At seven I was not the youngest in my family. But when
it came to teasing, for some unknown reason, I seemed to be the favorite target. The three oldest--Bill, Betty, and Ross--were
experts at it. They seemed to know exactly what to do to get under my skin.
And speaking of skin, that just happened
to be their specific target one day--the skin on my scalp, that is.
"Hey, Evelyn, has your head been itching lately?"
Ross asked in that falsely innocent tone I always hated.
"No. Why?"
"Ummm. Just wondering."
"Why should
it be itching?" I was getting suspicious. Ross had that smug look on his face which always meant trouble--trouble for me.
"Have you ever heard of dandruff?"
"Of course, I've heard of dandruff. What of it?"
"I think maybe
you've got some. Want me to check your head to make sure?"
Mortified at the thought that I had enough dandruff to
be noticed by somebody else, I let down my guard and meekly nodded, "Yes."
"Sit down so I can see better...ummm, this
looks bad. Betty, come tell me what you think."
"Yeah, it looks bad to me, too. Bill, come help us decide."
I
cringed as the three of them poked around in my hair.
Finally, Bill said, "Well, the best way to tell for sure is
for you to lean over the coffee table, Evelyn. Scratch your head and we'll see if any dandruff comes out."
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| illustration by: Kevin Scott Collier |
"Yeah, that's a good idea," agreed the other two.
Trustingly, I followed their directions. Kneeling down beside the table, I leaned over and started scratching my head.
To my horror, white stuff started pouring onto the table!
"Ohhhh noooo!" I wailed. Scrambling to my feet, I raced into the kitchen, grabbed my mom around the waist, and
burst into tears.
"What on earth is the matter, Evelyn?"
"Oh, Mom! It's terrible! I've got the most horrible dandruff! What am I gonna do?"
"Calm down," she soothed. "What makes you think you've got horrible dandruff?"
I grabbed her hand and tugged her into the living room. Shame-faced, I pointed to the coffee table.
She glanced at it for less than half a second and then noticed Bill, Betty, and Ross trying to disappear down the hall.
"Hold on, you three!"
They turned back, Betty trying unsuccessfully to hide the saltbox under her sweater. Their bottled-up laughter spilled
over as they confessed, "Oh, Mom, we know we shouldn't have done it, but it was so funny!"
Shaking her head, Mom let out a long-suffering sigh. "Why can't you kids find something else to do with all your
wonderful creativity?"
Turning to me, she gave me a warm hug and an understanding smile, saying, "Try not to let them bother you, Evelyn."
And I did try. Really, I did. But every time after that, whenever I salted my food at the table and glanced up to see
Ross grinning at me, I couldn't help wondering what prank the three of them were planning to spring on me next!
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