Read Online The Road to Memphis by Mildred D. Taylor - Free Book Online

miss you. We were thinking we weren’t going to have to say good-bye until after we took you to Jackson but now that Stacey’s come home with a car, you’ll be going with him. Have to admit, though, I’m a bit sorry that your papa and I won’t be taking you back. I was rather looking forward to it.”
    “Well, Mama, you and Papa can still come.”
    “No. There’s the cotton to pick so it’s better we stay here. We’ll get up to Jackson another time.” She smiled, reconcilingherself to that time to come, then moved away and sat on the bed. She glanced at the red dress. “One of these dresses for church tomorrow?”
    “Yes, ma’am. Wanted to wear something real nice.”
    “That couldn’t have anything to do with Moe, could it?”
    “Aw, Mama, you know I’ve got no mind on Moe!”
    “I know that’s what you keep saying.”
    “Well, I keep saying it because that’s the truth.” I put the blue dress down, hung the red dress in front of me again, and bragged, “I do look so good in red.”
    Mama laughed and agreed. “But you also look good in blue, and if I recall, Moe is right partial to blue.”
    I laid the red dress on the bed again. “I’m not dressing for Moe.”
    Mama smoothed out the hem and said nothing.
    Then I, too, sat on the bed, the dresses between us. “Mama, you know how I feel about Moe. Moe likes to tease about wanting to court me, but he knows I know he’s teasing. Besides, girls start courting, they’re thinking on getting married, and pretty soon that’s what happens.”
    Mama studied me. “Thought you wanted to get married one day.”
    “Yes, ma’am, one day. But I figure to do like you. You went ahead and got your teaching degree before you even met Papa, and you’ve been teaching ever since, except for that bad spell. You’d’ve been married, you most likely never would’ve gotten that degree.”
    “Maybe not.”
    Mama spread her fingers over the bodice of the red dress, then looked at me. “Listen, sugar, I want you to go to college as much as you want to go yourself. Wanted that for Stacey, too, but he chose to go to work.” She spoke those words evenly,without emotion, though there had been a time when she had gone ’round and ’round with Stacey about staying in school. “But I also want you to be honest about Moe and how you feel about him. He’s such a fine boy, and you should watch out for his feelings too.”
    “Well, I don’t have anything to do with his feelings!”
    Mama didn’t accept that. “Of course you do.” She glanced at the dresses again. “Any girl who looks for a special dress to wear for a young man has got to know that.”
    “He’s my friend,” I said quietly, “and I want things to stay that way. I’ve seen how sometimes a boy and a girl be getting along just fine, and then they start seeing each other seriously, and then they break up, they can’t hardly speak to each other after that. Been better if they hadn’t even gotten together.”
    “Well, I don’t think Moe would act that way, and I certainly don’t think you would.”
    “Well, I still figure courting can get in the way of a good friendship. And most times I think that’s all there is with us. I mean, I really like being with Moe, and I like it when he pays me some attention. I can talk to Moe about just anything. But, Mama, Moe doesn’t stay on my mind like I figure a boy’s supposed to, and top of that I don’t go getting all excited when I see him. I miss him when he’s not around, but I don’t be crying about it. I miss him like I miss Stacey, and I figure Moe feels the same about me.”
    “And what if he doesn’t?”
    I grew solemn. I hadn’t thought about that. I had just always figured Moe did feel the same. “Ah, Mama . . . I’d hate to think Moe was feeling something different from the way I feel. I ever thought he was, it’d spoil everything.”
    “Spoil what?” asked Big Ma, coming in.
    “We were talking about Moe,” I said.
    Big Ma