Creepers con't

So I cannot tell you when or how they finally met,but Mom and Sharon did. Sharon was the said Mother of our new friendly neighbor Brett. From the very moment they met they were inseparable. Now Mom never drove. She attempted to learn, Dad attempted to teach her and all I remember is sitting in the back seat on the pleather seat, no seat belt on cause it was the 70's and hearing them yell and scream at each other. It was quite terrifying. That meant she needed to bum a ride if at all possible, because Dads work/sleep schedule was always a problem.

So thanks to an instant friendship, Miss Sharon was her normal tag a long ride. We were children...the oldest being Todd, me, Rissa and Brett. Most times we were there as well. Miss Sharon was kind, gentle, sweet, stern and particular and I loved every aspect of her. She was raising boys in the 70's, her husband Mr. Tommy was starting his own heating and cooling business and they were living the southern dream.

Miss Sharon was good for Mom. She kept her active and busy. There were many trips in the backseat to the Piggly Wiggly, drug store runs and afternoons of gabbing women in the front seat and the sultry warm air blowing my mess of long stringy blonde hair. I remember a lot of it. Raining afternoons on the carport, chasing each other through the off limits woods out back. Swimming in the deep portion of the creek that ran through those woods. Those woods is where I saw my first nudey magazine. And I was ashamed for the ladies that allowed someone to take their nudey pictures. Chasing fireflies, riding our bikes for hours, and coming up with ways to torture our younger siblings.

I remember how particular Miss Sharon was. Actually, every time I run the vacuum, I intentionally make sure my vacuum lines are even straight and that I leave no foot prints in the pile. She would probably deny that I knew this and may actually own up to it. The kind, sweet southern woman only yelled at me once and it was for tearing through the family room barefoot right after she vacuumed. And it seemed to me she was ALWAYS vacuuming it. Here I am,closer to 50 than 45 years of age and Miss Sharon vacuums with me every time.

Mr. Tommy's business took off, and they moved up, bought a real nice big brick home in a fancy southern neighborhood. That house had a cool parking area out back and there was a converted garage that was the coolest hang out for us kids. I was younger but i distinctly remember prancing around that room my sundress twirling and singing along with Karen Carpenter...being "On Top of the World" simply because I was in the presence of the absolutely wonderfully kind and handsome Todd. It makes me giggle now. He would sit and brush my hair for hours, he took a real sweet kind liking to me, I was like a sister to him, he was all that to me. (And I kept it a secret all these years!)

They, the Burkett's were such a positive part of our southern exposure. We were welcomed, like family and when they moved our parents kept in touch and after we moved West Virginia, Miss Sharon and Mom kept in touch. They would write and talk, keeping tabs on each other. Checking on the kids and each other. The daily relationship was one I know my Mom missed often and Dad and I always manage to talk about Seton Drive...it was the first home he bought!