The Full Cleveland Read Online Free PDF Page A

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    At Easter dinner that night, Mother was wearing her new ruby ring with pavé diamonds, an heirloom Dad stashed away when Grandfather died. She had decoded her clues successfully, and on the very first day. So she looked extra sparkling when she took a sip from her water glass. She held it up as if to toast someone special, which turned out to be us. She smiled at Luke. Everyone always smiled at Luke. “Did you see ducks, Lukie?”
    Fork in midair, Luke looked as if he didn’t know whether he’d been caught in the act, or what. But turns out, he just wasn’t listening. “Yes, I like ducks.”
    Saw ducks, we all wanted to say, but sure didn’t.
    Mother looked down the table straight to Dad, as if shooting an arrow, but one of those soft, love ones. “And did we see anything else?”
    Dad faked a frown, and steered her away as smooth as a Buick.

    When Clarine served the Baked Alaska, I asked how you could cook ice cream in the oven and it would still come out like ice cream, and not like a pond.
    At first, nobody was interested. I looked up at Mother. But she was helping Lucy so she wouldn’t slop meringue all over the white damask tablecloth. So I looked down at Dad. “How, Dad?”
    When he answered me, he was really looking at Mother. “Because it’s insulated.”
    â€œWhat’s insulated?
    But it was one of those things, like conscience, I guess, that even though you might ask, you sort of know what it is in your heart all along. Anyway, nobody answered.
    So I looked down at Mother. Then back to Dad. And when he winked at me, I guess I got what the game really was. Rubies weren’t the only treasures he’d been hiding from Mother. He had gone and hidden his conscience from her.

GIRLHOOD

Mother called a meeting for Catholics. It was held in the sitting room, and we all had to sit next to one another on the couch. Mother stood.
    She said the purpose of the meeting was to tell us we would start having meetings that were called Breakfast Meetings. She said she wanted a family that prayed together, and on Friday mornings, we should be prepared. And she set the time and the date for the first one. It was all very official. Then the meeting was over.
    All I’m saying is, we had a meeting just to be told about more meetings. But Cabot said that’s how it was done in the business world. After I heard that, I got pretty excited about it. I had to admit, it sounded good, to be able to have a Breakfast Meeting. I was pretty impressed with them, I guess.

    The Friday of the first meeting, Cabot and I were almost late, because of our skating lesson.
    Mother was late today too. She arrived in the dining room in a flowing red robe, which was a little unusual, because she was usually dressed up and everything, even at breakfast.
    Dad stood up, she sat down, he went to the end of the table to get his kiss, getting a quick tap on the face this time instead. He went out to find the gray felt hat, Clarine came in, flung Mother her eggs sort of short-order style, and swung back through the swinging dining room door.
    Except for the red robe, the quick tap, and no kiss, so far, business as usual.
    Hat in hand, Dad made his traditional reappearance in the doorway. “So long, now,” he said tentatively, surveying us cautiously, unsure why we were all still sitting there, hands folded on the table, lined up like a board meeting. “You won’t be late for school?”
    Mother blew a kiss and waved. “Bye, now.”
    He still stood there, on this day of all days, reluctant to go. So we all pitched in and cried “Bye, Daddy!!!” over and over, so it trilled in the halls like church bells and he was out the door and on his way to the four-car garage. Mother hadn’t come right out and said so, but clearly the family that prayed together was to be kept secret from Dad.
    When she heard a blue