CHAPTER 31
That Sunday morning the Leigh' household was abuzz with church preparations. But there was an extra buzz in the air and everyone seemed to share in that buzz. The week prior, Mary phoned Ginnie Mae, Carol and Debbie and invited them to the celebration. They promised they would attend after church and bring gifts for the twins.
And when Fred pulled into his front yard after church, Ginnie Mae and her two daughters, Carol, Debbie and Alfred were already sitting along the porch. Everyone piled into the house. The children rushed to their rooms to change clothes while their cousins stood around talking and playing with them. The adults made themselves comfortable in the living room while Fred and Mary rushed to their rooms and changed out of their church clothes, as well.
By the time Mary returned to the living room, The ladies were already sitting in the kitchen, waiting to assist Mary in any way they could. However, Mary had only to warm up the food because the birthday supper was prepared the day before.
Alfred and Fred walked out into the back yard where Fred prepared the ice cream machine for the children to operate. And since their cousins were there, the children would have extra fun this Sunday with the manually-operated ice cream maker.
Preparing the custard for the ice cream was a tedious process that only Fred performed. He stood over the stove mixing and stirring slowly until the custard was just the texture he wanted. Then, while still warm, Fred poured the custard down into a separate chamber inside the machine and covered it with a steel lid. He’d take the chopped ice and pile it tightly into the ice cream maker until it was filled to the rim, and the chamber sat squarely in the middle.
The children always stood close by, waiting anxiously.
The longer the children turned the handle on the ice cream machine, the stiffer the ice cream became from the ice being ground against the chamber, and the harder it became to turn the handle. It was a long process to completion but the children didn’t complained. Their mouths were set on the end result.
Inside, the ladies were preparing the table for the twins’ celebration. Outside, the children were taking turns with the ice cream handle, turning as fast as their small arms would allow, and placing bets on who could turn the longest and the fastest. Junior stood nearby, watching as if he were the overseer of the entire operation. Fred and Alfred stood along the edge of the fence, chatting and laughing as they caught up on life.
Long before sundown, the ice cream was ready and dinner was placed on the table and stove.
Aromas of turnip greens, candied sweet potatoes, buttermilk corn bread and smothered, garlic-covered chicken floated throughout the house and into the back yard.
Fred smothered the chicken for the twins because it was one of their favorite dishes. He placed chicken parts into an old pan and seasoned them with salt, pepper and lots of garlic, then he sprinkled flour across the chicken and covered it with an old lid. He placed the chicken at the very bottom of the oven and cooked it on a very low temperature. Once the aromas spread throughout the house, all mouths were watery.
The children were ready to eat but they had been told not to come inside until they were called. That allowed the women an opportunity to sit out their gifts in the living room for the girls. Bernice arrived through the front door without the girls seeing her carry their gifts wrapped in colorful paper and ribbons.
“Supper ready, yall!” called Mary from the kitchen door. “Come wash yo hands an’ sit down.” Mary didn’t allow the children to go to the bathroom to wash their hands because they would’ve seen the gifts, and she didn’t want the twins to know exactly what was going on, yet. So they washed their hands in the kitchen and took seats at the table. Some of the adults had to eat in the living room because the table wasn’t large enough to seat everyone.
Still, everyone was happy about the way the day was progressing.
“We got a lot of food here, Momma!” Mary Jane said as she held a piece of chicken in one hand and licked her fingers from the other hand. “This some good ol’ chicken daddy cook, too” she said without looking up from her plate. “Everythang good!” Junior said excitedly, just before shoving a heaping forkful of turnip greens into his mouth.
Momma, did everybody come for our birthday?” asked Mary Jean curiously. “Yeah, they all come here for yall’s birthday, ain’t that nice?”
“Yessum,” the children sang in unison.
After supper, Mary sent the children outside while she and the other ladies cleared the table and put away the food. Bernice washed dishes while Mary unwrapped the cake. It was a three-layered yellow cake with white icing. Small bits of strawberries were spread throughout the cake and also across the top of the cake. Then Mary placed eight candles on one side of the cake and eight candles on the opposite side. It was beautiful for sure. While Mary busied herself with the ice cream, the other ladies placed plates, spoons and forks on the table. Early on, Mary ordered the children to cover their eyes while she dropped a large bowl of strawberries in the ice cream chamber and replaced the lid. Now she called to Fred to bring her the ice cream from the ice cream maker.
After putting ice cream into all of the bowls, with the twins’ bowls heaping, Mary lit the candles on the cake. Then she called in Alfred and all of the children except the twins. She wanted everyone to sing Happy Birthday! to the girls as they walked through the back door. Everyone was in place when Mary called to the twins to come inside.