 |
An Original
story written for Chicago's Hyde Park Historical Society |
THE GHOSTLY CABLE CAR
by Kristi Hollingsworth
| "Why
don't you go up and play in the attic?" asked Grandma Lea. At the sound of her voice, Tito nearly jumped out of his skin. He and Grandma Lea had been cooped up all morning in her library reading various books. Except that during the last quarter of an hour, Tito had managed to doze from sheer boredom while still propped up over his book. He shot his grandmother a look of surprise. "Go on, dear, it's time". "Time?" he spluttered. He felt a bit of nap-time drool in the corner of his mouth and thought he saw a tiny smile curving the ends of Grandma Lea's lips. She gestured out the window casually. The skies looked like a gray sea and the rain fell in great splashes against the darkened window. "The weather", she explained, "is not titillating your little gray cells". Tito twisted and swung his legs hurriedly to get out of his chair. But he had to stop and rub a leg that was even more soundly asleep than he had been. "Tittle what?" he wondered. Normally, he wouldn't hesitate to look it up. But he didn't have time for the dictionary just now. Tito was escaping through the double doors leading from the library to the hallway when he paused. Did Grandma really say the "attic"? Tito shook his head. He must have been sleeping. "You're sure, Grandma?" Grandma Lea waved her hand again and then pushed her spectacles up her nose. Tito was now certain that she was hiding a strange little smile behind that hand but he decided not to take any chances and bounded out the door with a loud, "Thanks, Grandma!" "TITO!" Tito skidded to a stop and his heart sank. She had changed her mind. "Yes, Grandma, " he spoke softly, with just his head wrapped around one of the double doors. "If you decide to play make-believe, choose your clothes wisely. Don't get hurt! I mean," her voice trailed off, "Don't unduly damage any of the clothes and...". Grandma Lea stared thoughtfully into empty space as Tito waited expectantly. But she just smiled and murmured, "Have fun". "I will". Tito sprinted for the staircase shouting, "Thanks oodles, Grandma" and charged up the stairs two at a time to get out of earshot as quickly as possible. He stopped cold when he realized, however, that several valuable pieces of furniture and rare objects were in danger of toppling from his earth-shattering stampede. "Sorry, Grandma," he called over his shoulder, "I'll be more careful". Every summer, Tito stayed with his Grandma Lea while his parents traveled. Both of his parents were historians, just like nearly everyone else in Tito's family. All of Tito's aunts, uncles, and grandparents--everyone was an expert in some area of history. During family gatherings, Tito felt like he was surrounded by walking, talking televisions, all playing the History Channel. None of his relatives included Tito in their conversations and he was dreadfully bored. During one such gathering he bravely approached the oldest of all the historians present. "Grandpa Albert? Which came first, the Roman soldiers or the cowboys?" Tito looked earnestly into his grandpa's face, expecting a serious answer. Instead, his grandpa erupted into roars of laughter. Tito's Grandma Lea put a sympathetic hand on Tito's shoulder but he didn't notice. He was much too embarrassed. "I'll never ask another question about stupid history again," he silently vowed. Poor Tito was only four years old! And being very stubborn, again like everyone in his family, Tito had done his best to NOT learn any history. By age ten, the only history that Tito knew well or cared about was film history. |