School was out and summer was raging on which meant my sister and I had all day to ourselves with just a few simple rules. The first rule every parent sets is, “Don’t have anyone over while I’m gone.” My mother set a few others too. Don’t go outside, don’t go in the kitchen and cook (that was directed at me) and don’t watch soap operas. I believe on this day my sister and I broke every one of these rules. We went and gathered some neighborhood kids, turned on the greatest soap opera ever and sat down to watch and eat popcorn. Right in the middle of the show guess who opens the door, none other than my mother who wasn’t supposed to be home for hours. When she opened the door our friends scurried out, tossing popcorn everywhere. My sister and I sat wide eyed as she loomed in the doorway. She simply said, “I came home early to take you to the Olive Garden for lunch.” She then closed the door and went back to work. When she got home nothing at all was said. We were not punished or even scolded. To this day I remember the look of disappointment on her face and the tone in her voice that said, “I expected you to do right but you didn’t.” I’ll never forget it.
Dear Lilly from As The World Turns,
How amazing it was to watch you every summer when my mother was gone to work. I always wondered if you’d marry the stable boy Holden. Sometimes I wondered if you didn’t because he smelled like the stable he worked in. I can’t remember if you guys ever got together and stayed together. That probably never happened because it would make the show less dramatic and painful. To keep a soap opera going there must a lot of affairs, inner turmoil and corrupted power otherwise it’s just boring. Happiness is not an option for these type of shows so I’d say you never got your cowboy. Too bad, he was cute with his rugged shave and hair. Anyway, thank you very much for summers filled with the seven deadly sins. The memories are great.
As a child I vowed to only watch As The World Turns but I have to admit, I strayed and watched The Young and The Restless as well as Guiding Light. At least I hated the show The Bold and The Beautiful and despised General Hospital. Other than the two soap indiscretions I stayed true to you. That should count for something in your world of sex, temporary death and money.
Thanks again,
The grown up version of the little rebel girl who still frequents The Olive Garden
PS. I never could stand your mother.
Random Memory: As The World Turns-Friday, August 15, 2008-8:11PM EST
This made me sad. I think because she was being nice and it was potential for a nice things. However, it also shows how arbitrary her “punishments” could be. I don’t know it just feels sad. Maybe, my own projection.
It’s bittersweet but for me mostly sweet. For years I felt I disappointed her but it didn’t stop me from watching the show while she was at work. I mostly remember it fondly.
Sometimes she’d wake my sister and me up in the middle of the night and ask if we wanted to go get White Castles. Being a vegetarian (at the time I was) I just got a chocolate shake while they ate sliders. Sometimes she’d say, “lets skip work and school and go to a movie and lunch.” She’d say, “Tomorrow we’re going to Chicago” “Tomorrow we’re going to the zoo in Ohio” We did stuff like that all the time. Sometimes it was fun but the trouble was always that we had to come back home. We usually had a great time out, it was home, when we pulled up to the house that things changed. There was lots of fun growing up, lots of outings and trips, stuff like that. Sometimes I’d wake up in the morning and find a little wrapped gift on my dresser. You never knew what to expect with her.
I know hearing about outings, gifts and fun things makes it hard to grasp that she was also a monster. I suppose even Ted Bundy had a nice side too but ya know, who cares!!!!! He’s known for one thing and one thing only, he was a monster and so is my mother…nice side or not, a monster.
Austin
Toilet had a nice side too - that made it difficult to always see him as a monster.