Legacy Writing 365:137

I told Cousin Rachel that I don’t seem to have any photos of her father, Cloyce, but when I was looking at my laptop, I found this one. That I have it scanned in there means it’s among the other Mysteriously Missing Photos that are hiding from me somewhere in this house. In email exchanges, I reminisced to Rachel about the dogs her father raised, trying to remember whether they were chihuahuas. She said she’d forgotten all about those dogs, and they were actually Toy Manchester Terriers. As soon as she said so, my memory of them became much clearer.

When talking to David and Debby about this, David reminded me that Uncle Cloyce could bark exactly like those dogs, which I’d forgotten. It’s funny how just a few words can open a door to a flood of memories. I loved sitting outside his store next to Uncle Cloyce. He always gave me an icy cold soft drink and a lot of laughter. Rachel said he probably talked my ear off telling me the same old stories. How I wish I could recall those now.

In the picture above, taken the same Christmas as earlier photos I’ve shared, Rachel and her then-boyfriend Charles are standing next to David and Debby, then Papa and Jane-Jane, then Uncle Cloyce, and Mother’s holding me. I’m either three (Hanley’s age now) or four (Lila’s age now), and clearly I’ve been crying. Who knows what was wrong with me, but what really bewilders me is how Debby looks a little sulky. She’s standing RIGHT NEXT to her favorite coconut cake! She probably got caught taking a swipe at the frosting with her finger. Most notable: This photo apparently predates my brother’s habit of sneaking bunny ears on the person standing next to him. Or else Aunt Drexel, who may have been wielding the camera, could have given him the schoolteacher stare and put a stop to his shenanigans.