auntie and Auntie said, "Sure Mama's can all do that".
We didn't have enough smarts to just let it go, we started askin' our Mamas, Did you see us do this, or that, or something else and just kept gettin' ourselves deeper and deeper in trouble. Heck we told everything we could remember that we had done to our Mama's in the next few weeks. They never said, "Yep I saw You", didn't have to cause' we were confessin' it all not even knowin' we were doin' it!!
I has that dreaded sore throat and fever soon after that. Did the eatin' the snow cause it? Well I was convinced that it did and so was my Daddy. We got another snow that winter and I never ate nary a bite outside. Nope! At least I don't remember it if I did. But I got snow cream a couple of times and boy was that good. We were all sittin' there one night around the stove shiverin' and eatin' snow cream and Mama said, "Now Clydene aint that better than that bite of snow you ate outta' the toilet"? "Yep sure is Mama". But You know? Even now I'm not sure that bite of dirty snow wasn't worth all the trouble. NOPE I AINT SURE!!! Still like a bite of snow now and then. HEHEHE! Aint Mamas smart????
