As
the baby of the family, I had the privilege of having my mother to
myself while my siblings were off at that mysterious, wondrous place
called school. But because there were eight children in my family, it's
not like my mother had time to play Candy Land all day. And because
television had yet to become the universal babysitter, my only option
was to follow my mother around, helping with the housework that no
doubt would have gone much faster had she stuck me in front of the TV. Most
things she taught me about housework have been absorbed into the vast
amorphous blob of Things I Just Know, but a few moments are
crystallized in my memory like sugared violets. For example, I remember
when she first taught me how to make a square corner on the tucked edge
of the flat sheet, a lesson she had to repeat numerous times. Here are
a few other lessons from those crystallized memories: It wasn't until I was older – 10 or so – that she taught me how to mix a perfect Manhattan for her as she cooked dinner. After all she did have eight children. Tell me, what do you remember learning from your parents about taking care of a home?


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