sssarawolf
We're just plugging along.
Waiting For Normal
All Rights Reserved
Created 20 October 2025
No part of this story may be reproduced without the permission of the author. Any resemblance to places or people living or dead is purely coincidence.
One of the books now featured on my blog, Sal's Country Home & Books
Meet Belle Stone. As the story starts she is 10 years old. Intelligent beyond her years.All Rights Reserved
Created 20 October 2025
No part of this story may be reproduced without the permission of the author. Any resemblance to places or people living or dead is purely coincidence.
One of the books now featured on my blog, Sal's Country Home & Books
Chapter 1
The city was extremely hot as it always is in August. I’d learned the month was called, the dog days of summer. I’m Belle. I am 10 years old. I remembered hearing one of the old folks calling August that when we had visited grandma at the beginning of the month. Grandma, her name is Flossie Spencer. She is my mom’s mother and lives in a care home these days because she had fallen down her stairs going to get the mail. A neighbor saw it happen and called for an ambulance. She had broken her right hip. She isn’t supposed to be there forever just until she is able to be fit enough to go home. Which should be soon.
Aunt Tilda had been at work when grandma fell. Aunt Tilda is mom’s sister and a widow of 5 years. She and grandma decided they would put in together to be better off. A lot of people have family members who move in to help take care of each other.
Mom is the youngest in their family with Aunt Tilda being 7 years older. My mom’s name is Vesta. She doesn’t work outside of the home but she will once my youngest brother starts school.
Mom has a brother three years older than her but he moved out west to a state called Wyoming before Mom and Dad got married. His name is Amos Jr. He is named after his dad, our grandpa Amos. Grandpa died when I was a baby. I have seen pictures of him in grandma’s photo album.
We have picture albums because the only people that have computers and cell phones are government workers and people that have important jobs. Most like Dad don’t bring them home. I heard there was a time when almost everyone had one, even kids. We do have what Grandma calls a land line. People got into too much trouble and made lots of problems and planned bad things with cell phones. That’s how regular citizens got them taken away. It was what the teachers call a technology age that didn’t work out. Anyone could record videos and take pictures with them. I learned in school that this meant a lot of people had jobs again working for the phone company as phone lines that had been ripped out and had to be re-laid underground.
There is no television. We kids learn about them but no one I know has one. We do have radio. We aren’t allowed to listen to it until we are 16 years old. Mom and Dad have one in their bedroom. It is forbidden for us to touch it. They don’t want ideas put in our heads by what we hear.
Grandma told me this way is better anyway. People could take lots of pictures on their phones. If they didn’t download them to a lap top or computer, you could lose them all by your cell breaking or being taken away. The same thing happened with home use computers. I don’t know any family around that has one. Going back to cameras that have film and can be developed means you can put them in an album and look at them anytime you want.
My dad has a cell phone because he works for the government. He says he has a computer at work that keeps him connected to his higher ups in the agency that he works for. We don’t know what agency he works for as he isn’t allowed to tell us. Only it is a government agency.
I do have siblings. Both are boys. I really, really wanted a sister. Mom says we don’t get to order what we want. Harlin is 6 and Harvey is 4. Sometimes they drive me crazy with what they think is funny. One time they were in our small back yard and had found a worm and threw it at me when they came inside. I think they thought I was going to scream or something but I didn’t. They were laughing until I picked it off my shirt and told them, “Thank you I always wanted a girl worm. I think I will call her Mary.”
I found a plastic bowl Mom didn’t want. I did ask first. I went out back and put dirt in the bowl, sprinkled a little bit of water in it and put Mary on top. I had the boys watch as she started to squirm into the dirt. The funny was on them. They are always trying to find something to surprise me. Only it is happening less and less as I don’t react like they want me to.
My dad’s name is unusual, Mensor Riley Stone. He is named after some great, great grandfather and is a large man. He really looks like it when Mom stands beside him. I don’t mean fat I mean tall. He has lots of muscles. He says he has to have those for work. He has to stay in shape. That seems strange to me but what do I know? I know he works in an office. I just didn’t know you had to be strong to work in one. He has very dark brown hair with blue eyes. So, do I. He has a straight nose and Mom says Dad is good looking. He just looks like a dad to me. Every other Saturday he has a day off so we have him home for Saturday and Sunday. He likes to work around the house and build things with the boys in the basement. He plays games with all of us when he has the spare time. In nice weather he declares it’s time to go to the park and run around to get some of our wiggles out of us. It is six blocks away. Sometimes even Mom goes along to watch as we all run around. They also call it getting some fresh air. Sometimes I think the air is better inside the house then outside.
