Robert remembers his first grade teacher, Mrs. Hurt. She was an old lady. Maybe she was not so old, but she had gray hair and she called the bathroom the lavatory, so she seemed old to Robert.
Mrs. Hurt took special interest in celebrating May Day with the kids. It is the last time Robert has done so. To this day he does not know if Mrs. Hurt was a socialist or just old fashioned in her celebration of May Day.
Robert, your mother-in-law and I (her sister) did the Maypole Dance on May Day in Sweet HOme, Oregon. This was only for eighth grade girls. In our summery, flare-skirted dresses we pulled bright ribbons around a pole, following a dance routine we’d been taught in the weeks before. When it was over, the pole was braided with the ribbons and we were all feeling, kind of, like, maidens. It was in the gym, not outdoors—outdoors being a possibility that never occurred to us.
Long live Mrs. Hurt. Long live the Payne girls. Hurt and Payne. Hmm..
Full on Commie!