Like Mother, Like Mother

by Susan Rieger

She liked him. He had no edge. He liked her. She was all edge.

“I never met a rich workingman.” “I never met a boss who didn’t think he’d done it all by himself.”

“I suppose I have relied on my looks. Some people had connections, I had blond hair.” She took another swallow. “I can’t help my looks. I had nothing to do with them.”

“Grace is a lot like me. I’m nothing like her.”

“Lila didn’t know anything about being a parent so she left it to Joe. Safer that way.” “You need to let it go,” Stella said. “She doesn’t do what she can’t do. She’s damaged. We know that.”

“I make them think I’m on their side. You don’t do that. You make them feel you’re not against them. You could say that’s a marginal difference, but it makes a difference. I’m working on it.”

“It may look like I threw you all to the wind,” Lila said, “but, in fact, I have a theory of mothering.” She held up her thumb. “First, do no harm. Second, give them rope. Third, keep in mind, they’re smarter than you know.”

“This is a ghost story. Whether Zelda died or lived, she haunts our family.

“You aren’t stupid, why do you ask stupid questions?” She scowled at Grace. “If I looked back, I couldn’t go forward.”

“They did what they had to. They did what they could.”