Most kids I know have names that mean something. My friend Maddy was named after the island of Madagascar where her parents met while workin' in the Peace Corp. Her brother, Jerry, is named after his dad Big Jerry, and my little sister Amber is named after the color of stones that match her eyes. Mama said that they just knew those deep eyes of hers would turn the same shade of brown as her own. I on the other hand happened to be born on July 21 1969, and my parents had not thought of a name for me. Mama wanted to name me after her Granny Pluma, and my daddy thought we should name me after his sister Bertha Lou who delivered me when Doc Davies didn't get to the hospital in time. The fact that neither of those names sound really bad to me should tell you that my parents did something awful to me, and you are right, they did. They named me after their link to that moment in history. I am forever cursed with Sylvania cause that was the kind of T.V. That was in Mama's hospital room as they watched mans first steps on the moon. I would have loved to be named Apollo, or Buzz, but no, I was a little girl, and got stuck with Sylvania!
When I started school the teacher was reading off the names so quick that she called me Sylvia. I knew she was talking about me 'cause she called...
”Buttars...Sylvia Buttars? Are you here sweetie?”
“Here.” I answered, and hoped she didn't look back at the list. She called me Sylvia for a whole week and I loved it, then Mama came in with cookies for the class and one of them whispered...
“Thank you Sylvia...”
“Oh no,” Mama answered, “That's pronounced Sylvania dear, you know like the television sets?”
That was the end of me having a human name instead of a machine. All the kids giggled a little, but then Mama explained that they had watched the moon landing the day I was born and they knew they were in changing times. Most of the kids thought that was okay then, I had to be named to keep up with those changes. I wonder what that means to poor Amber, they have had rocks forever, does that mean she is like a cave girl at heart?
Well I loved Kindergarten. Doesn't everyone love Kindergarten? The hard decisions of what finger paint colors you would like to use, or whether or not you use a straw with your milk. I used to take the straw. After I used it I would put it in my pocket and take it home. I would wash it real good, and then I could bribe Amber to play school with me by telling her she could drink water out of a real school straw. One day my teacher caught me savin' it for Amber, she told me that I couldn't do that anymore 'cause it was “unsanitary”. I heard her talkin' later with the other Kindergarten teacher on the playground about how we trailer trash kids had so little that she just didn't know how we survived sometimes. That night when we were at the dinner table I looked at the food, Mama had made buttermilk biscuits, and we had a jar of homemade gooseberry jam. She sliced thin pieces of sharp yellow cheese, and poured glasses of ice cold milk. I knew we each had a fresh peach for desert to eat outside while we watched the sun go down too. When Mama put dinner in front of me I thought that it looked wonderful, but then wondered if other kids were eating more than we were.
“Mama, if I were still hungry after dinner what would you do?”
“You on a growth spurt honey? There are enough biscuits here you can have as many as you like, and I can slice some more cheese if you want some.”
“So we have enough that we are survivin'?”
“Survivin'? What do you mean survivin?”
“My teacher said that she doesn't know how trailer trash like us survives cause we got so little, but I can't remember anytime that I've even been hungry for more than a few hours, and I never have been cold 'cepting when I wanted and threw my covers off in front of the window. I got clothes, and books, and toys, and you and Daddy and Amber, I even got kittens, and lot's of the kids that have houses aint got no kittens.”
“Don't have any kittens honey.”
“Well they don't.”
“Maybe you need to tell your teacher what it is that you have. Maybe she isn't seeing the kids who really need things in your class, and maybe you should tell her.”
I thought about this all night long and started to make a list in my head. The next day when we were about to go out to recess, I asked my teacher if I could talk to her for a minute. She got a worried look on her face, and said okay, but outside.
“I been thinking a lot about this and I think you need to know something.”
“What Sylvania, is there something you need?”
“No, but I think some of the other kids need some things so I thought I should tell you. Mitchel needs a new jacket. He has one but he always gives it to his brother on his way home. His brothers hands get cold, and he's bigger than Mitchel and tells him he will slug him if he doesn't give him his jacket too.”
“Well I think maybe we should talk to their mom and get his brother some gloves so Mitchel could keep his jacket, how 'bout that?”
“That could work. Jessica needs a toothbrush.”
“A toothbrush?”
“Here at school. Her mama is always late for work and throws her in the car eating a granola bar for breakfast. If she had a toothbrush here at school she could brush the chocolate off her teeth before rug time and not look gross with brown teeth.”
“I will think about that Sylvania and...”
“AnnaMarie needs a new daddy.”
“What?!?”
“She needs a new daddy. Her mama was talking to mine in the hall the other day, and she told her that if her husband took any more trips with his secretary that she was gonna throw him out. The next day when he picked up AnnaMarie, 'cause her mama was at the doctor, he told her that she would have to ask her mother if she could go to TammieSue's birthday party. AnnaMarie asked why and he said he had to go out of town with his secretary for work again. I figure it is only a matter of time until AnnaMaries mama kicks him out. So I think she needs a new daddy.”
“Sylvania, I don't think you should be talking about all of your classmates this way. I don't think it is nice to spread gossip.”
“But I had to tell you cause you are worried about the wrong kids in the class”
“What do you mean?”
“You told the other teacher that we trailer trash have so little that you don't know how we survive. Darian, Maddy and I are the only ones that live in the trailer park. I play at their places all the time. We all have plenty of food. We have our families. We even have a playground that no one but us can play on 'less we invite them. It's the other kid's in the class that need stuff. I even have two kittens of my very own, and not any of the kids that live in houses have kittens. I asked them, a few have cats, but I am the only one with two little kittens of my very own.”
My teacher turned really red after that. I don't even remember her name anymore. I know that she stopped having recess at the same time as the other kindergarten class so she didn't talk about us kids on the playground anymore. She didn't even teach in my school the next year. I heard she even left the state, but I can't know for sure so that could just be gossip.
