A Long Day in November (2 page)

“Get back in that bed, Sonny,” Mama says.

“I'm eating candy,” I say.

“Get back in that bed like I told you,” Mama says.

“Daddy's up with me,” I say.

“You heard me, boy?”

“You can take your candy with you,” Daddy says. “Get back in the bed.”

He follows me to the bed and tucks the cover under me. I lay in the bed and eat my candy. The candy is hard, and I sound just like Paul eating corn. I bet you little old Paul is some cold out there in that back yard. I hope he ain't laying in that water like he always do. I bet you he'll freeze in that water in all this cold. I'm sure glad I ain't a pig. They ain't got no mama and no daddy and no house.

I hear the spring when Daddy gets in the bed.

“Honey?” Daddy says.

Mama don't answer him.

“Honey?” he says.

Mama must be gone back to sleep, because she don't answer him.

“Honey?” Daddy says.

“Don't touch me,” Mama says.

“Honey,” Daddy says. Then he starts crying. “Honey, I'm sorry. I'm sorry.”

Daddy cries a good little while, and then he stops. I
don't chew on my candy while Daddy's crying, but when he stops, I chew on another piece.

“Go to sleep, Sonny,” he says.

“I want eat my candy,” I say.

“Hurry then. You got to go to school tomorrow.” I put another piece in my mouth and chew on it. “Honey?” I hear Daddy saying. “Honey, you go'n wake me up to go to work?”

“I do hope you stop bothering me,” Mama says. “Wake me up round four thirty, hear, honey?” Daddy says. “I can cut 'bout six tons tomorrow. Maybe seven.”

Mama don't say nothing to Daddy, and I feel sleepy again. I finish chewing my last piece of candy and I turn on my side. I feel good because the bed is warm. But I still got my socks on.

“Daddy?” I call.

“Go to sleep,” Daddy says.

“My socks still on,” I say.

“Let them stay on tonight,” Daddy says. “Go to sleep.”

“My feet don't feel good in socks,” I say.

“Please go to sleep, Sonny,” Daddy says. “I got to get up at four thirty, and it's hitting close to two now.”

I don't say nothing, but I don't like to sleep with my socks on. But I stay quiet. Daddy and Mama don't say nothing, either, and little bit later I hear Daddy snoring. I feel drowsy myself.

I run around the house in the mud because it done
rained, and I feel the mud between my toes. The mud is soft and I like to play in it. I try to get out the mud, but I can't get out. I'm not stuck in the mud, but I can't get out. Lucy can't come over and play in the mud because her mama don't want her to catch cold.... Billy Joe Martin shows me his dime and puts it back in his pocket. Mama bought me a pretty little red coat and I show it to Lucy. But I don't let Billy Joe Martin put his hand on it. Lucy can touch it all she wants, but I don't let Billy Joe Martin put his hand on it.... Me and Lucy get on the horse and ride up and down the road. The horse runs fast, and me and Lucy bounce on the horse and laugh.... Mama and Daddy and Uncle Al and Gran'mon's sitting by the fire talking. I'm outside shooting marbles, but I hear them. I don't know what they talking about, but I hear them. I hear them. I hear them. I hear them.

I don't want wake up, but I'm waking up. Mama and Daddy's talking. I want go back to sleep, but they talking too loud. I feel my foot in the sock. I don't like socks on when I'm in the bed. I want go back to sleep, but I can't. Mama and Daddy talking too much.

“Honey, you let me oversleep,” Daddy says. “Look here, it's going on seven o'clock.”

“You ought to been thought about that last night.” Mama says.

“Honey, please,” Daddy says. “Don't start a fuss right off
this morning.”

“Then don't open your mouth,” Mama says.

“Honey, the car broke down,” Daddy says. “What I was suppose to do, it broke down on me. I just couldn't walk away and not try to fix it.”

Mama's quiet.

“Honey,” Daddy says, “don't be mad with me. Come, give your man a good little kiss so he can get out of here.”

“Go kiss your car,” Mama says.

“Kiss my car?” Daddy says. “That cold car? Honey, you don't mean that.”

“I mean just that,” she says.

“Honey, I been kissing you every morning since us been married,” Daddy says. “I kiss you and you kiss me—and that's how I been making it in that world out there. How I'm go'n stop it now?”

“That's up to you,” Mama says.

“Honey,” Daddy says. “This is Eddie your husband. The one you married. Remember?”

“You married to that car,” Mama says. “Go kiss her. I'm sure she waiting. I ain't.”

“Honey,” Daddy says, “suppose Sonny hear you talking like that? Didn't that preacher say we had to set a good sample for him?”

“Then how come you don't set a good sample for him?” Mama says. “How come you don't come home sometime and set a good sample for him? How come you can't leave
that car alone long enough to set a good sample for him? You the one need to set a good sample. You the one. I do my best.”

“Honey, I told you before the car broke down on me,” Daddy says. “I was coming home when it broke down. I even had to leave it out on the road. I made it here quick as I could.”

“You can go back quick as you can, for all I care,” Mama says.

“Honey, you don't mean that,” Daddy says. “I know you don't mean that. You just saying that because you mad.”

“Just don't touch me,” Mama says.

“Honey, I got to get out and make some bread for us,” Daddy says.

“Get out if you want,” Mama says. “They got a jailhouse for them who don't support their family.”

“Honey, please don't talk about a jail,” Daddy says. “It's too cold. You don't know how cold it is in a jailhouse this time of the year.”

Mama's quiet.

“Honey?” Daddy says.

“I hope you let me go back to sleep,” Mama says. “Please.”

“Honey, don't go back to sleep on me,” Daddy says. “Honey—”

“I'm getting up,” Mama says. “Damn all this.”

I hear the springs mash down on the bed boards. My
head's under the cover, but I can just see Mama pushing the cover down the bed. Then I hear her walking across the floor and going back in the kitchen.

“Oh, Lord,” Daddy says. “Oh, Lord. The suffering a man got to go through in this world. Sonny?” he says.

“Don't wake that baby up,” Mama says, from the door.

“I got to have somebody to talk to,” Daddy says. “Sonny?”

“I told you not to wake him up,” Mama says.

“You don't want talk to me,” Daddy says. “I need somebody to talk to. Sonny?” he says.

“Hanh?”

“See what you did?” Mama says. “You woke him up, and he ain't going back to sleep.”

Daddy comes across the floor and sits down on the side of the bed. He looks down at me and passes his hand over my face.

“You love your daddy, Sonny?” he says.

“Uh-huh.”

“Please love me,” Daddy says.

I look up at Daddy and he looks at me, and then he just falls down on me and starts crying.

“A man needs somebody to love him,” he says.

“Get love from what you give love,” Mama says, back in the kitchen. “You love your car. Go let it love you back.”

Daddy shakes his face in the cover.

“The suffering a man got to go through in this world,” he says. “Sonny, I hope you never have to go through all this.”

Daddy lays there 'side me a long time. I can hear Mama back in the kitchen. I hear her putting some wood in the stove, and then I hear her lighting the fire. I hear her pouring water in the tea kettle, and I hear when she sets the kettle on the stove.

Daddy raises up and wipes his eyes. He looks at me and shakes his head, then he goes and puts his overalls on.

“It's a hard life,” he says. “Hard, hard. One day, Sonny—you too young right now—but one day you'll know what I mean.”

“Can I get up, Daddy?”

“Better ask your mama,” Daddy says.

“Can I get up, Mama?” I call.

Mama don't answer me.

“Mama?” I call.

“Your pa standing in there,” Mama says. “He the one woke you up.”

“Can I get up, Daddy?”

“Sonny, I got enough troubles right now,” Daddy say.

“I want get up and wee-wee,” I say.

“Get up,” Mama says. “You go'n worry me till I let you get up anyhow.”

I crawl from under the cover and look at my feet. I got just one sock on and I look for the other one under the cover. I find it and slip it on and then I get on the
floor. But that floor is still cold. I hurry up and put on my clothes, and I get my shoes and go and sit on the bed to put them on.

Daddy waits till I finish tying up my shoes, and me and him go back in the kitchen. I get in the corner 'side the stove, and Daddy comes over and stands 'side me. The fire is warm and it feels good.

Mama is frying salt meat in the skillet. The skillet's over one hole and the tea kettle's over the other one. The water's boiling, and the tea kettle is whistling. I look at the steam shooting up to the loft.

Mama goes outside and gets my pot. She holds my pot for me and I wee-wee in it. She dumps the wee-wee out the back door and takes my pot to the front.

Daddy pours some water in the wash basin and washes his face, then he washes my face. I shut my eyes tight. I feel Daddy rubbing at my eyes to get them clean. I keep my eyes shut tight so no soap can get in. Daddy opens the back door and pitches the water out on the ground. We go to the table and sit down, and Mama brings the food. She stands there till I get through saying my blessing, then she goes back to stove and warm. Me and Daddy eat.

“You love your daddy?” he says.

“Uh-huh,” I say.

“That's a good boy,” he says. “Always love your daddy.”

“I love Mama, too. I love her more than I love you.”

“You got a good mama,” Daddy says. “I love her, too.
She the only thing keep me going—'cluding you, too.”

I look at Mama standing 'side the stove, warming.

“Why don't you come to the table and eat with us?” Daddy says.

“I'm not hungry,” Mama says.

“I'm sorry, baby,” Daddy says. “I mean it.”

Mama just looks down at the stove and don't answer Daddy.

“You got a right to be mad,” Daddy says. “I ain't nothing but a' old rotten dog.”

Daddy eats his food and looks at me across the table. I pick up a piece of meat and chew on it. I like the skin because the skin is hard. I keep the skin a long time.

“Well, I better get going,” Daddy says. “Maybe if I work hard, I'll get me a couple tons.”

Daddy gets up from the table and goes in the front room. He comes back with his jumper and his hat on. Daddy's hat is gray and it got a hole on the side.

“I'm leaving, honey,” he tells Mama.

Mama don't answer Daddy.

“Honey, tell me ‘ 'Bye, old dog,' or something,” Daddy says. “Just don't stand there.”

Mama still don't answer him, and Daddy jerks his cane knife out the wall and goes on out. I chew on my meat skin. I like it because it's hard.

“Hurry up, honey,” Mama says. “We going to Gran'mon.”

Mama goes in the front room and I stay at the table
and eat. I finish eating and I go in the front room where Mama is. Mama's pulling a big bundle of clothes from under the bed.

“What's that, Mama?” I ask.

“Us clothes,” she says.

“We go'n take us clothes down to Gran'mon?”

“I'm go'n try,” Mama says. “Find your cap and put it on.”

I see my cap hanging on the chair and I put it on and fasten the strap under my chin. Mama fixes my shirt in my pants, and then she goes and puts on her overcoat. Her overcoat is black and her hat is black. She puts on her hat and looks in the looking glass. I can see her face in the glass. Look like she want to cry. She comes from the dresser and looks at the big bundle of clothes on the floor.

“Find your pot,” she says.

I get my pot from under the bed.

“Come on,” Mama says.

She drags the big bundle of clothes out on the gallery and I shut the door. Mama squats down and puts the bundle on her head, and then she stands up and me and her go down the steps. Soon's I get out in the road I can feel the wind. It's strong and it's blowing in my face. My face is cold and one of my hands is cold.

It's red over there back of the trees. Mr. Guerin's house is over there. I see Mr. Guerin's big old dog. He must be
don't see me and Mama because he ain't barking at us.

“Don't linger back too far,” Mama says.

I run and catch up with Mama. Me and Mama's the only two people walking in the road now.

I look up and I see the tree in Gran'mon's yard. We go little farther and I see the house. I run up ahead of Mama and hold the gate open for her. After she goes in, I let the gate slam.

Spot starts barking soon's he sees me. He runs down the steps at me and I let him smell my pot. Spot follows me and Mama back to the house.

“Gran'mon?” I call.