Recitatif

When Twyla first met Roberta, she didn’t like her at first because she was stuck in one room with a new girl of a different color. Morrison said that nobody wanted to play with Twyla and Roberta because they weren’t real orphans with beautiful dead parents in the sky. They were dumped. The older children picked on the younger ones a lot. Twyla reminisce about one lady name Maggie. She fell in the orchard and the older children laughed at her. That Sunday both Roberta and Twyla’s mothers were coming. When Twyla said that her mother dances, I assumed she was a stripper because earlier in the story she said that she loves to dance all night. Roberta’s mother was sick. Twyla thought that if her dancing mother met the sick mother it might be good for her. Later Twyla thought that the reason why she got into waitressing later was that so she could match up the right people with the right food. One day while she was working at Howard Johnson she saw Roberta. She acted different. She was with two guys. One of them was off to the Coast because he had an appointment with Jimi Hendrix. After that Twyla felt turned off. Years later they both got older they met again. They acted like long lost sisters. They are both married and have kids. Even Roberta learned how to read which was good. When they talked about Maggie Twyla thought she fell down by herself. Roberta said that she didn’t, that the older girls knocked her down. Twyla didn’t remember that part. Roberta asked if her mother was still dancing. She was, and Roberta’s mother was still sick. Roberta said that back then was different, black and white. After they were arguing more Roberta said that they both kicked Maggie but Twyla didn’t remember it. It was like she blocked out that part. Again, years later they met again. Roberta wanted to talk to her. She said they Twyla was right, they didn’t kick her.

            At the end of the story, Roberta asked, “What the hell happened to Maggie?” That is the question I wanted to know too. If I was in Twyla’s shoes I would be turned off by Roberta that day in Howard Johnsons. Roberta should have acted a little more better instead acting like the regular teens. But it was good that later she acted a little better like she hasn’t seen each other in a long time.