Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Cup and Saucer (08/28/14)
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TITLE: A Sudsy Tale | Previous Challenge Entry
By Veronica Winley
09/02/14 -
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My daughter Shelby is grumbling. No great news flash there. Anything that looks or smells like housework is anathema to a sixteen year old. Our extended family is coming for brunch and the house will be overrun with old aunts, newborn cousins and assorted “just like family” friends. Shelby’s job is to wash the “good,” rarely used china and then set the table with it. She is not pleased and my obvious pleasure in my own flower-arranging task annoys her even more.
“I don’t see why I can’t just run these through the dishwasher” she mutters, as she sloshes soapy water over my grandmother’s Waterford crystal bowl.
I pluck a particularly lovely rose bloom from the bunch, place it in the vase and take an appreciative sniff before replying; after all, it’s an old complaint and she knows how I will answer.
“Because hand washing shows appreciation for the dish and reminds us of the person who handed it down to us.”
“Oh,” she says sarcastically, “I guess Corning Ware dishes don’t need to be appreciated and Macy’s or Sears don’t need to be remembered.”
I chuckle and continue humming. Silence descends for a moment.
At the sink, Shelby gives a wolf- worthy huff. She’s started working on the cups and saucers. Holding up a delicate, beautifully painted Wedgwood dish, she looks at it disdainfully.
“This is pretty enough, I guess, but what function does it have, really?”
I totally understand where this question is coming from, since the person who asked it drinks hot beverages from a mug only – sans saucer.
I confess. A teasing, mischievous imp seizes me.
“We need saucers because in the fall, on days like this, the beautiful red, orange and gold leaves on the trees are too glorious for words and when they fall, they blanket the ground in magnificent profusion.”
There it is! The gift of complete bafflement as she stops, with the saucer held aloft and water dripping down her arm, to look at me.
“What?”
“And then there is your closet. Really, Shelby! Eight pairs of tennis shoes, three of which cost more than our car note. I’m sure we need saucers for your closet.”
Her brow furrows as she tries to figure out what I am talking about.
“Your brother’s full scholarship to college -that certainly merits a saucer or two.”
Shelby’s mouth is slightly agape now, as she stares at me. Thank goodness she has the presence of mind to put down the saucer. Drying her hands on a dishtowel, she turns to me and folds her arms.
“Mom! What ARE you talking about?”
By now my hands have stilled on the flowers as I look out the window at my husband, raking those “glorious” leaves.
“Remember when Dad was so sick and we prayed and prayed for God to heal him – and He did; how about when you needed money to go on the mission trip to Mexico and just in time Mrs. Elam asked you to babysit the twins for the entire summer? Those were certainly saucer worthy times.”
“Ok-a-a-y.” Shelby draws out the word as she bends her head and tries to connect the dots in what I am saying. Finally, she looks up at me, a wry smile turning up the corners of her lovely mouth.
“Did you need a saucer when you lost your job and two weeks later you got a better one, doing what you really like?”
I nod and wait, earnestly rooting for her understanding.
Turning back to the sink, Shelby picks up the neglected saucer, and turns it carefully around in her hands, looking at it thoughtfully with her head cocked to the side.
“You’re saying maybe it’s needed for the abundance, aren’t you - for the times when God has been awesome?”
I smile widely in reply.
She turns on the faucet and proceeds to rinse the saucer.
“Doesn’t it say somewhere in the twenty third Psalms ‘my cup runs over’?” she asks. “I guess one of these would come in handy for the overflow.”
She looks over her shoulder at me and grins.
That’s my girl!
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