Color Blindness
One day I curiously asked Emma about Mattie Kelly’s house because Emma had worked there a very long time.
After she had a "falling out" with Mrs. Tringas over moving things on a dresser, she came to Destin in 1966 and worked for Mattie off and on for 27 years.
“What do yoo want to Kno’?” I thought she seemed a little guarded.
“Well, like what kind of living room furniture does she have?” You can tell a lot about a person by the way they decorate their home.
“Well… Yoo kno’. All kinds.”
“In the same room?”
“Yea, kinda mixed like.”
"That's called Eclectic."
"Who?"
"When all the styles are different...What color is her kitchen floor that you used to mop? “
“Black and white, I guess. “It wuz…kinda checkety-like. She ha‘ a big ki‘chen. I used to mop it last thing every night.“ She stretched out her hand to the northeast, pointing into the distance toward on Indian Trail, where the Kelly's lived.
“You mean like a checkboard? Big black and white squares?”
“Yea, like dat.”
“What is her color scheme in the living room?”
“Whut do you mean, color scheme?” She laughed.
“I mean, what colors does she have? Like red, green, blue, or earth tones?”
“Erf tones? ERF TONES?,” she laughed louder.
“I mean like brown, white, cream, gold…“
“I don’t kno’. All colors I reckon,” she said with a smile. She started rocking.
“You reckon” I laughed, too.
“Yea. Well, I’m color blind.”
That made me ponder and smile, too. Emma was color blind!
“What color was her bedroom?” adding that my grandmother’s was pink.
“I don’ kno’, because I never went upstairs in Ms. Kelly’s house.”
“You didn’t? That's strange. Were you her only maid?”
“Naw, I took care of the downstairs, and some others took care of the upstairs.”
“Really?”
“Yea, because I stayed home and did the cookin’ in the kitchen.“
“Oh, you were a better cook.”
“I guess SO!“ She said matter of factly.
“Where did you sleep in Mattie’s house?” I’m so nosy.
“Next to the ki’chen. In the Laundry.”
“You mean, on the floor?”
“Naw, I had a little cot in there. But I don’ like a cot. I make a little pallet on the floor.”
“Did Mattie like to give a lot of parties? Like for important people in the art world?”
“She did give parties but mostly for family. They was always comin’ and goin’. I used to help Joon‘s momma, what was her name?”
Emma had changed the subject.
“You mean Jane? Jane Marler? There was a June, too. She died. You probably mean her mother, Aunt Stella, right? June was her daughter?”
“Yea, I helped her give a big wedding. I was written up in the paper.”
Emma was frequently mentioned in the newspapers for helping with parties and weddings.
One day Emma came over very mad because she’d walked over the Mattie’s house to work the previous day, and could not get in. So, she slept in the car port until morning. Still, no one was home, so she walked several miles to my house. It was nothing for her to walk miles between jobs.
We just never knew when to expect her.
(c) 2012 Athena Marler Creamer. All Rights Reserved.
Photo of Holiday Isle and Destin Harbor from 1964 Movie, Dr. Strangelove.
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