coming out of my shell

coming out of my shell

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

I remember turning 2

I distinctly remember turning two. My oldest sister had been preparing me for the event. She was a very earnest 7 year old, the kind of sister who took being older quite seriously. 

It was 1953. My father was sitting in his underwear at the kitchen table, as he was wont to do in the mornings. White t-shirt, white boxers, he sat enthroned wearing the working man's at-home uniform. 

Both my older sisters were in on the fun.  They guided me to his chair and pushed me forward.  My father asked me "How old are you today?" and I held up two fingers in front of my face.  I held them up like a premonition, for they were displayed like a peace sign, like bunny ears.  It wasn't the last time I made that sign for either meaning. However, it was the last time I told my father I was two years old. He laughed and told me I was a good girl.

I knew I was loved.  

This flowering bromeliad reminds me of belonging to a family



14 comments:

  1. That's such a lovely, heartwarming memory.

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  2. Your early memory of your father conveying to you that you were loved moves me deeply, as does the photo of the flowering bromeliad. Thank you.

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  3. The most wonderful feeling for a child is to know they are loved. The confidence and security that brings they carry all through their lives.

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  4. I love love love hearing people relay their earliest memories. So tender to hear what your two year self old imprinted to memory. Thank you Colette.

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  5. Knowing you are loved is the best feeling in the world. That was a beautiful moment to remember.

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  6. Your Memory is phenomenal, I can barely remember this Morning! That is a Sweet Memory tho'. Recently I tried to recall in the interiors of every Home we lived in while I was growing up, we were very Nomadic, but oddly, I recalled the Homes in great detail even if other Memories are quite vague.

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  7. There is another interpretation of two fingers. I can't be sure you're aware of it, nor do I believe I have the necessary delicacy (never my strong suit) to raise the subject in detail.

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  8. What a nice memory, and a beautiful bromeliad!

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    Replies
    1. Steve, I posted a bicolor foxglove on my photo blog for you. http://photosnowandthen.blogspot.com/

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  9. I remember very little before the age of 5. One of my first memories is getting terrible earache at school and having to be sent home. The odd things that stick in one's mind!

    I love the bromeliad. So very beautiful.

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  10. What a lovely memory to have.

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  11. That's very sweet.

    And what a beautiful flower.

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So, whadayathink?