I wake up to some unexpected news the next morning.
Ms. Fuller: Your social worker, Miss Hillary, is coming to get you today.
Alida: But…I’ve been good!
Ms. Fuller: That’s not why she’s coming. She’s coming to take you to go and see your mother.
Alida: *in shock* My mother?
I never expected to hear those words, so it takes me a while to comprehend them.
Ms. Fuller: Yes…she set up a visitation for today.
I gasp, thinking that if I’m going to go see my mother…that must mean that we’ll soon be living together again.
Ms. Fuller: Miss Hillary will be here to get you in a few hours, so we’d better make sure you’re ready.
Ms. Fuller fixes up my hair and helps me pick out a dress to wear. Once I’m dressed and ready, she lights up the birthday cake that she spent all morning baking…then she picks Darwin up to help him blow out his candles.
We’re all very happy that Darwin is finally aging up. He hasn’t exactly been the easiest toddler to deal with…probably because he misses his mother. I feel sorry for him…but at the same time, I’m still on cloud 9 thinking about my mama and I living together again.
I sit on the couch and wait anxiously for Miss Hillary to arrive. Miss Hillary is the social worker that brought me to Ms. Fuller’s when mama first went to jail. She also visits me sometimes at school to make sure I’m doing okay. I’m giddy with excitement when she finally shows up and knocks on the door.
Ms. Fuller opens the door and greets Miss Hillary. Then she steps out on the porch and closes the door behind her. They talk briefly and I do my best to hear what they’re saying…but I can’t make it out.
The more they talk…the more my stomach begins to feel all twisted and tight because I’m more than ready to go and see mama. Ms. Fuller finally re-enters the house.
Ms. Fuller: It’s time for you to go with Miss Hillary now.
I jump up and hurry towards the door as if mama was just on the other side of it.
I step outside and Miss Hillary greets me.
Miss Hillary: How are you this morning? You look so pretty.
Alida: Thank you! I’m good.
We walk out the gate.
Alida: Is mama far away?
Miss Hillary: It’s a bit of a drive, but it shouldn’t be too bad.
Miss Hillary leads me to her car.
The drive is longer than I expected, but Miss Hillary does her best to keep me entertained. To get to mama…we leave Del Sol Valley, then we drive through Oasis Springs. Finally, we arrive in Strangerville. Miss Hillary tells me this is where mama is. In Strangerville…we get to drive across a bridge and we even drive past the airport, where I get to see a plane take off. I can’t wait to tell mama all about it.
I’m not sure where I expected mama to be, but I definitely didn’t expect for us to stop in front of a big building that sort of looks like a fort with tall walls and gates all over the place. Miss Hillary tells me that we’re at a prison. She leads me through several security gates that slam loudly and scare you half to death after you pass through them. I’m a bit on edge by the time she leads me down a set of stairs. It feels like we’re going to a dungeon.
Miss Hillary finally stops…
Miss Hillary: Your mama is just through this door. Are you ready?
Suddenly I’m not so sure.
(Generation 1 Chapter Summaries)
