Around the World in 88 Years -E Book - Arthur Burt

She would respond, “But I need my cup of tea, Mister.” So, Iwould let her in.She would leave the door open on the coldest of mornings, andI would chide her, “Can you shut the door after you?”“Mister, your legs are younger than mine. You can shut the door.”Mrs. Moon would counter. “Haven’t you got the fire lit yet? It iscold.” I almost felt guilty because I didn’t have the fire lit for her.She would be mithering and complaining over me as I wouldlight the fire, “Shall you be long? Shall you have my cup of teaready soon?”The more I gave her, the more she took. I would sit at the tableeating an egg, while she stood over me with her big long nose.Wearing a black shawl over her white hair, she looked like awitch. She would watch me eat my breakfast, her eyes followingwhen the spoon went into the egg, her eyes on the spoonful asthe egg went into my mouth.Mrs. Moon began to drop broad hints, “I wish I had somebodyto boil me an egg.”“You can boil an egg, can’t you?” I suggested to her.“When you get to my age,” she sighed, “you feel neither nannynor billy.” (That was one of her favorite sayings, which had somethingto do with nanny and billy goats.) “You feel neither nannynor billy. It would be nice if you could boil me an egg in themorning when you are doing yours. Shall you, when you aredoing yours?”I was really running out of grace for her. I would move my chairalong the table and pull my plate and my egg, and she wouldfollow right on top of me, watching every mouthful of egg, breadand butter I ate.One morning I saw a flea hop off her shawl onto the tablecloth,and afterwards, we had a plague of fleas that hit the children. Itwas distressing, because while we kept our house clean, we coulddo nothing about the old lady. The bugs and the fleas came withher, and the children had bumps and bites all over them.Another day, I saw a drip on the end of her nose. Like a planedropping a bomb, I thought, it was going right into my egg. I88