Red headed Doll

I was sitting on the porch waiting for my father. I heard my brothers and sister begging him not to take me, I had no idea where they were protesting me not to go.

I sat there with my red headed knock off barbie doll. Her hair was long and thick like my hair and just as knotty. I wished I had the same vibrant blue dress and silver shoes to match instead of the dirty dungaree shorts, stained yellow blouse and hand me down sneakers that appeared to blend in with the sidewalk.

It seemed that my father knew when I was just about to move from the porch and chase a butterfly, he shouted from the upstairs window to not dare move. My brothers and sister begging became sobbing pleas not to take me. I started to cry myself. I still did not know what was about to happen but just hearing their sobs forced me to cry. I wrapped my arms around my knees and rested my head upon them. My eyes began to burn and I wished for my father to lick his thumb and wipe them away, then I longed for his pocket handkerchief which he would hold to my nose and tell me to blow.

Through blurred vision and the slurping sound of me trying to clear at least one nostril so I could get a breath in I heard 2 car door shut, when I looked up there was 2 burly silhouettes coming towards me. My father was shouting to just take me and he would get in touch with their office later on.

I was scooped up and placed in the back seat of a car. Two men in gray suits were in the front, one driving and the other in the passenger seat filling out paper work with a pen he took from behind his ear. My cry became screams for my father. The men stated that my father is the one that called them to pick me up and take me.

"Take me where?" I demanded to know.

"You know exactly where you need to go." The man filling out the paper work answered.

I needed my father to get me out of the car, to tell these men to let me go, needed him to help me get the knots out of my dolls hair and mine.

"My doll!" I yelped. As we drove away and all I could do was watch her disappear.

The burly men waited for me to stop crying. The driver stated to me that I ought to stop pretending that I didn't know where I was going and why. I must have ran out of tears but the sorrow remained. I starred out of the window watching trees speed by, the trees turned into buildings and after a while back into trees.

I had no idea where or why I was in the back seat of a car with strange burly men dressed up like they were going to a wedding, actually like they were in a wedding because they had on matching gray suits. They could not be taking me to a wedding, I was not in a pretty dress, my sister did not set my hair in rollers the night before and my brothers were not forced to take photos in their suits. I needed to know where I was going with these men in suits , while I looked so raggedy and was alone! Why did they think I ought to know?

"I am NOT lying, and I want to go home now" I snapped back.

"Your lucky we did not handcuff you like all the others" the driver grumbled.

We pulled up to a beautiful home, A man and woman were embracing as we approached, the man let go to open my door.

The woman extended her hand to me and led me out of the car and into their embrace. She then took me into the beautiful home while the man stayed outside talking to the men in gray suits.

She introduced herself as Mary as she walked me up a huge staircase and into a huge bedroom where everything was decorated in pink. My eyes could not take it all in. I had to walk throughout the room to see all the toys and pink. It was like my Saturday morning cartoon commercials filled with everything that I wanted was in this room and shaded with every variation of pink there was. As I wondered to one end I noticed something shiny and red at the other end. I knew just what it was and I could not wait to to hold it. It was a real barbie doll, without knots in-fact she was still in her box.

Mary sat on the edge of the huge bed in the middle of the huge room just watching me and smiling at me as I squealed over each toy and accessory. When Charles, her husband joined us in the room he questioned Mary of she told me anything yet, Mary shook her head and continued to smile at me.

Charles took me by the arm and led me to the bed to sit in between he and Mary. They both looked down at me and asked me if I understood what I had done to deserve this.

"What did I do, is this all mine? Can I share with my sister and where are my brothers stuff?" I quickly answered as I was anxiously wanting to comb Arial's hair.

They looked at one another for a moment and sadly looked down at me.

"No honey, I am sorry your brothers and sister will not be coming" Mary softly answered.

As I sat there sobbing and wondering why, I noticed a vibrant blue dress hanging in the closet and shiny silver shoes at the bottom of the closet. Once I noticed them they stood out like a soar thumb amongst all the pink.

That next night after taking off that vibrant blue dress and shiny silver shoes and dressing in pink pajamas while tucked under sheets and blankets in the huge bed in the middle of the huge room in Mary and Charles beautiful home that the two burly men in gray suits drove me to without my brothers and sister and no father with a wet thumb and folded hanky and my red headed doll and I with no knots I still did not know why I was grabbed off my porch.

It was not until months later i realized what i had done.

I was born! I was born the 4th child to parents that were financially struggling. At 9 months of age my mother suddenly died. My father's finances worsened, what money he would make he spent on alcohol. When he had a sober moment he sat with us children and asked who we wanted to live with.

"No one, I hate everyone" was my answer.

My brothers and sister provided names of family members that hey wanted to live with. They were much older than I and understood what was happening. All I knew was that i wanted the knots out of my hair and pretty clothes to wear.

Mary and Charles took great care of me. I can't say that I hated them however I hated the way they referred to me as their Red headed Doll.