Day 17 — Someone from your childhood (A day late.)

Her name is Shelly.  Shelly and Shannon grew up across the street from me.  They lived with their Parents, Yvonne and Beau. Shelly was a year younger than me and Shannon was a year older.

I remember being over their house and Yvonne was walking around topless one day.  I think that she was in her bathing suit, well bottoms that is.  We were doing something in the kitchen.  Shelly walked right up to her Mother and started to suck on her nipple. That is all I really remember.  As I think about it today I realize that Shelly must have been only maybe 3 or 4 years old.  I always thought she was older.  It didn’t really freak me out, but you know, she was up walking around, a kid, not a baby or toddler.  She should be drinking out of a cup not her Mother’s boob.  Funny how I always thought that she was like 10.

I remember when I was in Kindergarten and she followed me to school one day.  I didn’t realize it until I was in class and she came wandering in.  I don’t recall if the teacher had me walk her home, or call her parents.  Maybe my Mother came and got her? Funny how you can remember one part of an incident and not the other?

I wasn’t always nice to Shelly.  I remember talking to her in the middle of the street between our houses.  She must have made be mad, because I punched her in the stomach, then turned around and ran home to hide.  I must have done it more than once, because I remember hiding on the couch one day and then another day in the kitchen.  I only remember Beau, her Father, coming over once to talk to me about it.

We used to wash out the black plastic garbage containers from the side of the house and put them in her front yard.  We would fill them with water from the hose and pretend they were hot tubs.

My Mother was a Jehovah’s Witness, so I wasn’t allowed to go trick-or-treating.  I remember passing out candy once, or twice though.  One year Shelly and I went and put on a bunch of my Mother’s old clothes, hats & gloves and went trick-or-treating on our block before it was dark.  That was fun!

I don’t remember how old I was when they moved away.  We did get back in touch when I was a young teenager.  Things got kind of weird between us during that time.  She would try to make all of my friends hers… the boys she would try to hang out with … she would wear my make-up and my clothes.  I even caught her trying to steal my make-up.  I gave her the benefit of the doubt and never made a big deal about it.  After hanging out with her for a week, or so,  I decided that the relationship wasn’t a healthy one.  She had quite a lot of issues.  Ones as a teenager I didn’t need to be dealing with.

I do remember going to a basket ball game with her at Oakridge Highschool.  I don’t know how old we were.  She was so excited that I went with her.  We were sitting in the bleachers and she got so excited and said “oh, that’s the coach I was telling you about how great he is!” She took off down the bleachers to him.  As he turned around I realized it was my Cousin Lee.  I waved at him excited to see him.  He waved back.  He then turned to Shelly and did not look very happy.  When she came back I was excited to tell her that was my Cousin. She had a funny look on her face.  I asked her what was up?  She said that he wasn’t very happy and wanted to talk to her later and that she had told him some things that weren’t truthful about me.  Apparently she had told him some things that were not true about me and he was not happy.  She had talked about this friend (who was me) to him quite a few times.  I never did find out what those “things” were.

I went to a party in Los Altos during highschool.  The party ended being at her and her Boyfriends house.  Yes, they were in highschool… I really don’t remember that whole story, or maybe I just never asked.  I have never been much into other people’s drama.  It was so strange though, because she latched right on to me.  Told everyone how this is the Kathleen that she has been talking about.  Her best friend.  Like she had been in touch for years and years and knew everything about me.  Again, very strange.

Later when I was in my early 30’s she tried to contact me again though e-mail.  I was living in Louisiana, married and had 3 small children.  I ignored her e-mails, which sounds mean, but the other run-ins my family had with her over the years had warned me to be weary.  I trust them and did so.  I didn’t need anything, or anyone to disrupt my life and unfortunately she could just not be trusted.

I know it sounds like maybe I was the mean one here, but removing myself from her life and away from a person that is so imbalanced was better for me.  Dealing something that is an habitual liar, is obsessed and off-balance can be a bit scary.  I still think about her to this day though.  About the fun times we had as young girls and hope that she is healthy and doing well.  🙂

xo