The Storm Coat

The talent scout drove her car into the parking lot and watched people go in the back door. There wasn't a crowd, just some grownups and children all talking and smiling.
"Why on earth aren't they going in the front door? I am going in the front door like regular people do."
When she opened the front door a little girl greeted her and said, "Hi, I am Marlee. Did you come to hear Grandma Lu tell a story? I can show you where she is. I can't stay very long today because I have a dance lesson. I want to hear about alpacas first then I have to leave. I think there are some snacks. Just help yourself." (That's what my Grandma B always tells people. 'Just help yourself.')

Marlee pointed to the trays of cookies and snacks and went into the Sitting Room to listen to Grandma Lu.

 "Hello, everyone. I am Grandma Lu to those of you that haven't been here before, welcome! I love to tell stories and I just happen to have one today about me when I was a little girl."

Just as she was getting comfortable in her easy chair with an old quilt for her lap a little child said, "Did you have wrinkles when you were a little girl?" Oh how that made Grandma Lu laugh. "No, I didn't get them until after I got old. Okay, I'm going to tell you about a coat I got when I was about nine years old called a Storm Coat."
 Charlie put her fingers to her lips to let everyone know to be quiet while Grandma Lu told her story.

"When I was a little girl we lived on a farm. Our winters were very cold. We lived in a state called Iowa. We had lots of snow in the winter time. I had a little green coat that I just loved. It had snow pants to match it. I didn't like the snow pants much because I had to take them off when I got to school. It was so much trouble because first I had to take my coat and hat off, then I had to hang it up on a hook. Then I had to take my snow boots off and put them on the floor under my coat, then I finally had to take off my snow pants. In those days, little girls didn't wear jeans or pants so my dress would get all wrinkled from getting stuffed into those silly old  snow pants."

"Just like all children do I grew and grew and finally I had to have a new coat. Oh I hated the thought of getting a new coat, but the fact was my green coat was just getting too small."

My mother and father took me to town to buy a new coat. They didn't have any pretty colors like my green coat. All they had were dull tan coats with brown stuff for a lining. It had a big brown fur collar. I looked like a round furry ball. I was so unhappy. I didn't even want to go to school I was so upset."

Our farm house was a long ways from where the school bus stopped to pick up my little brother and I. Sometimes if it was really bad my parents let us stay home. In those days there was no means of communication like we have nowadays. We had no television or cellphones.  If we were really lucky my father would drive the quarter mile driveway and let us wait for the bus in the car. That didn't happen very often because he was extremely busy feeding and milking the cows."

"One day my little brother and I had to walk the long long driveway to meet the school bus. Oh I can still remember how bundled up we were. We had hats, heavy mittens and scarves, but it was still so very cold. My little brother was shivering and shaking so I opened up my coat and closed it around him to keep him out of the wind. It was so much warmer. We were snug as a bug in a rug. My little brother is all grown up now, but he still reminds me of those days."

Now guess what the lining of my coat was made out of? It was alpaca fiber.
Does anyone know what an alpaca is or looks like? Well, I will get out a book and we will look together and learn all about alpacas.