Kalliope 2014.pdf May. 2014 | Page 125

point to inhale the mixed scents of wood and dust that emanated the house. The aroma immediately reminded me of Nana and Granddaddy shuffling around the house, pausing every few minutes to relax in the kitchen. Granddaddy had no fear for kicking people out of Nana’s chair at the table. Of course, she’d always say it was no big deal and she’d pick the next one down, but Granddaddy would always remind the person sitting there, “That’s Mary Elizabeth’s chair.” There was no question or even command to get up, it was all implied. I swiveled the chair as I led Eric through the kitchen and into the hall at the front of the house. There was a long bench along the length of the hallway, occupied by National Geographic and Country Living magazines, many of which were released long before I was born. “Hello?” I called into the living room. I saw there was a car outside and wanted to make sure not to scare my Aunt Beth. I heard her get up from a reclining chair. She rounded the corner into the hallway with a somewhat confused look on her face. It took a moment for her to register what was happening, “Well howdy! What are you boys doing down here?” She asked as she came up for a hug. I could smell the cigarette smoke on her denim dress, as always. Her long, misty gray hair was twisted in a swirl over her right shoulder and her voice was calm as always. It was the smoky, quiet, but confident voice of the older sister of my mother. She was mother of four and the grandmother of nine. “Well, Eric and I decided to come down for a visit after school today. We got done class early and wanted to do something new this weekend.” I paused and realized I ought to reintroduce them. “This is my friend Eric, he was with me at Granddaddy’s funeral last month, but I’m not sure you two met.” “Ah, I remembered his face, but not his name.” She leaned in to hug him. “Well, how was the trip?” She asked as they both withdrew from the greeting. I could see Aunt Beth was naturally trying to measure up to Eric’s good posture, but it looked forced and unnatural, compared to his effortless straight back and confidence. I smiled, somewhat proud of his influence on her already. “It wasn’t too bad at all! The roads were clear and we got through D.C. by three o’clock, so we skipped most rush hour traffic. From there it was only three hours, so we made it in five, total. Can’t complain, really.” 123