“Welcome home, Mama.” I hugged her waist. “We’re glad you’re back.”
“Me too, baby. Me too.”
• • •
For helping with the dishes, Mama let me cut myself a thick slice of “our” cake. I wrapped my piece up in a napkin and headed upstairs to HQ with pound cake in one hand and Mama’s laptop under my arm. New Max did a flip turn in his bowl, while I scarfed down my slice. I tried to savor it, as it’d been two months since I’d had cake from Janet Beebe’s oven, but in the end, I ate it in three bites.
“New Max, you don’t know what you’re missing by eating fish flakes.”
He swam to the side of the bowl and waited.
“We go back to school tomorrow, New Max. You’ll love Howard County Elementary and the library. Mr. Reyes is the best librarian in the world.” I tossed New Max a piece of food. “Well, good night, sleep tight. I have one last thing to do.”
I powered up Mama’s laptop right as a knock, knock sounded at my door. Mama poked her head in. “Forgot your milk.” She set it on my nightstand and peeked at my computer screen.
“You feeling brave today, Mama?” I scooted over to make room on my bed.
Mama smiled and blinked away a tear. “We’re fighters, aren’t we? Let’s do this.”
To: [email protected]
From: [email protected]
Subject: Lola Mae Dorothy
Lola Mae Dorothy of Howard County, MS, our beloved mother and nana, went to be with her Lord and Savior on Friday, March 4, while shopping for metronomes. She was 68 years young.
Lola Mae was born to Forrest and Alice Susan Copeland on November 18, 1946, in Jackson, MS. The family moved to Fayetteville, AR, before Lola could hold a No. 2 pencil.
Lola Mae attended Root Elementary and Fayetteville High School. She majored in music education at the University of Arkansas, where she met the love of her life, an engineering student named Leroy Dorothy. Legend has it that in a hurry, Leroy entered the wrong auditorium for a lecture, heard Lola practicing a concerto, and proposed marriage. She turned him down. Eventually, the two did marry and stayed married more than forty years.
Lola Mae taught piano students from her home studio in Howard County and loved every minute of it, minus that one prank with a rubber snake.
A longtime member of Third Baptist Church, she also volunteered at a local soup kitchen, where she cooked chicken and dumplings and made her famous banana pudding from scratch, once without the bananas. She called it “banana-less pudding.” To be sure, Lola Mae’s swift smile and generous scoops warmed as many hearts as stomachs.
Lola Mae is survived by her loving daughter and son-in-law, Janet and Terry Beebe, and her two adoring grandchildren, Leon and Vilonia Beebe, and many friends.
The family wishes to thank all of those who showered them with care and concern the last three months. Donations can be made in Lola’s memory to the Lola Mae Dorothy Piano Scholarship Fund in care of the University of Arkansas Music Department.
Arrangements were provided by the Howard County Funeral Home.
Over and out.
Amen.
Janet Beebe’s Award-Winning
Sour Cream Pound Cake
“Best served with my world-famous, and now stem-less, strawberry-infused tea. Please ask a grown-up for help.”
—Vilonia
2 cups sugar
2 sticks butter
3 eggs, thanks to Eleanor
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups flour
1 cup sour cream
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (optional)
Cinnamon-sugar mixture:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
Cream sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well. Add in the dry ingredients, sour cream, and blueberries, if using. Pour one-half of the batter into a greased and floured Bundt pan and sprinkle one-half of the cinnamon-sugar mixture on top. Pour the remaining batter into the pan followed by the remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for one hour, an eternity when it comes to cake, but we promise it’s worth the wait.
Acknowledgments
Though writing is a solitary endeavor, it takes many people, and cookies, to make a book. My sincerest thanks to the following individuals who helped bring Vilonia to print:
To my intrepid, no-nonsense agent, Caryn Wiseman, who took a chance on me after seeing only a handful of pages. Your wit and wisdom pushed me to the finish line. I’ll forever be grateful Big Sur brought us together.
To my editor, the savvy Sylvie Frank, who asked the best questions, tolerated my bouts of indecision, and laughed at the right parts. You deserve a whole cake.
To the entire team at Paula Wiseman Books: Krista Vossen, Katrina Groover, Chava Wolin, Sarah Jane Abbott, and Paula Wiseman. Thank you is not enough. I’m treating you all to Guy’s milkshakes. And to Emma Trithart, who so perfectly illustrated Vilonia’s personality and spunk. Thank you.
To my friends at Arkansas SCBWI. Your notes made for a better book.
To my critique mates turned close friends, who read Vilonia’s story at every stage. The Book Nerds: Karen Akins, Kimberly Loth, and Mandy Silberstein. I love you all.
To Stefanie Wass, fellow dog lover and the best beta reader, and to my debut author group, the Swanky Seventeens, for countless laughs and pep talks.
To Dr. Stacy Furlow and Dr. Paige Partridge for their support and help in answering my medical questions.
To my parents, Mickey and Phillis, who raised two readers. Thank you for turning my lamp off all of those nights I fell asleep reading. And to my twin brother, Ryan. We’ve come a long way from two-pound preemies. I still call the front seat.
And to Jackson, Zachary, Nathan, Copeland, and Madeleine—my fiercest cheerleaders. I’m your biggest fan and am so lucky you’re mine.
And to Jesse, who told me to “write the book already.” I love you times infinity.
And thanks always to God for seeing fit to let me live despite my rocky start so I could share these words with you.
PHOTO COPYRIGHT © 2016 BROOKE ROBINSON
Kristin L. Gray drinks coffee (cream, no sugar) and writes books (funny, not sad) from her home in northwest Arkansas. She loves to read, walk her dogs, and eat cake for breakfast. She will also travel any chance she gets. Kristin’s fourth-grade self would never believe she has five children, two dogs, one fish, a bearded dragon, and a shy gecko. Vilonia Beebe Takes Charge is her first novel. To learn more about Kristin, or to send her a cake, visit her online at kristinlgray.com.
A PAULA WISEMAN BOOK
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
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ISBN 978-1-4814-5842-9
ISBN 978-1-4814-5844-3 (eBook)
Vilonia Beebe Takes Charge Page 14