Emily's Easter Sunday
A “How I Spent My Summer Vacation: I Became a Girl” Gaiden
By
Rebecca Anna Coleman

-1-
Easter Morning Breakfast

I took a deep breath as I walked into the kitchen. According to the calendar that was pinned to the wall in the hallway, today was 'Easter Sunday' not that it meant anything to me. I don't really consider myself a 'Christian'. True, I'm enrolled in a semi-private Roman Catholic Academy, but that was Aunt Flora's decision not mine. Plus she often boasted that she had the headmaster under her thumb.

But besides that, this morning was just another morning for me. Aunt Flora would be home soon from her job as a night nurse at the local hospital. And I knew she would want her morning cup of coffee as soon as she walked through the door. She'll want breakfast as soon as she has taken  her morning shower.

And so I started the morning ritual of filling the old coffee pot with water from the fridge, putting a paper filter into the basket and filling the basket with ground coffee grinds that never failed to remind me of ground-up charcoal. Once the basket was filled I closed the lid, pressed the button and the thing sprung into action and soon the aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the air.

I felt a little fancy that morning, so instead of the usual bacon, eggs, toast. I decided to make some muffins, fry some smoked sausage, and scramble some eggs. Thank goodness for premeasured baking mixes. Premeasured and premixed mixes are blessings to novice bakers and junior chiefs.

And well, most of them are fool proof. If you follow the instructions written on the back of the box. And the instructions were simple. And so soon I had six, large blueberry muffins baking in the oven along with six large chocolate chip muffins. And on top of the stove I had about a pound of conecuh smoked sausage sizzling in a skillet and in a second skillet I had around a half dozen eggs, scrambling of course I'd seasoned the eggs with fresh ground black pepper and fresh cracked sea salt.

Now does that seem like a lot of food? Yes, it's a lot of food for two people. But normally I cook a big breakfast so we can snack for lunch and go well go hog wild for dinner. With it being Easter, I was sure Aunt Flora would cook a joint of mutton.

Now, mutton is not unheard of here down in the Yazoo-Delta Region of Mississippi, it's just rare. The only time you'll see it in the meat counter at Sunflower Food Store or Sack-n-Saver or heck even the newly built Wal-Mart is around Christmas or Easter. Aunt Flora had brought a joint of mutton because it was on sale, some poor meat market manager had gotten stuck with it. And well, the first rule of the grocery business according to my uncle was, 'Once you sign for it. It's your job to sell it. No matter what.' so with that in mind the poor man had to mark it down dirt cheap. We're talking about a dollar and a half a pound. Instead of you know twelve dollars ninety nine cents a pound. 

Cause let's be real, nobody really eats mutton down here beside the Episcopal's and the Catholics. Maybe you included the Methodist, but the Baptist. And you could count the Pentecostals completely out. 

I looked up at the clock and noticed Aunt Flora was around ten minutes late, her shift ended at five o' clock this morning and here it was going on five ten. Sighing walked over to check my phone to see if she had texted me or anything. One quick flick of the finger showed me I had no new text.. so I guess she was just held up in traffic. Which would have been odd..

Then the door to our cottage opened and in the doorway stood a tired, haggard looking aunt Flora. She gently closed the door behind her and walked into the living room where she dropped her purse down upon the sofa and then she walked into the kitchen, she brushed right passed me and went straight for the coffee pot. She picked the pot up by the plastic handle and reached for a mug. She poured herself a cup and took a long drink.

“Emily.” She said as she eased her mug down upon the kitchen counter. “You brew the best coffee around girl.” She said as she lifted the mug to her lips and took another long drink. “The stuff from Double-Quick tastes like coffee flavored water. And the stuff from McDonald's tastes like dirt flavored water that has been filtered through my dirty panties. But your stuff taste like real coffee.”

I blushed.

“What about the coffee that the hospital coffee shop serves?” I inquired.

“It tastes like brown river water.” Aunt Flora said, smiling sweetly.

I rolled my eyes a little as I bent down and picked up the old as hell slow cooker. The Slow cooker had come with the house, the old owners had just left it here. Nothing was wrong with it, it just looked as old as Aunt Flora. And one rolled the dice every time you plugged the thing up. Once the thing was plugged up I reached into the fridge and pulled out the shallow baking pan that held the joint of mutton.

At this point the joint of mutton had been marinating in a mixture of worcestershire sauce, seasoned salt, and black pepper for at least twelve maybe thirteen hours. And well without much thought I just dropped the meat into the pot along with the marinate. I then added about two cups of water and three packets of brown gravy. I gave it a quick stir, turned it on high and dropped the top.

“Thanks..” Aunt Flora said as she watched me. “You know Emily, you're going to make somebody a really good wife one day, you're already a really good cook, and you keep house. And you do a pretty good job of balancing your bank account.”

I blushed again.

“Still too young to think about settling down and getting married? I mean of course your still too young, your like fifteen or so?” Aunt Flora said, smiling sweetly.

“Fifteen and a half..” I gently correct her.

“I knew a girl who got married at sixteen. Some people get married young, some wait till their mid twenties, others don't get married at all. But at fourteen you're just now starting to figure yourself out. I mean you've only been Emily now for like.. twenty months I think? I think it's been about a half of a year since I came home to discover my nephew had turned into my niece.” Aunt Flora said as she sipped her coffee.

“Sounds about a right.” I said blushing as I reached for a oven mitt. I took a deep breath and opened the oven and pulled out the oven pan.

“Before we eat the breakfast you were so thoughtful to cook. Have you checked the dining room? I think the Easter Bunny might have left you something while you bing watching late night anime.” Aunt Flora said refilling her mug for more coffee.

“Really?” I said blinking. “Aunt Flora, stop fooling around.”

“What, you don't believe in the Easter Bunny?” Aunt Flora said in mock horror.

“The Easter Bunny is not real, just like Santa Clause is not real, just like Tooth-Fairy.” I said, rolling my eyes.

“I guess I'll just have to give the Easter Bunny a call on my phone and tell the Easter Bunny he'll have to come pick up the basket he left you.” Aunt Flora with a sigh.

“Wait? Is there a really an Easter Basket waiting for me in the dinning room?”

“Go see for yourself. Oh I did promise the Easter Bunny I'll have to blindfold you.” Aunt Flora said reaching down to pick up a bar mop rag, quickly she folded it to make a make-shift blind fold. “There is something special in the Easter Basket.”

I blushed and just stood there rooted in my spot.

“Also did I mention you look adorable this morning?” Aunt Flora said, smirking a little.

I blushed and looked down at my flannel nightgown I was wearing. I was barefooted because I wanted to show off to the world how much better I'd gotten painting my toes nails. Also I'd taken the effort to brush my hair out before leaving the room. I'd even gone through the trouble of pulling it back in two braided pigtails and tying a cord of matching red ribbon to the ends of the pigtails.

“Thanks.. I decided to go for something beside 'Princess bedhair'” I said as Aunt Flora then stepped behind me and placed the blindfold over my eyes she then gently tied it.

“Can you see anything?” She asked.

I shook my head.

“Good.” Aunt Flora said as she then reached down and took me by the hand. And then well I followed behind her.

End of Chapter One.