Warm Embrace

Chapter 2

Old Farm Stead

I introduced my college friend and roommate to my great aunt Carol Parker because of an assignment to profile a woman who personally lived through the cultural upheaval of the late 20th Century. One who established herself pushing back against the suppression of women. We were back in college after Covid summer. This began my true life, my awakening.

No one moves away with no money
They just do what they can
To live in the heart of America
Getting by on their own two hands

Margo Price -- Heart of America

Apple Playlist-- Null Stillness – All American Made

We were assigned a project to find and write a biography of a woman still living. One who defined herself before and during the cultural shift empowering women. Our professor suggested we select a woman in business, sports, politics, advocacy, social services, or religion. We were to interview her and record her memories of the cultural upheaval of the second half of the twentieth century. We would be required to document her responses with contemporaneous reports and other people’s recounts of the history.

My friend and classmate Madison thought this an appalling assignment. Madison was a great artist at sketches, illustrations, and music, but she didn’t like research. Also, I knew her subconscious had already projected this would cost time she had otherwise allocated to more amusing pursuits. As we left class, she was drenched in drama over such a ridiculous demand. “Karen, he is just stigmatizing women, this is all leading to him dismissing them. He will warp all this into his twisted thinking about no woman ever was liberated unless she liberated her own mind. Liberate your mind being a wife treated as chattel without a right to vote, while you’re being objectified, or even raped. Then he says not anyone you can look up on Wikipedia. I cannot imagine why they let someone so unqualified teach this class. I can’t think of anyone.”

“Madison, I need your help, and I know who we should pick. We can be a team as long as it includes media as well as a written report. Also, while we were in class I searched, and we can hear a good band in the process of our road trip.”

“You mean road trip to the library and music in the plaza, type thing?”

"No, a real road trip, pack your bag we will leave tonight.” Madison knew I was not the serendipitous one. Even if, she felt a wild idea of mine was bound for boredom, she would be too curious to say no. “We will get this done this weekend. We’ll have a great time, and we can turn it in early. You will end up with a five-day weekend before the project due date."

“OK, I am gif-fing on this.” Madison began acting out gifs of having a good time, being very amusing and annoying simultaneously, as she always was.

“Pack one pair of practical shoes, and your normal stuff for three days. I need to make a couple of calls.” The other reason Madison would say yes, was the car. My impractical going to college gift from my Dad. I liked it, but I already carried enough spoiled rich girl vibe. I would not drive it, unless I was leaving town. I called my great-aunt. She agreed to us writing a paper about her farm. I knew enough not to say it was about her. We could work that in when we were there in person. I told her we would arrive around midnight. She replied midnight if you speed, two AM after you are stopped for the ticket. I promised to stay safe.

We threw our bags in and got on the road about 6. Madison said, “It’s sad you don’t drive this all the time; you could drive around being everyone’s fantasy eye candy. You would be just like the blonde in the white Thunderbird in American Graffiti.”

“American Graffiti?”

“American Graffiti it is one of George Lucas’s first films, haven’t you ever taken a film class? It was Harrison Ford’s first role where he was noticed – just a great film. “

“I thought you disapproved of the sexualization and objectification in our male culture?”

“Didn’t say you’d be just men’s eye candy, and it would be so dreamlike.”

Arrival

I outlined our trip, “I know where to stop where we are safe. We’ll need gas. Let’s try not to be eye candy for the creeps.”

We pulled in at 12:30 without a ticket. Aunt Carol hugged us. She fed us cookies with fruit centers. She immediately began making a friend of Madison.

“You’re an artist do you visit the Art Institute?”

“I love the Art Institute and being Downtown. It was so sad when they cancelled Lollapalooza last summer. I worked all summer mostly making deliveries to people staying home after they kicked us out of school.”

“I have seen ‘The Bean’ but it has been a long time since I lived in the Chicago area. My father was a lawyer in a firm near Michigan and Jackson.  I loved slipping over to the Art Institute when I visited Downtown. I don’t know much about Lollapalooza.”
 
“It’s a great music festival, fortunately some good groups stopped at our campus once we got back. College in the era of masks and tracing. “

“It caused a disruption for everyone, but we’ve really tried to keep everyone safe at Parker’s Produce. We never had a case contracted at work. I am glad you came. I am proud of Parker’s Produce and Fruit, but it is not just my effort. We acknowledge all the wonderful people who make it happen. The business is nothing like it was when I started. It was barely a business at all just me scraping by.”

“You didn’t have employees when you started?”

“I couldn’t afford help. I could barely afford to keep the dog the neighbors gave me. He gave me the saddest looks when I would get mad over something going wrong. I would laugh, scratch his ears, and get back to fixing it.  He was rather useless but strong on companionship.”

“It sounds adventurous to start something all on your own.’

“I’ll give the grand tour tomorrow. It’s late we should go to bed. Karen the same room you had before, put Madison in the room next to yours. Do you need help with anything?”

“I don’t think so Aunt Carol we have what we need for tonight.”

“Good night then, I am not used to young people hours.”

“Did you live here Karen?”

“I never actually lived here. I spent a couple of summers when I was in junior high. It always felt like home. “

“It is desolate out here, there is nothing here. What did you do here, I bet you can’t even get a pizza delivered?”

“No deliveries here Madison. If you want a pizza, I think you have to go to New Harmony.”

“I helped Carol with the farm, her garden mostly. Ruth taught me to ride horses. I enjoyed riding them. At the market I put stickers on sale items. I got to drive a tractor.”

“Karen is really a farm girl?”

“I hardly know anything about living here. I did find it more fun than being with my Mom the next four summers. Being with Mom was more being in music camps or children’s theater than with her. She often was gone, and I would also be away.”

“You sing well, I guess you gained that from the experience.”

“I sing. Time to sleep, it was a long drive.”