A Girl Named Patches...Part 23

So many things have been changing and for ma as well. Big decisions are hard to make but my ma decided to sell the house and leave Ohio. Her father was still alive in Pennsylvania and up in his 80's. It would be a good change for all of us. She would be back where her roots were. Heath would get away from the crowd he was entertaining and me, well I would leave the whole town and Cliff behind. It was a rather refreshing thought, yet wondering, would I ever see him again. But with a deep sigh, the house sold and we packed and down the road we go. 

Heath and I in the moving truck. Glenn rode is Ma in the car. Mind you her driving skills were still pretty new but Glenn would put her to the test. Ma thought if she gave him cookies it would occupy him for a while. Well let me say this, never give a little goober cookies and have them behind you. He decided to redo her hair and he was having a great time doing it. Soon ma would look like the cookie monster, before the cookie monster was known. Awwww, poor mama. But, she never ventured from looking straight ahead on that road. Focused to make her destination. 

It was great to get closer and closer to Pennsylvania. Some thing always drew my heart there. Not sure as to the real reason why. But, it is a beautiful state. I love the mountains there. Serene. The people there are not like they are in most places. These people literally would give the shirt right off their backs to help another. Our time there would bring us closer to grandpa. We saw him on occasion but now we would see him every day. The house was huge. An old theater redone into a duplex. We would live on one side of it with a breeze way to separate grandpa. 

Grandpa I think liked us being there. He had company. Hmmm, he loved his coffee and a special recipe to make it. Was it moonshine he put in it. I wasn't sure. But, it led to some afternoon naps. The days for him would be playing rummy. I might add he didn't always play fair. Hahaha, I didn't always let him know I knew though. It was his day. Everybody was a monkey to him. Not sure how that happens. LOL He was full hungarian and spoke with a broken accent. So, communication was some what limited. Ma, seemed to understand him way more then I could but I guess that would be expected.

Ma seemed very happy here. She found an old school mate and perhaps love connection from the past that was now bar tending at a place not far from home. Her and I would go there for her to get out and start a social life of some kind. My ma and I were having a lot more fun these days but our other times were still there. However, we were growing to learn more about each other and one day maybe our respect would grow as well.

Heath was home more and while we would go out, he would watch Glenn, but we would have him put to bed before we left to make it much more easier on him. Eventually he found a job in the coal mines and would have to travel to many neighboring states each week. 

Our first Christmas there would be special for me. My ma sent me out to get a tree and a tree I got. It was sooooooooooooo big. Hahaha, I brought the forest home. Neither of them would help me with it and the biggest problem was getting a stand that could support it. Any tree stand I tried just seemed to melt the legs. So, ma thought we should go to the bar and ask them what they use for theirs. And away we go.

It was pretty cool going to this bar. I never needed any money. There was always somebody there that would say, " Drinks for the whole bar"... No, I wasn't old enough, but back then it didn't matter. We did complete our mission though and found out the best solution for this tree would be a big concrete block. We had several of these outside the house. So, back to the house for me to deal with this tree. 

A block it would be. I found out a few weeks later that I had a problem. I was not able to water this monster and now day and night the needles were falling off of it. Yep, every where. But, wow, did I decorate it and just the way I wanted. I loved tinsel and this tree would be covered with it. As I look back now it all sort of looked gaudy but at the time it was a masterpiece. Wow, what a few years will do to see things a bit differently.

Things were going well here, until.....................

Love "Patches"

A Girl Named Patches... Part Three

It didn't take to long to realize that there was something different about my Pa. He seemed to get really mad and about things that, well didn't seem like it should be that critical. Of course that's me looking back. At the time I thought everything I was doing was wrong. Well, he didn't hold back from telling me either. 

At this very early age I was being trained to fail. I am sure my Pa meant well and thought maybe he was using tough love or something as they call it. Hmmm, wait, it was tough love. My Pa would say, how I will never amount to anything and that I was good for nothing. At the age of five I didn't quite understand what all that meant. But, it made me feel bad so that told me it wasn't good. I soooo wanted my Pa to like me. There were so many times I wanted to say,"I love you", but those words just couldn't come out once I saw him eye to eye. He had such a fierce look to him. Pa was raised as Amish and well in his defense they did not spare the rod. And, there were a lot of things done differently from the rest of society. So maybe just maybe that was what was going on with him. Although, the strangest thing was he never treated my Sister or Brother the same as he did me. So, this was very confusing.

There was a great fear of my Pa for me, cause I just knew he did not favor me in any way.

One day there was something going on about somebody being shot. From my Ma and Pa's reaction it was somebody very important. Late in the night as all of us kids were sleeping I could hear my Ma calling to my sister, "Shelli, do you want to go to Pennsylvania with your father?" And I heard her reply, "No". Then I heard my Ma yell for my brother. "Heath, do you want to go to Pennsylvania with your father?" And his replay was, "No". I remember laying there and somewhat feeling left out but yet glad because I knew he didn't want me to go with him anyways. Just as I was closing my eyes I heard my mom yell, " Patches, do you want to go to Pennsylvania with your father?" I was stunned that I even got the question but followed suite and replied, "No". My no did not seem to hold as much weight as the others. I was ordered to get up that I was going with him. 

It was a cold and snowing this night. And as my Ma quickly put a suitcase together for me, I had no winter coat to speak of. So she put Shelli's on me. A big red one with white around the cuffs and the hood. It was so warm. Shelli had no idea I was wearing it as she was still in bed.

We drove for what seemed like hours and hours in the dark. Cold and windy. Snowing badly. Then finally we arrive at my grandparents house. Still very dark out, my Pa goes to the door and knocks. But, who would be knocking at anybody's door this hour of the night. I remember grandma looking out the window to see who it was before letting us in. 

Ahhhhhhhhhh, finally we are in and my grandma takes me and tucks me in bed. A very very big bed. Soooo many blankets. And the bathroom was, well in a bucket of some sort hidden in the closet. It was good with me. It was so warm in the bed. 

Not sure how long everybody stayed up to, but when daylight came, it seems we were all up at the same time. Being from the Amish background and humble living the first thing they all did was take their bibles outside on the porch and take turns reading a verse and singing hymns galore. The whole family could carry a tune. I felt pretty good out there with this big warm red coat I was wearing and my Aunt gave me a bible to hold. I couldn't read real well at that time. I was still five. 

All was going well I thought. And I thought the trip might be ok. Pa, was reading and singing. Everybody seemed to be having a good time. But, something strange suddenly happened. My Pa, grabbed my arm and threw me inside the house. He pushed everybody else back away from the door while he locked everybody out and then grabbed my arm again and took me upstairs. Sat me on a bed and began reading a verse from the bible to me. Sure wish I knew what that verse was today but, well I can't remember. 

This whole time my Aunt was trying to find a way to get into the house. Knocking on the door and calling for my Pa. It must have upset him a bit because he grabbed me by the arm again and pushed me down the big staircase and into the kitchen. Took his white shirt off and wrapped it around my head and then put my head in a a sink full of hot water and held me there for some time. Then he switched and lifted my head from the hot water and put my head in the next sink full of cold water. Ohhh I had no idea what was going on here and never screamed of even had time to think of crying. It was like I was a rag doll being tossed everywhere. 

My poor Aunt was still outside as everybody else was too and she finally was trying to get a window open to get in that way. Well, Pa, did not like this at all. He left me and long enough for me to get this shirt off my head and I remember standing back watching him as he totally destroyed the stair banister with one hand. Just tore it to pieces. Then went to the window where my Aunt was trying to get in and pushed her away and locked it. It didn't seem like there was going to be any end in sight here. 

As I stood quietly now in the living room, for whatever reason Pa opened the front door and walked outside down a big hill and to the driveway where this white truck was. There was several men there with some white jacket for him as I stood at the door watching. He did not struggle with these men at all which seemed rather odd to me after all he had done. 

After the men got him in the jacket and into the truck, one man looked up at the door and I heard him yell to the others. "Who is that little girl?" Nobody was around outside any more and the men got into the truck and left. At this point I had passed out. A very big void in time took place. 

"Love Patches"