Chapter 32- Missy Starts Her Journey
Missy thought she could feel a slight squeeze on her hand as Emma laid there in the bed. Missy also thought that for a brief moment she saw the lips part in a smile but she was not sure as Emma had not really been awake for several hours. Missy sat there next to the one person who had been with her all of her life. Missy could actually remember only a few nights when she was not with Emma until she went away to school.
Emma in her own way remembered the day that she had tried to hold back the tears as she watched Missy as long as she could before taking the long drive back to Riverside. Tom had insisted to drive Missy and Emma to Howard University. Tom understood the things that Missy would need for her dorm room and knew that catching the bus was not an option even though Emma thought it would be ok since she did not want to trouble Tom or anyone else.
Emma remembered as if it was yesterday, how Tom talked all the way from Riverside to Washington DC. Tom first started telling Emma and Missy about his time at Howard and how Howard was such a great school. He reminded them on more than one occasion that both his grandfather and father were graduates of Howard University. Tom then proceeded to give Missy advice on which classes to choose and which professors to try and stay away from their classes. While it had been several years since Tom had graduated from Howard many of the same professors were still there. Also Tom had returned to school each year in the fall for the annual Homecoming Day activities. Tom was very proud to be a graduate of Howard and tried to share that pride with both Emma and Missy.
Missy clearly understood the rich history of Howard which is why she had always secretly wished to attend Howard. She wanted to attend the same school where Thurgood Marshall and other great men had attended. In fact she had visited the campus several times when she had lived in Washington DC and had spent time in the Law school library dreaming of the day when she would be able to attend Howard never once thinking that she would. Missy still did not understand how she received the scholarship. She had not actually submitted an application to Howard for admission nor had she applied for a scholarship. She had inquired at the Financial Aid office for more detail but was not given any hint and the school stated that donors of scholarships were only made public upon the request of the donor. Even though Tom had connections at the school he was also unable to find out any additional information on the donor except that the donor wished it to remain anonymous and would provide for the four years of undergraduate study based upon the academic progress of Missy.
Emma remembered how proud she was that her Missy was attending Howard University and would someday be a lawyer. She remembered helping to carry things into the dorm room and actually making the bed for Missy as if she could not do it herself. She then began to clean the room and helped to put all of the clothes away. It was not because Missy asked her to but she wanted to find a reason not to leave just yet. Just like Missy had not been away from her grandmother, Emma wanted to stay as long as she could. Tom made sure to go around and introduce Missy to those people that he knew and to make sure she was as comfortable as possible. Finally the time came for Tom and Emma to leave and as Emma said her goodbye she could see just a small tear in the eyes of Missy.
On the ride home, Emma was quiet and just reflected on the things that had occurred in her life. She thought about her early years in Riverside and her ultimate trip to Washington DC where she would give birth to her daughter. She thought about her time with Phillip and how he still meant so much to her even after almost twenty years since his death. She thought about all of the houses that she had cleaned so that she could provide for Missy. She then began to wonder how things were going to be since Missy was no longer going to be in the house with her but at college preparing for the rest of her life. She thought about how much her life had changed since she first left Riverside and her return to Riverside.