Once upon a time, in a muggy land called “Houston,” there lived a Little Lady. She was a very precocious little girl — always running hither and thither without a care. This Little Lady also liked to climb, something that often frustrated her Mommy because she would climb in her pretty dresses without any regard for the dirt that got on those dresses. The Little Lady was too busy and having too much fun to worry about getting clothes dirty.
Every morning, the Little Lady would get up, eat her breakfast, and play. Sometimes, she was a good Little Lady and she would play with her babies, her books, and her toothbrush (she really like to brush her new teeth). But, sometimes, she was NOT a good Little Lady and she would pull her Mommy’s hair and hit her mommy with her dolls. When that happened, the Little Lady had to take a nap, which is usually what she really wanted all along.
One Sunday morning, instead of attending their normal church, the Little Lady and her family were asked to visit another Houston church, to help the congregation with a special service they were having. The Little Lady didn’t really understand what was going on, but she was still excited because she got to wear her top with all the pretty buttons. She was playing with those buttons when they arrived at the new Church.
There were lots of new faces all around the Little Lady; this made her feel a little scared, so she hid her little face, laying her head on her Mommy’s shoulder. Her Mommy promised everything was OK and showed her how nice everyone was. Soon, all of these nice people, and the Little Lady’s parents, were singing the Church songs. The Little Lady liked how this sounded and she applauded and applauded each time the singing stopped. She thought it sounded sooooo good.
Unfortunately, the Little Lady also thought that climbing all over the chairs was good. When she wouldn’t stop, the Mommy had no choice but to take the Little Lady to the nursery, where they stayed for the rest of the service. As soon as the service was over, the Little Lady and her Mommy went back to the main building for the church dinner. And, THAT’S where she met the Little Old Woman.
The Little Old Woman was very, very, VERY old. She was so old that her eyes were cloudy and dim. She was so old that her face was full of deep, deep lines — lines that were vertical, horizontal, AND diagonal. She was SO old that her front teeth were broken, chipped, and some were even missing! She was so old that this Little Old Woman’s son had to help her eat and drink her meal . . . . just like the Little Lady’s mommy helped HER eat!
But, the Little Lady wasn’t scared of this Little Old Woman. Oh, no! She was FASCINATED by this new person. And the Little Old Woman was FASCINATED by the Little Lady. She laughed every time the Little Lady blew raspberries and every time the Little Lady squealed and tried to climb on the table.
“That little girl is going to be a climber! I can tell,” croaked the Little Old Woman.
“Oooo,” the Little Old Woman screeched, “Look at those big brown eyes! You don’t see many babies with eyes that color!” (The Little Lady’s Mommy didn’t tell her that her little girl’s eyes were actually bright blue)
“She has got such gorgeous brunette coloring — you don’t see many babies with hair that dark color,” she confidently whispered to the Little Lady’s Mommy. The Mommy just smiled and thanked her, without mentioning that the Little Lady’s hair was a light golden brown.
The Little Lady just kept playing, in between bites of the church dinner — climbing back and forth from her Mommy and Daddy. Everything she did absolutely delighted the Little Old Woman . . . so much so that the Little Old Woman gave the Little Lady one of her cookies. The Little Lady LOVED the cookie, munching and sucking and bitting it till it was completely gone.
The Little Old Woman’s laughter cackled at this sight. The Little Lady’s Mommy smiled as she watched this pair of opposites — the Little Lady and the Little Old Woman.
“Hey!” The Mommy’s eyes swung over to the Little Old Woman’s very wrinkled face, who was leaning in as though to confide some deep, dark secret. The Little Old Woman grinned and gestured with her crippled, misshapen fingers at the Little Lady.
“I don’t think she’s going to be delayed!” she proudly uttered in her raspy, scratchy old voice. The Mommy wanted to laugh at this compliment, but she knew the Little Old Woman was serious, so she just agreed and thanked her.
Soon, it was time to go. The Little Old Woman waved her bony fingers and asked the Little Lady, “Can you tell me bye-bye?”
But, the Little Lady wouldn’t tell her good-bye. Instead, she raised her sticky hand to her mouth and began blowing sweet kisses to her new friend. Over and over, she sent kisses across the table, where the Little Old Woman pretended to catch them. The Little Lady’s Mommy and the Little Old Woman’s Son laughed to see the two new friends playing.
The Little Lady had to leave. Her Mommy buckled her in the pink and brown car seat and soon the family was driving through the crowded streets of muggy Houston. It didn’t take long for the Little Lady’s eyelids to get heavy and close in sleep. It had been a long, busy day for such a little lady.
