Last Leaf on the Oak Tree (3 page)

The U of M campus is part of a sprawling inner city campus. What was originally on the eastern edge of a big city now was in the innermost regions of midtown. As a consequence of urban migration, the area surrounding the campus was congested, with very little parking available.

The campus itself encompassed several city blocks, more than thirty. The campus houses 25,000 students annually, more than Paulette's hometown by far. There are four bookstores, more than a dozen places to eat within walking distance of campus, and nine residence halls for men and women. Most of the students walked everywhere or took the campus shuttle when the class was on the opposite side of the block. There were 15 minutes between the dismissal bell and the class bell. Roller blades, bicycles, and scooters were all popular vehicles for transport by the student residents.

Paulette and PJ were on time for the Art 1010 class taught by Dr. Johnson, thanks to PJ's moped. This time, they naturally gravitated to seats that were placed next to each other. The seating arrangement was beginning to be a habit.

Dr. Johnson began her lecture:

"Students, this class is a combination of art appreciation and art practicum. For the first half of the class, we will study an Art Master and their work. In the second half of the class, we will break and meet outdoors under the massive oak tree in the commons area. I have easels and stacked chairs to be conveyed to the area. You will not be graded at all for the practicum part of the class. I repeat. You will not be graded for your ability to draw. You will be graded on participation. I give either an A or an F, depending on if you show up and draw in the style assigned, or if you don't. The rest of your grade will be based on class attendance and written exams. Each day you attend is an A. Each exam counts 50 points. There is a 100-point total for the exams, of which there are two, one at the beginning of Fall Break and one at the end of the semester. When the last leaf falls from the oak tree, our time together is over, as it will be the end of the semester."

PJ looked excited by the announcement of the course curriculum, but Paulette looked anxious. Dr. Johnson went on to discuss today's topic: pointillism.

"Pointillism was developed in the 1880's by Georges Seurat and Paul Signac. The design of their works is very similar to drawing with pixels today, except they used pastels, oils, and pencils. For our exercise today, we will use colored pencils. Please bring your easels, chairs, sketch pads, and colored pencils as we dismiss to the old oak tree."

Paulette whispered to PJ as they departed the classroom, "I hope she means what she says about looking at our art ability, I can't draw a stick."

PJ laughed at Paulette, "She is really good. Take this time to explore a new way to express yourself. You will enjoy the opportunity to take a break from the books and be outdoors."

Paulette looked skeptical but nodded at PJ.

The class reconvened underneath the old oak tree. Its branches were over thirty foot wide, and the trunk was over ten feet in circumference.

"This is a huge tree," commented Paulette.

"Yes, he has seen many things," replied PJ. "We should respect this old man."

Paulette brought out her colored pencils and began to color dots all over the page. PJ looked over at her easel.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm drawing the tree," she answered.

"Which part of the tree?" remarked PJ. "I can't tell."

Paulette moaned. "I told you I wasn't any good at this. I don't know what to do."

"Why don't you focus on just one thing? Find a leaf that looks interesting to you," suggested PJ.

Paulette said, "She said to draw the tree. Is a leaf good enough?"

"Go ask Dr. Johnson. She'll tell you yes or no."

Paulette went over to Dr. Johnson, who was busy drawing a branch of the tree.

"Dr. Johnson?" inquired Paulette. "Can I draw just a leaf of the tree, or do I need to draw the whole tree?"

"You can draw any part or the whole of the tree," replied Dr. Johnson.

Paulette turned away and began shuffling along in the grass, looking for a leaf as a likely prospect of her attention. The leaves had not yet begun to turn or fall, so she was looking for a green leaf in amidst the green grass. Finally, she found a possible subject, plucked the leaf from the well-trimmed grass and took it to her easel. She placed the leaf at the top of the page with a dab of glue from her art supplies.

Paulette began to concentrate on the beauty of the leaf. The closer she examined the leaf, the more she saw the intricate pattern of the spine on the interior of the leaf. She became enchanted by the delicate coloration on the skin, which was palest at the very center, then darkened as the leaf spread outward. Paulette began to draw.

She started with a very light pencil sketch of the outer shape of the oak leaf. Then she picked up the palest yellow pencil and dotted out the spine of the leaf, applying firmness when the stem darkened and very light dots where the spine was barely perceivable. Next she grasped the emerald green pencil in her hand. She began dotting the darkest parts of her drawing, but leaving places to insert the light colors.

Paulette withdrew from the world around her, focusing on the leaf and its colorations. She forgot about her new assignments, the stressors of the new semester, and the challenges of her new sobriety. Paulette was at one with her drawing, reaching for the challenges of duplicating one of God's creations.

PJ was speaking to Paulette, "Paulette?"

Paulette stopped and turned to PJ. "What?" She vaguely heard the campus clock striking noon.

"Class is over; it's time to turn in your work." PJ was smiling. "The bug got you, didn't it?"

"What do you mean?" asked Paulette.

"The art creating bug. It bit you. You weren't here anymore; you were there with your creation." PJ smiled again. "I got bit a long time ago. Now the moments I spend creating are my best moments in the day."

"I think you're right," answered Paulette. "This was definitely the best part of my day so far, and I really forgot about all my troubles. This was amazing."

Paulette signed her drawing and placed her student number at the bottom of the page. Then she turned her work into the professor and carried her easel and chair back to the classroom.

She and PJ mounted the moped and drove to Garibaldi's for lunch. Paulette was interested to see where PJ worked and heard the pizza was delicious.

When she walked into the pizza joint, it took a minute for Paulette's eyes to adjust to the cave-like atmosphere. Two of the walls were painted a dark, pine green. The front wall was a glass window, but it had khaki shades that were drawn against the blazing August sun. The back wall in the food preparation area was a montage of caricatures of the original Garibaldi clientele and staff. Paulette smiled at the cartoons drawn on the back wall portraying the U of M students. She tried to identify people in the room, but PJ reminded her the drawing was over 20 years old. Mike had it painted when he first started his restaurant by starving art students. PJ brought her attention to the front of the glass where the employees were building pizzas.

At Garibaldi's, pizza is still built for the client from scratch. There are no premixed ingredients. Each morning Mike goes to the restaurant and makes the pizza crust dough from his mama's recipe. He forms the dough into balls and placed them on a shelf to proof and rise. He then starts the pizza sauce, also made from scratch. He puts two big vats onto the gas stove and begins to assemble the ripe tomatoes, onions and garlic to cook a rich tomato gravy. He adds oregano, basil, and his mystery ingredients to let the sauce simmer for four hours until the lunch break. He cooks the spicy Italian sausage until it browns, and puts it in the refrigerator case. Then he cooks the hamburger for those who like meaty pizzas. He slices a fresh pepperoni, fries several pounds of bacon, and chops all the onions, olives, pepperoncini peppers, jalapeno peppers, bell peppers and mushrooms for the pizza toppings. His last chore is to prepare the steak patties for his Vesuvian Steak sandwiches, made with steak, cheese, lettuce, and tomato on a home baked garlic hoagie bun.

Paulette looked at the tantalizing array of toppings and said, "What is the house specialty pizza?"

Immediately Mike Garibaldi answered, "Memphis barbecue. I make the barbecue at home on the weekends and bring it here each week for the pizzas. Have a barbecue pepper pizza, it's the best."

Paulette answered, "I'll try it! Do you have dessert?"

Mike smiled, "We have my momma's homemade chocolate silk pie. Will a piece of that do for you?"

Paulette grinned, "You are speaking to my tummy now."

PJ said, "It's time for me to go to work, so I'll leave you now."

When Mike finished preparing her order and added a plastic Garibaldi's glass for her beverage, Paulette removed her wallet from her backpack to pay for her purchases. Mike waved her money away and said, "The first one's on me."

Paulette surprisedly said, "Why thank you!" and moved to a table to enjoy her dinner. Paulette dug into the hot pizza and watched the strings of melted cheese ooze onto her plate. The crust was buttery tasting with just a hint of garlic. The mild pepperoncini peppers that were diced onto the barbecue gave just a touch of fire to the tongue. Paulette was soon on her second glass of cola as she devoured the barbecue pizza.

When Mike came back through the dining area while he was bussing tables, he stopped to ask Paulette's opinion of the Memphis special pizza.

"This was delicious," remarked Paulette. "And this pie is downright heavenly."

Mike smiled and said, "Mama's recipes are always the best. I'm glad you like it. Come back soon."

Mike gathered the dirty plates and utensils and moved to the back of the restaurant while Paulette picked up her backpack and leftover pizza to trek to the library for her study group.

When Paulette walked into the library, she took the elevator to the second floor and looked for Taylor and the study group. They had occupied a long table in the center of the room, so Paulette quickly found her place while they set the study agenda.

"We've decided to study by sections," remarked Taylor.

"What method is that?" inquired Paulette.

"We've divided the course into sections so that each person learns one section well for the midterm exam. That person provides a study sheet with important facts and then has one day to teach it all to the rest of us. This way, instead of reading all the assignments and learning each section one by one, we only have to memorize the outline from the student and teach our one section," replied Taylor.

"What if the student doesn't teach the right information, or leaves something out?" questioned Paulette. She wasn't very sure of this idea as she saw many possible problems.

"Oh, don't worry," answered Taylor. "You don't want to spend all your college time studying. We have a party in the dorm every weekend, and those are not to be missed. Also, as a freshman, you can't pledge a sorority, but you can go to the pre-sorority parties."

"I'm not sure how much party time I will have," said Paulette slowly. "I really want to do well this semester. I have a scholarship based on my grades, and I don't want to lose it."

Skylar, the girl with the kinky-curly red hair and clear blue braces on her teeth, spoke up, "Who is that hottie that has been riding you around campus?"

Paulette smiled. "That is PJ; we have a few classes together."

"Are you an item?" Skylar pushed. "If not, I want a piece of that. I like his style."

Paulette frowned for a few minutes. "No, we have no commitment. We're just friends." Paulette pushed that thought aside to retrieve for perusal later.

Paulette pulled her Biology book out of her backpack and opened to the first chapter. She wanted to make sure she understood the concepts thoroughly before she went to her first lab session. She did not want to get behind on her studies in the first week of the semester, and the science classes were the hardest for her.

Paulette excelled in English and History. She had tested out of the History requirement altogether, as she had taken Advanced Placement classes in high school. She also tested out of two semesters of English, which is why she was taking English 3010, Shakespearian Readings, instead of Composition 1010. This gave her even more reading assignments, but the homework was much more interesting.

Paulette began reading the first chapter of her Biology book, as the assignment was the first three chapters before Thursday morning and her first lab was tonight. She was absorbed in the information when she began to hear the others whispering about the Friday night dorm party. It was going to be a mixer, with both the boys and the girls attending in the second floor common room. She was only listening with one ear when she heard Taylor remark, "I'll bring the Seagram's, who else is bringing booze?"

Paulette tried not to look like she was listening as she took the mental inventory of how many students were bringing alcoholic beverages to the party. Toby mentioned he was bringing a case of beer, and Skylar said she was bringing peppermint schnapps. A fourth student said he was bringing Pure Grain Alcohol and Kool-Aid, to make PGA punch. Paulette turned, then backed out and decided Friday night would be a good night to study in her room. She did not need the extra alcohol temptation. She decided to pick up a new AA meeting schedule and maybe attend a Friday night meeting. The next thing Paulette saw was PJ coming up to the group to pick her up for Biology Lab. Paulette looked around and realized the rest of the group had left. She was so immersed in her studies she didn't even notice she was alone.

PJ whispered to her, "Are you ready to leave?"

Paulette nodded.

They took the elevator to the ground floor of the library and climbed onto the moped to head across campus to the Biology Lab. The Lab was a full two blocks away from the library, and Paulie was happy that PJ had given her a ride. Her legs were a little sore from swimming two days in a row at the campus pool. Today she had gone before classes because she knew she had a study group this afternoon.