Blue Read Free Page B

don’t let the bedbugs bite.’”
    I kept wondering if Daddy had took part in D-Day. That was the day—June 6—when our boys landed on the beaches of France and started taking that country back from the big bully, Hitler. I wondered if they would push into Germany next.
    President Roosevelt come on the radio twice in June to tell us what was going on. The first time, he told how our boys and the other Allied soldiers took Rome away from the Germans. A week later, he come on to announce a new war-loan drive. That’s where ordinary Americans like me can loan money to the government for building ships and airplanes and whatever else our soldiers need. And he reminded us of all the good our money done, helping our soldiers drive back the Germans and the Japanese from all those places they had took over.
    Talk of the war was everywhere. Even at church on Sundays. The preacher always said a prayer for the soldiers. There was eleven men from our church fighting in the war, not counting Lottie Scronce’s two boys that had already been killed.
    Lottie cried all the way through every church service, but she kept coming. And every week she snapped open her big black pocketbook and pulled out mints for all thelittle children. She’d been doing that for as long as I could remember.
    After I’d sweated in the garden all week, going to church was almost as good as going to the movies with Peggy Sue. Somehow it helped me get through another week just to hear Reverend Price say my daddy’s name in a prayer.
    But one Sunday in the middle of June, the reverend stopped us at the church door. His red hair was damp around the edges. Little rivers of sweat was running past his ears, and his white shirt had wet circles under the arms.
    “I’m sorry, Mrs. Honeycutt,” he said. “I guess you hadn’t heard. We’ve canceled Sunday school.”
    Momma stopped dead in her tracks. “No, I hadn’t heard.”
    “There are twelve cases of polio in Catawba County right now. I thought you would have read it in the paper or heard it on the radio.”
    “Oh my dear,” said Momma. She grabbed Bobby’s hand and pulled him up against her.
    The reason Momma didn’t know is, we was so busy in the garden and just trying to keep up. We hadn’t been to Junior’s house to listen to the radio, except two times to hear the president’s speeches. And we don’t get the paper either. Sometimes we read our neighbors’ newspaper—the Hinkle sisters’ copy—when they’re done with it.
    “All public meetings are closed to children twelve and under,” said Reverend Price.
    I felt sweat running down the inside of my dress.
    “And playgrounds too,” said the preacher. “And theaters and swimming pools.”
    While he stood there and listed all the things we couldn’t do, I had a feeling like every good thing in my life was being taken away.
    “Hopefully this will all blow over,” said Reverend Price. “Be sure to listen to WHKY today. At twelve forty-five, Dr. Whims, the county health officer, will make an announcement about polio.”
    Right away Bessie Bledsoe invited us to listen at their house. But I wasn’t ready to turn around and leave. I was counting on seeing my friends. So I asked Momma could Peggy Sue come to my house to play.
    Momma fluffed the back of my hair a little to let the breeze cool my neck. “Yes, honey,” she said. “Lord knows you deserve it.”
    Me and Peggy Sue run to her mother, who was standing with some other women under a shade tree in the churchyard. She was fanning herself with one of them church fans put out by a funeral home. It had a picture of Jesus praying in the garden, sweating drops of blood.
    “Please let her come, Mrs. Rhinehart,” I begged. “We want to wade in the creek.” I flapped my hands in front of my face, like I would just die if we couldn’t get in the water.
    Mrs. Rhinehart reached in her black pocketbook and pulled out a cotton handkerchief with blue flowers embroidered on the corner. She