Blu and the AlleyWay

Whew! It's hot out here! Hotter than a fish fried in country grease! Why in the world am I sounding like my Mama and Big Mama? We used to say we wouldn't say all that stupid S.ugar h.oney I.ced T.ea stuff if you know what I mean.

I' m standing here looking in the alley way and I remember when Mama told us if we go in that alley she would kill us like a dead doorknob...here I go again! It's so hot out here and I am reminiscing about some stupid alley way. There are apartments back there, but I have never been back there. The apartments were faced backwards so you couldn't see what in the world was going on there and who lived there, but I knew several people that lived there. Many were my classmates.

Mama and Big Mama always said 'trash' lived back there. We would sometimes here loud music and it seemed as if there was always a party (especially on Friday and Saturday nights). Big Mama was a staunch Christian woman and would not hear of such as thing. Big Mama lived with us and Mama. And, Mama seemed to fear her as did all of her children. The only one that could slightly stand up to her was my Uncle Mann. She so loved him! He was everyone’s protector…especially Mama, who was the baby of the family. He called her Play Doll. After, Daddy left, Uncle Mann stepped up and help us out a lot.

Here I am coming to Big Mama’s funeral and thinking about an alley way! This is too funny! “Blu, when you gonna get your but in here and start getting ready? You haven’t even eaten breakfast.” I heard my aunt yelling at me. This was a little house and there were so many people in it already—prancing around remembering stuff I didn’t remember. How in the world did all of us live in this house—no wonder I am hot and sweaty just thinking about the house alone. I didn’t want to go in just yet, because I really wanted to go down that alleyway that was forbidden to all of us. Just as soon as I finished that thought, my sister and brother came out of the house and crisscrossed their fingers at me as if to say, you gonna get your but whipped! We all burst out in laughter at the same time.

“I just, for once, wanna go down the alleyway to see what is there,” I said to my siblings. Savannah Blu, you are too crazy! My sister always like to say my whole name to make me mad. Most people called me just plain ol’ “Blu”. My brother went on to say, “ain’t nothing much down there noways”. “How you know?” I asked. “Cause I been down there plenty times!’ What?? You lying, both me and my sister said at the same time. “It must’ve been since you been grown and it has changed, I said.” Nope, it was when I was around 15. I snuck back there to see Glory Jean. You mean, Gloria Standham now?  Yup, that’s here! She’s now a high falooting attorney in New York City. What!!?? Both me and my sister again said together! Big Mama always said didn’t nothing live back there but trash, but I guess she was wrong.

“Well, said my brother Michael-Angel, “you know how Big Mama was.” She was overly protective when she didn’t even know why. All she heard was loud DEVIL music as she called it. Wasn’t necessary so. Glory Jean had a nice apartment, and her mama was really nice to me. I help Glory Jean with her math, and she was really happy about that because Glory Jean almost failed because she didn’t know math like that!

I’m still listening to my big brother, Michael-Angel and I am in awe! I think my sister, Crissina and I both are! I can’t even imagine anyone of us going against Big Mama and Mama wishes and sashshaying down there. I know he was a boy, but boys in our family got whupping too—sometimes harder than the girls.

“How long did you stay?” I asked. Only about 45 minutes, Michael-Angel said. Forty-five minutes? That’s a long time! Where was Mama and Big Mama? Sina asked. We called her Sina, short for Crissina. “Uncle Mann had taken them to the store, and ya’ll wasn’t paying attention to me, so I snuck out! What the hell? I said. No way Jose said Sina. I always knew where you were. No, you didn’t, especially if you were on the phone talking to that big-head fool, John, Jr. We all laughed!

I had told Glory Jean that I was gonna try to sneak over at school, and she said it was okay because her Mama would be home, and that’s just what I did! As, Michael-Angel is talking I am still in awe! My mouth is wide open, and Sina suddenly says, you better close your mouth or some flies or gnats gonna get in there, if they already ain’t. I close my mouth, but I’m still in awe! I think, why wasn’t I that brave? I was often told, I was the one that would try anything, but I NEVER, and I mean NEVER thought about trying Big Mama and Mama!

I remember sitting on our back porch stoop and talking to one of my friends that lived in the alley. She was talking through her window to me. She couldn’t visit me and I sho nuf couldn’t visit her. Visiting folks house back then was a NO NO, not matter where they lived.

“What else was back there?” I asked. Well, there were a lot of old beat up cars in front of some of the apartments, and yes, there were some bad kids back there, but mostly good kids. Kids that you and I know. One of my best friends lived back there. It looked a lot worse than it does now, sis. As you can see, the apartments are remodeled.

I wanna go back there I said! Crissina said want the hell for? Ain’t nothing back there for you, girl. Big Mama dead, and Mama probably think you crazy anyways. All of us just laughed and laughed. Michael-Angel said, I walk back there with you Blu. And, off we went – just because!