Memories Light the Corners of my Mind

 I have a little story to tell about when my oldest brother ( who was a whole year younger than me) and I "broke in" a neighbors house, yep, I was the criminal mastermind and he was just along as my partner in crime, picture this...it was 1961, a hot sweltering Sunday mid-morning, I was 3 and he was 2 and Mother had her hands full with us and the new baby, sister Paula Turbyfill Howard, there was no one else around, usually we had plenty of children to play with, we had fun too, we would climb into a 55 gallon metal drum that Daddy had provided for us and we'd push it up a hill, climb inside and roll down hill, we had large cardboard boxes that we put together to make a maze that we had to crawl through, we looked for bugs and butterflies, we chased each other around and did all the things children did back when there were no electronic baby sitters, on this particular Sunday the neighborhood was empty, so we were on our own ha! I don't know just what made me do this, but I went to a neighbor's front door, jiggled the handle and the door opened! after we got inside the door slammed shut and we were locked inside, as we wandered around the house, just like Goldilocks I spied something tasty on the kitchen table, a dozen jars of newly made blackberry jelly, yummy! so we dove in and opened those jars, we ate our fill and then we decorated her kitchen with what was left, let me tell you, we had a great time...until ( there is always an until in these types of stories!) Mother appeared at the front door trying to get in, I remember Buck running to the door, trying to open it and I told him not to because we'd get a spanking, so I went to the back door and made sure it was locked and I went on painting the kitchen table and chairs, and especially the cabinets I could reach, finally Mother found a way inside, she had to crawl through the kitchen window which was just above the sink, oh no! she caught us, we did get the spanking I had warned Buck about but the worst punishment for me was having to go down and apologize and help clean, well I think that was a good life lesson for me, I never again went into someone's home without being invited! After we were grown I asked Buck if he remembered doing that and he said "NO, but I remember the spanking we got for it." I didn't remember that but I remembered the shame I felt having to apologize and help clean her kitchen! But I do still love blackberry jelly!