Lynnie and Her Ice Cream

                              Lynne and her Ice Cream (Draft)




    It was a hot, hot summer day in July.  Summer in the city always seemed hotter.  It was so hot that the asphalt seemed to be smokin.  If an egg fell on Mr. Bismarck’s bald head today, as he sat outside his corner candy story, trying to steal a small breeze, it would cook.  The only refuge from the heat that my brother and I could find that day was in our grandmother’s small back yard amid her lavish garden.  It was like another world out there; the honey suckles, the daisies, the roses and pansies all the smells and colors combined made it seem like nothing less than paradise.  It was far too hot to make the trip to the corner candy store.  We were children then; almost eleven.  We found ourhide out under the concrete porch that extended out form the back of the house, just eye level with the garden, a nose shot away from some of the most breathtaking aromas in the world. We played war games with our little toy soldiers in the cool of the dirt, where our little bare knees made small imprints.  But little did we know that today would be a special day for Lynnie.

         “Lynnie !” my grandmother called out from within, muffeled slightly by  the steady hum of fans blowing inside the house . 

             “Yes grandma", Lynnie answered on the shaded side of the house playing in the water.  She always claimed to be watering the plants but we all know what that meant.  Lynnie was almost ten.  I guess little girls her age still enjoyed playing in the water and again it was hot.

         “You need to come in here and get cleaned up.  You father is coming to see you today.    He is home from his business trip and he wants to see his little girl; not some nappy headed tom-boy.  Now get in here girl,” said grandma with both thumbs tucked inside her apron in front of her as if holding her small round belly.

         “My daddy is coming to see me today?” said Lynnie all smiles now within arms reach of grandma now standing in the door just over our heads on the concrete porch out back. 

         “Why if you don’t look like one of those little twin boys out there rolling around in the dirt.  Look at you!  You got mud all over you!  What am I going to do with you"? Said grandma.  “It’s about ten thirty now and he’ll be here sometime this afternoon.  I see I got a lot of work in front of me.  Now you just go up stairs take a nice soak in the tub and don’t forget to wash behind your ears and after a while grandma will come up and pick you a nice pretty dress.  And child don’t get your hair all wet.  Grandma gotta do something with that head to.  Now go do what grandma told you like a good little girl”

         We heard the screen door shut, then to our surprise grandma shouted out, “Oh! and you boys don’t play in grandmas’ rose bushes.  Grandma's been workin too hard to bring them up.  Besides those thorns will just tear your little hands apart.”
         “O.K. grandma,” we answered. 

         The next thing we heard was Grandmom calling out to Lynnie from within the house.
                   “Linnie  your’ fathers here”
         My brother and I scurred in the house pretending that we had to go the bathroom.  Really we wanted to see Lynnie's father.  At that point we say Lynnie, another Lynnie.  Not the Lynnie that played solders with us down in the dark cool dirt of the  back yard; a Lynnie who wore shorts that showcased her scratched up knees, a Lynnie who wore sneakers with no socks. This Lynnie was wearing frilly blue chiffon type dress.  The dress kind of puffed and out over her now lotioned knees.  She now wore neat little ruffed ankle socks and a pair of black patten leather shoes that buckled on the side.  Her hair was fleshly braided into two pigtails that had matching ribbons on either pigtail. 

          Lynnie's father now standing in the middle of the small living room watching his daughter come down the steps, looked with the same sense of amazement as we did.  Only we were wondering how would she play solders with us all dress up like that. 

         “Linnie!  How are you baby,”  said her father, a tall man dressed in a sports jacket and tie.  “I brought you something baby,”  he said with one arm.  The left sleeve of his jacket lifeless dangled at this his side and his right arm was  behind his back.  It was strange because he only had one arm and we couldn’t tell is he was hiding something or if that’s just the way he was standing.  It was far too hot for a jacket and tie we thought to ourselves.  As Linnie came to the bottom of the steps, he leaned over kissing her gently on her beaming face and pulled from behind his back a huge ice cream cone.  I mean it was gigantic.  It was a great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip ice cream cone.  It even had that frosty white tissue paper all around it so you wouldn’t spill anything on your clothes. 

         “Here baby this is for you,” her father said. 

         “Thank you daddy,” she said grabbing the gigantic ice cream cone with both hands.

         And there stood my brother and I looking for our cone.  I mean he was our uncle.  But he only had one hand, one hand with one arm, where could he have hidden the other two ice cream cones.  Maybe in his back pocket; we really didn’t care where they were hidden just as long as he had one for us.  It was one of the hottest days of the summer thus far a great day for a great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone.

          At that point my brother and I would have even shared one between us, which is a very difficult task for brothers.  Unfortunately there was no ice cream for us. No  great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone for the twins.  Were we disappointed.  But hope was not lost because Linnie was our friend and if we couldn’t have a great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it,  ice cream cone for us, maybe Linnie could give a lick or two of hers. 

    Uncontrollably our mouths began to water with desire.

         “Hi boys!”  said uncle Joe, Linnie’s father.

         “Hello uncle joe,” we answered staring at the great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone

         “Are you taking care of my little girl?” he asked picking her up with his one arm taking her into the dinning area. 

         “Yes,” we half heartedly answered. 

         “Now you boys go and play in the back yard while Linnie sits with her father for a while,” said grandma giving us a stern look. 

`          “Yes grandma,” we answered on out way

         Once in the back yard my brother looked at me with sauscer eyes saying, "Man did you see that great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone.  Did you see it?” he asked again as though he couldn’t believe his eyes. 

          He couldn’t believe that there was not a cone for us.  We would have even shared one between which was difficult for two twin brothers.  “He didn’t bring us anything,” my brother protested.

         “That’s because we’re not his little girl,” I answered him hoping that that would make him feel better. 

         “So what are you saying, that I have to put on a dress to get a great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone?”
         “No silly you don’t have to put on a dress,” I responded trying to hide my own hurt.  Maybe next time he’ll bring us one.  “Or better yet maybe Linnie will let us have a lick or two.”  So we sat outside in the hot sun not think for a minute to go back underneath the porch where the sun couldn’t find us.  We just stood at the back door peering in through the screen trying to catch Linnie attention just to get her to come to the back so that we could ask her for just one lick or maybe two licks of her great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone?” 

          After a while, what seemed like forever Linnie came out on the porch with us. We felt as if we ourselves were melting in the sun.  Linnie came out refreshed, singing and dancing around just licking and licking and licking her great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone?” 
         “Hi Linnie.  That’s a nice giant ice cream cone you got there,” my brother said in a humbling tone of voice. 

         “Be careful not to spill any on you pretty dress, I then added drooling.

         “Do you want us to help you lick of just some of the dripping from your great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone so it doesn’t get on your dress?”  my brother then asked.

         “No that’s O.K. said Linnie.  My licker works just fine.”

         “Linnie do you think we could have just a lick from your great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone I then aked?”

         “Yea it’s plenty to share,” my brother added.  “We only want a lick or two.  I mean it’s so hot out here,” said my brother. 

         “No my daddy brought this for me.  If he would have wanted you to have one, he would have brought you one,” she said still spinning and twirling around on the back cement porch. 

         There was a small metal railing to the back porch just tall enough for Linnie to duck under with out bending her knees or hitting her head.  Just tall enough for us to swing up side down on as and not hit our heads on the porch floor as if it were our private swing.  In Linnie’s excitement she just twirled herself right off the back porch falling straight back about four feet into the garden floor landing flat on her back.  With both legs sprawled open, dress partially us, she let out a shrill scream that disturbed all of the cats in the back of all of the houses. 
         “Daddy !”

         We looked in amazement to see if she was hurt.  Suddently without warning, Linnie's dad, Uncle Joe darted past the squeaky screen door.  With one arm swooped down onto the garden and gently grabbed Lynnie up taking her into the house.  Till today we wondered how he did all of that with only one arm.  But the thing that amazed us the most, almost to the point of tears was Linnies giant ice cream cone, her great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone.  We had thought that it had just fell into the flower garden and that all of the plants were having the time of their life eating ice cream.  We didn’t even know if plants liked ice cream.  But instead Linnies  great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone had fell right back in her face.  Sitting there covering her entire nose.  It was as if her nose had suddenly grew another six inches in ice cream as the ice cream was beginning to melt on her face with little sprinkles of dirt on it now.  We couldn’t tell if she was crying from the fall or if she was just mad that she had destroyed her great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone.  But there is was stuck to her nose like glue.  As her father carried her into the house the giant ice cream cone never fell off of her face.  Not able to control ourselves my brother laughed so heard once they were in the house of course that it looked as if we were crying for Lynnie  You see by then we know that Lynnie was alright and that the think that was hurt the most on her was her pride.  Not long after Lynnie changed her clothes and returned to the yard with us to play into something we were more used to seeing her in pants, Tee shirt and sneakers.  We tried our best to try to comfort her.  Saying that we were sorry about her ice cream cone.  Then we suddenly looked at each other smiling my brother and I; made a small fist as if we had an ice cream cone.  Licked at our fist and said almost in harmony, “Hey Lynnie, want a lick of my great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone.  Then we stuck our tiny fist in our noses and just like that we were all laughing and playing again as if it had never happened. 

         It true Lynnie should have never teased us with her big giant ice cream cone .  We were really glad that she wasn’t hurt.  But more importantly, we were sure that the next time that she got a great big, two fisted, double dip chocolate chip, with white tissue paper around it  ice cream cone, that she would be glad to share it with us.     



                                                John  T  NightOwl