“Do we have to go to your grandmother’s house?” Sam complained to his wife. “The last time we were there, the place smelled of bengay and peppermint.”
“I know,” Karen said, “but she said she had a special gift for the new baby. We’re almost there, sweetheart, and I promise we won’t stay long.”
“Fine,” Sam said, “but no more than an hour, okay.”
Karen’s grandmother was standing by the front door waving at her daughter and son-in-law when Sam pulled the car into the driveway. “Here we go,” Sam said.
When they got to the door, Karen’s grandmother warmly hugged them both. She stood back and looked at her granddaughter. “Oh Karen,” she said, “Look how big you are. You look like you’re going to have that baby any second now.”
“The baby’s not due for another two weeks, Granny,” Karen said. Didn’t you write the due date down on your calendar?”
“I think I did, honey, but with my memory the way it is, who knows? Would you mind checking? It’s the one hanging in the kitchen with a picture of a dolphin on it.”
“Sure, Grandma,” Karen said. “You know, we can’t stay too long. Sam has this work thing.”
“Well, let’s get down to business, then,” Grandma said. “First I have something for you, Karen.” She pulled a little velvet box from her apron and held it out to Karen. “Go ahead, open it up.”
Karen opened up the box and found a pair of earrings in it, each with a small ruby stone in it. “Grandma, these are your earrings,” Karen said.
“Yes, dear, but I never go anywhere to wear them, so I want you to have them.” When Karen started to protest, her grandmother said in a firm voice, “They’re for you. I’ve been saving them for you, so no argument, do you hear?”
“Thanks, Grandma,” Karen said, “but I thought you had something for the baby, not for me.”
“I do, sweetheart,” Karen’s grandmother said, beaming. “I ordered this wallpaper for the baby’s nursery. Here’s a sample,” she said, as she handed a three by three square sheet of the wallpaper to Karen. “Fantastic, isn’t it?”
“Yes, Grandma, that’s, umm, really something,” Karen said, as Sam ran out of the house laughing hysterically.
Written for Paula Light’s Three Things Challenge, where the three things are “calendar,” “dolphin,” and “ruby.” Also for The Haunted Wordsmith Daily Prompt from Teresa, where the setting is an elderly person’s home, the sentence starter is “The place smelled of bengay and peppermint,” and the photo is the flowered wallpaper. Photo credit: Ylanite Koppens from Pixabay
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