Page 16 of Breaking Emily's Rules
“We know she had a son, Lonnie, and then she died shortly thereafter. Her husband remarried and they had six more children,” Grammy added.
“It’s like any record of her before her marriage doesn’t exist. Where did she come from? Who were her parents?” It bothered me to think that a two-year-old had been left motherless, but what bothered me most was it seemed no one would ever remember the first Emily Parker.
Julia smiled and peered over her bifocals. “I’ve got good news.”
My heart did a little squeeze, and my fingers froze on the keyboard.
“What did you find?”
“You won’t believe it.” Julia looked through the binder she carried with her everywhere—the Bible, she called it.
“Don’t keep us in suspense!” Grammy said.
Julia pulled out a piece of paper she’d covered with a plastic sheath.
She did that with all official documents. I stopped breathing.
“It wasn’t easy to find this, but you all know how I have connections now.” Julia probably wouldn’t spill the beans this century.
“Yes, yes we know!” Luanne leaned forward, like she might reach across the table and rip it out of Julia’s hands.
“This little piece of paper is a private pilot’s license,” Julia said, her chin rising slightly as she placed it on the table for all to see. “For an Emily Parker.”
“Let me see that,” Grammy reached for it, only to earn a glare from Julia.
“Careful.” Julia slid it over to Grammy.
I watched, not moving, as Grammy read it over. “My goodness. How about that.” She handed the document to me.
It really was the official pilot’s license of an Emily Parker. Frayed around the ages, yellowed and worn. “This is my relative?”
“It is,” Julia said with authority. “Same date of birth, as you can see. She was only twenty-one at that time.”
“And she would have died only three years later,” Grammy added.
“Imagine that. A pilot. Isn’t that the funniest thing you ever heard?” Marjory elbowed me.
“Funny?” I put down the paper. It was a connection all right, to a woman who sounded as different from me as any two women could be. I had never done anything even remotely that adventurous. The first Emily Parker sounded like a maverick. A rebel.
“You have to admit it. This Emily Parker sounds like she was a risk taker, maybe a bit of an eccentric.” Grammy leaned over my shoulder now.
“It’s true,” Julia said. “At that time, there weren’t many women pilots. Amelia Earhart comes to mind, but that was much later. And that’s about it.”
“A woman at that time, flying a plane. That’s dangerous. Irresponsible. What if she had crashed and left her children behind?” A second after the statement, Marjory clapped her hand over her mouth.
They were all aware this Emily had died of consumption and left a young son behind. But at least she’d lived her life fully before dying. Something that I wasn’t sure I could say about myself. Then again, hadn’t I decided I would change some things?
“It’s true. I’ve always played it safe,” I said to the license. Maybe that was what Greg had been all about. Greg and his 401K, sensible shoes and plans for a rock-solid future. A future that would have included our 2.5 children. I could have never guessed that he, of all people, would humiliate me the way he had.
“I wouldn’t call it playing it safe, dear. I’d call it being practical. You’re by far the most dependable girl I know.” Grammy patted my shoulder. “Why, I’d trust you with anything.”
“Which is why she’d make a good doctor’s wife,” Luanne said with a nod.
“Why does everyone want to marry me off?” My voice rose. “Maybe I don’t want to get married anymore. Ever.”
“Don’t say such a thing,” Marjory grimaced and then waved her arms in the air. “Cancel that, cancel that.”
Marjory believed every word spoken had power, and that if one waved their arms around like they were shooing away a bug, the Universe might forgive a negative word or two. Wipe it away, so to speak.
