Figure of Speech by Thompson Kasha

Author:Thompson, Kasha
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-07-12T00:00:00+00:00

It was the Fourth of July and the White House was hosting a celebration on the south lawn. There were musical performances, food, and activities for young and old. I was eyeing the face painting booth and planned to circle back and get some paint on my hand. The weather was perfect and the turnout was better than expected with residents from the neighboring area and out of town visitors.

“Here you go.” I handed my mother and Aunt Edwina bottles of water.

“When is John Legend taking the stage?” Aunt Ed asked, twisting the cap off her ice-cold bottle.

“He’ll be out a little later.” He was the headliner, so he wouldn’t be out until the sun went down.

My mother’s face lit up at the sight of Teddy approaching our table. His booming voice greeted us. “I hope you beautiful ladies are having a good time.”

Momma jumped up, extending her hand to shake Teddy’s. He refused, pulling her into a hug.

“We’re practically family, and family means hugs.” He enveloped my mother in a warm embrace.

“I’m Clover’s auntie, do I get a hug too?” Aunt Edwina asked.

I pursed my lips. The women in my family were not shy. If we wanted something, we were never afraid to speak up.

“Mr. President, this is my Aunt Edwina.”

Teddy gave my aunt a wink, opening his arms wide. “I’m ready when you are, Auntie.”

Aunt Ed took full advantage of her audience with the President, giving the muscles in his arm a quick squeeze before pulling away.

“Thank you for the invite, Theodore,” Ms. Sylvia said.

“Mommy, you should really call him Mr. President or President Elmsworth.” I cringed as I corrected her.

He waved me off. “It’s OK, Lucky. Ms. Sylvia and I go way back.”

My mother beamed. “Like four tires on a Cadillac.”

“Like a La-Z-Boy,” he said.

“Like Stevie Wonder’s hairline.”

Teddy and my mother laughed together like old friends. He’d always been kind to my mother. Always respectful and helpful. If my mother mentioned in a random conversation that she liked pineapples, a few days later she’d receive a delivery of pineapples from Hawaii. On one occasion they had a heated discussion over which city had the best hot dogs, New York versus DC. The next day my mother called me saying a man had delivered hot dogs from Gray’s Papaya’s in New York and they were fresh and hot. That was Teddy, always going the extra mile.

As they reminisced, I surveyed the crowd. I spied Lisa with her husband Frank, who was fanning himself with a Fourth of July itinerary program in the ninety-plus weather. Abby wasn’t far from them. She had also brought her mother, who I had the most entertaining conversation with about a one-night stand she had with an infamous football player back in the day.

My eyes did a double take when I spotted Seth among the crowd. What is he doing here? I was pulled from my thoughts when Teddy’s hand rubbed the small of my back, causing my entire body, right down to my toes, to tense.

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