#25 of 52 : UNCLE FRANKIE

External Photo Clues:
None

Imagine:
After selecting a picture for the Imaginary Family Project, I decided to post an ad at an online genealogy web site to see if anyone recognized the photo.   Much to my surprise I received a reply after only a few days.  Maryanne Ponder, from right here in Oklahoma City, emailed me, saying that she thought the little boy in the tree was her husband’s Uncle Frankie.  I asked to meet Mr. Ponder and she readily agreed, inviting me to their home.  The following is a rough, phonetic where appropriate, transcription of the interview that resulted:

Michael (“M”):  Thanks for meeting me.

Johnny Ponder (“JP”):  No problem.  It was a trip to see that picture.

M:  You recognized the photo right away?

JP:  Yeah.  I saw it and said to myself, “ah man, that’s Uncle Frankie!!” Continue reading The 2011 Imaginary Family Project – Week 25 →

#24 of 52 : CINDY

External Photo Clues:
None

Imagine:
The man eases me against the curb in front of a house the color of red mud.  About ten inches out; just right, and he corners the tires.  He’s a pretty good driver — way better than my last owner, who never remembered to shift and always scraped the curb.  New neighborhood, I think — no trees, and the road’s still smooth.  Hot though; the tar feels a little squishy against my tires.  No sign of a garage; at least there’s a driveway.

A boy and a girl come pounding out the door of the house, followed by a woman in a housedress.  The woman’s tall and thin; she looks a little worn.  No surprise — the girl looks to be maybe 8 and the boy might be 11, and that combination would tire anyone out.

The man opens my door and gets out.  He closes it gently but firmly.  No slamming. Another good sign.  He spreads his arms wide.  “Ta DAH!”

The boy jumps up and down.  “A new car!  Is it ours?  Can we keep it?  COOOOL.  How fast will it go?”  Continue reading The 2011 Imaginary Family Project – Week 24 →

#23 of 52 : FATHER

External Photo Clues:
None

Imagine:

My father had grown up the son of a farmer in a small village called Svetlitsy, in the northern part of the Ukraine.  He had immigrated to his new home in the states as a young teenager, along with his Mother and two older sisters.  The years had either made his memory foggy, or the old man just refused to talk about his past, as I never really knew what the circumstances were that caused my father to leave the Ukraine without his own father.  I never met my paternal grandmother.  From the stories my Mother told she had only met her a few times and she painted a very intimidating picture of a stocky brutish woman, that never allowed herself even the tiniest bit of happiness.  My father was a mystery, past and present. Continue reading The 2011 Imaginary Family Project – Week 23 →

#22 of 52 : KATHRYN JEAN SWEED

External Photo Clues:
Written in Pencil:
Kathryn Jean Sweed
Ellwood Park Amarillo Tex.
Summer July 1952

Imagine:

My mother didn’t die.  She just left for no reason at all.  I don’t remember any difference between the day she left and the day before.  My parents hadn’t argued.  She didn’t pack a single bag.  She didn’t even treat me or Lizzy Beth extra special like she should have done.  Lizzy Beth was riding on my back.  I could feel her drool dripping into my hair.  She was laughing hysterically as I neighed and whinnied and crawled around on my knees.  Lizzy Beth had just turned two.  I was twelve.  The last thing my mother said to us was, “I’m going out to get my hair curled, Sawyer. Y’all be good.”

That was it.  My mother just walked out of the house without us.  She took her purse.  She didn’t leave a note.  She just didn’t come back home again.  That evening when my dad got back from the Pantex Plant he changed out of his work clothes.  He’d drank two Budweiser beers and listened to two radio programs before he noticed she was not around.  In fact, it wasn’t until I was changing Lizzy in the middle of the family room that he asked about her.  “What’s your mother made for dinner?”

Lizzy Beth took that second of me being distracted and wriggled free from her diaper.  I chased her all over the place, while trying at the same time to explain that I hadn’t seen my mother for hours.  “She went to get her hair curled she said.  But she ain’t back yet.  I made sandwiches for my and Lizzy. You want one?” I asked. Continue reading The 2011 Imaginary Family Project – Week 22 →

#21 of 52 : FRANKIE JEAN

External Photo Clues:
None

Imagine:
By the time this photo was taken of my mother she had made up her mind. I can tell because she looks almost happy.

In this photograph—I found a bunch of them in a box in the garage with a yellow dress and an old, empty bottle of French perfume—she and my daddy are looking in different directions. They always were, but I guess in the inky womb of the club where they met, they couldn’t tell that yet. At 18, Mama hadn’t yet discovered the difference between a man’s big talk and a man’s real talk. The only reason he wasn’t a foreman at the factory, Daddy told her, was cause they wouldn’t let colored people or Indians be foremen but that didn’t mean he couldn’t do it. After all, he’d spent two years in Paris during the war, hadn’t he?

She’s never told me any of this, not in words. Not out loud. All I really know is that the yellow dress is the one she used to wear to the juke joints down on Freeman Highway. It was the kind of dress with a low sweetheart neckline and slim-fitting skirt that promised that the nice girl might not be quite as nice as you thought. Continue reading The 2011 Imaginary Family Project – Week 21 →