Mud Pies, Green Peaches, and Oh My!

When I was a little girl we went hungry often. One day, my sisters (I can’t remember which ones) and I made mud pies. We worked hard and put artistic style into our mud pies. They looked good enough to eat. That day I learned that no matter how hungry one is and how good a mud pie looks, it still tastes like mud.


We tried eating what we could find. One neighbor had a peach tree, but because it was summer the peaches were still hard and green. We ate some of them – or attempted to eat them. Green peaches are really hard – and fuzzy. That day I learned that green peaches probably don’t qualify as a food source.

I don’t know if our mother was completely overwhelmed, didn’t notice, or didn’t care, but often our pants had the crotch ripped out. Mom could sew, so I don’t know why she didn’t fix them. Now normally ripped pants aren’t a problem as long as one has underpants to wear. Unfortunately in our house, underpants were as hard to find as pants with an intact crotch. I remember not being able to find underpants and knowing my pants were crotchless, but I thought that I would remember that I didn’t have underwear on, make sure to play carefully, and keep my legs together or crossed all day. That year I learned that no matter how well intentioned a child of five is - she will always forget that she is going commando with crotchless pants until she feels the breeze on her bare butt.

Because of my experiences with food and ripped clothing, my house is never without food, and my children were not allowed to wear ripped clothing to school. My boys always felt like it was badge of honor to get holes in their jeans. I would patch them which made the boys sad. I learned that if you make the patches look cool they don’t mind so much. Did you know that everyone wears jeans with holes in them? I’ve been hearing that for the last twenty years from my boys (even before holes were in style). I can’t bring myself to buy jeans that are already torn – I don’t care what style dictates. I have no desire to feel the wind on bits and pieces that are supposed to be covered with fabric.