That man drives me crazy, Mary thought. He says he loves me when I ask and we go out when he’s home, but he never writes me when he is away or tells me about things happening in his life if I don’t ask. She gazed in the mirror watching as she carefully applied her reddest lipstick. Rising from the stool in front of the vanity she inspected herself in the mirror. She hadn’t been the prettiest girl in their high school class three years ago, but she was trim and her smile was captivating. Her pin curled hair style had perfect victory rolls and even though she didn’t make much as a waitress at the cafe counter in Woolworth’s 5 & 10 Cent Store, she knew how to handle what she made so she could dress in the latest styles.
She smiled at herself in the mirror then looked down at the photo taken on the day she and Carl graduated from high school. He looked so handsome and mature in the suit he had borrowed from his brother-in-law for the ceremony. They looked so perfect together, his crooked smile in the picture made her feel warm inside. He is not going to get away from me she decided, besides he told me if he had to go into the army we would get married, that sounds like a proposal to me. I know he loves me even if he can’t tell me himself.
“Mom!” she called as she walked down the narrow staircase inside their green shingled farm house. She glanced out the window located on the landing at the spot where the stairs turned. The sun lit the corridor brightly when the sun was up, at night it was dark and spooky in the same space. She could just make out the new plants in the garden her daddy raised when he wasn’t working in the coal mines. The rest of the forty acres was covered in corn. “Mom, where are you?” she called again.
“I’m right here on the back porch.” She heard through the screen door leading from the kitchen to the porch. She stepped outside and saw her mom pumping water from the well. Her mom’s heavy body, was backlighted by the rising sun and Mary could see the rows of sprouting corn marching right up to the edge of the narrow yard behind the shadowy figure of her Mom. It was Saturday morning and that meant her mom and daddy would bathe. Her Daddy first, after he finished her Mom would pour some more boiling water from the kettle on the wood burning stove into the tin tub and wash herself. Mary always looked forward to Saturday because the house smelled so much better. She took sponge baths every night but, her Mom and Daddy got a little pungent by the end of the week.
Country life on this small farm three miles outside Illinois’ capitol wasn’t what she had in mind for her future. That, she thought to herself, was part of the reason she wanted to marry Carl. He was so smart, going to college on a scholarship, studying chemistry and he had signed up to become an officer in the Army Air Corps. She just knew their life would be happier than her parent’s had been. That is if he would show a little more interest in getting married. Carl tended to put off today until tomorrow anything having to do with their relationship. He had never asked her to a dance in high school until she had asked him if he was going to ask her.
“What do I have to do to get married?” she asked her mom. “Carl’s sister says he has been called to active service in the Air Corps and will be leaving for training a the end of the spring semester. That’s only two months away.”
“I don’t know Mary Elizabeth, why would you want to get married anyway, men only want one thing, you know. Carl is okay but he is a man.” Pansy replied in a flat emotionless tone.
“I know Daddy’s been hard on you, and me for that matter, but Carl isn’t like that, he doesn’t have a mean bone in his whole body. He’ll make me happy.” Mary Elizabeth answered defensively.
“Help me carry in this water,” Pansy said as she stooped over and grabbed one handle on the tub of cold water. Mary reached down and grabbed the other handle. They lifted up the heavy bath water and carried it into the kitchen, setting it next to the stove where there were already kettles of water sending out puffs of steam signaling they were almost ready to boil.
“Who is getting married?” said a quiet voice at kitchen door leading to the living room.
“Grandma, what are doing out of bed? I thought you were sick.” Mary told her short, white-haired step-grandma.
“No, I’m okay, I need to move around a little, I can’t stand laying in bed when there is so much work to do.”
Mary looked at her Grandma and saw that she was pale and her eyes lacked the gutsy spark that she loved so much. “Okay, you walk around, but you don’t need to be doing any work.”
“Phooey, I been working my whole life, I can’t stop now.” Grandma said as she looked at the pile of dishes on the counter from last night’s meal. “Did Carl ask you to get hitched?” She inquired.
“No, well sort of, you know he doesn’t really express himself, but I know he loves me and Marg says he has been activated and he said we would get married if he got called up. I certainly don’t want him going off to those French girls without a ring on his finger.”
“Mary Elizabeth, put some more water on the stove and stoke the fire a bit while I go to the outhouse.” Pansy ordered as she walked out the back door. Mary began filling more kettles with water and placing them on the stove while her Grandma continued speaking.
“Lord, Lord I remember when your Uncle Pearl was sent off to the great war. Those people over there are always needing our young men to die for them. That was a terrible time and now Carl has to go. No telling what will happen to him. You better marry him while you can or some French girl will grab him.” Grandma told Mary.
Mary’s mouth turned down and she looked at the floor as she considered what her Grandma told her. “I think I have a plan to do just that.” She mumbled as the kettles on the stove began to whistle.
The screen door opened as Pansy walked to the stove, picked up a kettle and began adding boiling water to the tub she and Mary had just brought into the house. “Chester your bath is ready.” She called. “Chester can you hear me!” she yelled to her husband.
“I’m coming woman, stop your caterwauling!” a throaty voice answered from another part of the house.
“Your Daddy won’t be happy about you wanting to marry Carl. You know he don’t like him much. He and Carl’s pop never did get along. Them Bullocks are always putting on airs but they ain’t nothing but dirt farmers without a farm.” Pansy told Mary.
“That’s right.” Grandma added, “Remember Chester and Carl going at it last year when he dropped you off after the dance? Chester thinks all the Bullocks are lazy and shiftless. Carl’s dad ain’t worked a day in his life, I bet. He’s always to sick and his wife is always yelling at all those kids, making them work, carrying papers and taking care of yards. I don’t think they would be able to eat if there weren’t eight kids in that house that all began working when they can carry a newspaper bag.”
“I don’t care what Daddy thinks I’m a grown woman, I make my own decisions and Daddy can go to hell as far as I’m concerned.” Mary said vehemently as she remembered childhood beatings from her alcohol crazed Dad. What right does he have to judge anybody? If it weren’t for her Grandma and mom she would have moved out of the house long ago, but they needed someone to keep the old man from taking his anger out on them and she wasn’t afraid to stand up to him and tell him what she thought. She planned to move her Grandma out when she moved out, but she knew her Mom would never stop being a victim because she didn’t think she could live without Chester. She was an old fashioned woman who thought she needed a man to take care of her. Chester could barely take care of himself, besides this was 1943 and women were learning how to take care of themselves working in factories and wherever else the men had worked before so many had been shipped of to fight the Nazis.
Chester entered the room, his fat belly preceded him through door, hanging over the top his underpants and jiggling from side to side as he waddled toward the tub. He looked at the women in his life in silence, glaring at each one before pulling down his shorts. He stepped into the tub, farted and squatted down in the hot water. “Wash my back Pansy.” He said as she took the soap from his uplifted hand.
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Later that day as she walked down Oak Street, bound for Carl’s house to talk to his brother, she finalized her plan. She had hitched a ride into to town with her neighbor, Earl, in his brand new green 1941 Ford One Ton Express pick up truck. She sure hoped she and Carl would be able to afford a new car someday, new things smelled so nice. Earl dropped her off at the library telling her he would pick her up in exactly two hours. At the library she discovered that all she needed to do was show up at the justice of the peace with a consenting Carl. They could get married after filling out some papers and paying a small fee. That was all she needed to know to begin her ambush.
She was pensive as she approached the picket fence surrounding the front yard of the Bullock’s small house. Her plan really depended on Carl’s brother Vern and he wasn’t always ready to be helpful. As she opened the gate she looked at the front porch and saw him sitting on the porch swing, slowly moving back and forth. His head had fallen forward on his chest, his usual position when he was sitting on the porch swing. Vern said he liked to sit there and think, but Mary knew he was asleep.
“Vern, wake up!” She called and was gratified to see Vernon’s body jump, startled by her voice.
“Hey, Mary, what you doing here, Carl isn’t home this weekend, I don’t think he’ll be here for a couple of weeks.” Vernon tells her.
“Thats okay, I want to talk to you.”
Vern’s eyes narrowed and he asked, “What for?”
“I need your help Vern. Marg told me yesterday that Carl has been called up and I want you to take me to Macomb in your dad’s car.”
“Why do you want to do that?” Vern asked, “I’m not sure dad will lend me the car, there ain’t much money for gas anyway. Besides, does Carl know you’re coming?”
“Look Vern, I’m going to take Carl to the justice of the peace and we are going to get married. He isn’t going off to the army before that happens.”
“I don’t know Mary, I don’t want to do anything like that. Carl will ask you someday and then you will get married.”
“You know Carl and I have been dating since we were sixteen. He loves me and I love him. Who else is he going to marry? Besides he might never ask me and he’ll go off to war and maybe never come back. I couldn’t stand for that to happen to us, but I could stand it better if we were married. Besides, do you want him to meet some foreign girl and bring her home? Any way he almost proposed already, he just needs to be pushed a little to remember that.” She finished and smiled at Vern.
“I believe he loves you Mary, I just don’t want him to be mad at me, but I sure don’t want no foreign sister-in-law.”
“He won’t be mad Vern, after we are married he will be very happy.” Mary replied sweetly. “Besides I’ll give you $5.00 to take me to Macomb.”
“Okay, Mary, I’ll borrow a friends car though, I don’t think Dad’s carburetor is working right, but you have to pay for the gas too. When do you want to go”
“Great, I’ll be here at 8:00 am on Monday morning, Carl only has morning classes on Mondays and I don’t have to work until Tuesday afternoon. We can get there in plenty of time to go to the justice of the peace in the afternoon then you can stay in Carl’s room that night while we go to a motel and we’ll come back on Tuesday morning.” She explained to Butch. And I will make Carl very glad he married me and we will start a whole new life somewhere besides Springfield she thought to herself.
“Don’t forget,” She told Vernon as she patted him on the cheek, spun around and said over her shoulder, “Eight sharp.”
“Right.” He answered as he watched her walk away. Carl is in for the surprise of his life, he thought as his head fell forward and his eyes closed.
*****************************************************************************
At noon on Monday the car pulled up in front of Carl’s house in Macomb and Vern honked the horn of the 1940 Chevrolet Special Deluxe 2 door convertible coupe he had borrowed from his friend. The noisy passengers called out for Carl to come to the door. Mary sat quietly as she contemplated her next move. She was glad that Carl’s younger sister Marg, her boyfriend and Carl’s older sister, her husband and their young son Dick had joined the expedition to Macomb with her and her best friend Ruthe. They were all excited about the wedding, now she hoped Carl would be just as excited.
Carl came to the door, his hair disheveled and his corduroy slacks and a checkered flannel shirt were wrinkled like he had never ironed them. He smiled and waved to his family and Mary. “What the heck are you guys doing here on Monday?” He asked after Vern shut off the engine. Before anyone could reply Carl’s roommates, Freddy, Harry and Wayne followed each other out the door and stood behind Carl wondering what was going on.
Vernon said, “You better ask Mary.”
Everyone became quiet as Mary opened the door and went to stand in front of Carl. She looked in his eyes and saw that there was a glint of amusement accompanying the crooked smile she loved so much. This is going to work she thought, he probably expected me to make the first move anyway.
“Carl, we’ve come for a wedding.”
“Carl’s smile widened as he asked her, “Who do you know in Macomb getting married?”
“You” Mary whispered, as she looked up and peered into Carl’s blue eyes where saw the look of amusement change to a look of surprise.
“Mine, what do you mean?”
“Carl, you boys are going to get cleaned up and all of us are going to the justice of the peace where you and I are getting married. If you remember you said we would get married if you had to go into the army and I hear they’ve called you up.”
“I guess I did promise that.” Carl remembered. “It’s just that I expected this happen just before I left. You caught me too quickly Miss Howard.” Carl laughed as he looked at Mary and took her small hands in his callused hands and stared into her eyes. “I guess I better make sure you really want to do this.”
“You want to make sure I want to do this?” Mary said the surprise was in her voice now. “Why do you think I gathered all this people up and traveled for two hours in this crowded car?”
“Take it easy, you sure get riled up easy. Just be quiet for a minute.” Carl looked at Mary as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box. “Okay, here goes.” He knelt in front of Mary, opening the box while he spoke. “Mary Elizabeth Howard, will you marry me?” As he finished speaking the box was open and there gleaming in the sun was an engagement ring, with a very small diamond. “He looked up at Mary expectantly and said, “It isn’t a big one now, but someday we will buy you the one you want.”
Mary’s mouth was open but no words were coming out. She reached for the ring and taking out of the box she placed it on her finger. Carl stood up and Mary put her arms around his waist and pulled him forward. He bent his neck and his lips found hers. When they had finished kissing Mary finally spoke. “I will, Carl, I will marry you and love you forever.”
Carl smiled and said, for the first time, “I love you too.”
Mary realized that her plan had worked even better than she hoped, for it appeared Carl already had plan for her. She turned to her friends in the car and held up her hand displaying the ring on her finger. “Hallelujah,” she giggled the onlookers cheered for her and Carl. Some bottles of champagne appeared from within the house and they all toasted Carl and Liz. Then they all began talking and planning the rest of the day as they moved into the house to celebrate the engagement. Four hours later they were back in the house celebrating the wedding. That night Mary Elizabeth Bullock made sure Carl Henry Bullock would remember that day with joy.
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