“So, do y'all ever feel like, 'I'm so cultural,' or is this just the vibe?”
Nine-year-old Vertran Stepforth was admiring his grandmother Velma Stepforth and great-aunt-by-marriage Gladys Jubilee Trent in their respective dress that day … it was another hot one, and they had turned out in their colorful sun dresses and head wraps and hairstyles and jewelry that reflected their African American and even deeper African heritage.
The two older women looked at their wide-eyed little relative and smiled.
“Beautiful, ain't it, to see the lineage you come from and its power and strength represented without apology?” Mrs. Gladys Jubilee Trent said.
“Ain't no feelings over here, baby,” Mrs. Stepforth said. “This is just who we are, unbossed, unbowed, unbothered. This is not feelings, this is facts.”
“Never forget, Vertran,” Mrs. Jubilee Trent said. “You come from powerful men, and also from powerful women. Be ready to count yourself among powerful men, as a brother to powerful women.”
“Well, I mean I'm living with Cousins Vanna, Velma, and Gracie – it ain't that hard for those of us who actually want to live to grow up and have a good life,” Vertran said. “I'd rather eat Vanna's popcorn than … well … .”
He and the two women stopped to hear the slow rising voice in the background:
“Milton, if I have to tell you one more time about taking my peppercorns!”
And there went nine-year-old Milton Trent and nine-year-old George Ludlow across the yard to the presumed safety of the Lee house, each exhorting the other: “RUN!”
“See, I got things to do that have nothing to do with needing asylum,” Vertran said. “See, Tom got there by disrespecting the rules of our parents, but, see, the thing is, Cousin Vanna shows you really don't need to wait until a powerful woman is a mom yet. If you don't respect her, you pay the price. I have better things to do.”
“You're a really smart boy, grandson,” Mrs. Stepforth said.
“Your cousin will get there with friend George someday,” Mrs. Jubilee Trent said with a chuckle. “Both those boys should get into the Olympics though, ten years hence – Usain Bolt has nothing on those moves.”
“Usain Bolt doesn't know Cousin Vanna – or George's sister Edwina,” Vertran said.