My grandmother was a sweet lady most of the time. But once she showed her preference for grandsons over granddaughters. It was Easter time. My two sisters and I were at Grandma’s door, ready to leave. Mom was carrying our little brother.
“Wait,” Grandma said. “I have some little gifts for you for Easter.”
She went into her bedroom and came back with three packages of yellow Peeps, those horrible marshmallow candies. Did anyone actually eat those? She handed them to the three of us girls.
Mom had taught us to say thank you, no matter how we felt about our gifts. I was getting ready to do that when Grandma handed our little brother a chocolate bunny in a fancy package.
I looked at my older sister, Becca, and she gave me the sad look that I knew I was giving her. We didn’t want dyed marshmallows. We wanted chocolate, too.
Our little sister began to cry. She dropped her Peeps and reached for the bunny.
“Now,, now, girls, don’t be ungrateful. Tell Grandma thank you.”
Becca and I mumbled our thanks while Little Sis continued crying.
“Is that any way for a big girl like you to act?” Grandma said.
“Stop your crying!” Mom said as she carried Billy and his big bunny out the door.
We girls followed, our younger sister inconsolable.
Grandma threw her hands up in the air, not understanding that she had created the whole situation by not being Even Steven in her gift giving. She said good-bye and shut the front door.
I wondered about that day a zillion more times. Why had our grandmother decided to give her newest grandson chocolate while the granddaughters got Peeps? How did she decide that that would be an okay thing to do?
On the car ride home, Mom didn’t apologize to us for Grandma’s acts. She didn’t tell Tommy he had to share the chocolate bunny. She didn’t console Little Sis. She was prickly, and we had learned that when she got like that, it was best to leave her alone.
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 