My goal, vision, is to write 101 of them.
Every journey begins with the first step.
First story? Perhaps, my first memory, I must have just passed 2y old. This is the first version.
This was told and remembered for a workshop of Lipman "Grow a story" and told through Zoom, breakout room to three listeners. Lipman come also to listen: what a wonderful warm listener!
------------------------
We lived from 2 - 5 y old in a flat probably second floor. I remember well, the place of every room and the furniture in mine, on my size. That day, at noon, I was sitting on my small chair near my small round table covered in red linoleum as was also the floor in my room. We got a new baby-sitter, exchange student perhaps.
She come in with a plate of spinach puree. That green thing that smelled, horribly to me, tasted same. So I looked at the purée and then at her, and shook my head
"No", "I do not want this!"
Severe, she looked at me, crunched near and told me "you have to it this!"
And next time I opened my mouth to protest, she put a big, spoonful of that green thing in my mouth. I got really angry.
"Pffff" and projected all what was in my mouth outside.
Her apron, perhaps even face, the tabletop, even on the red linoleum floor, got all drops of green. And when I looked up at her, and seen her face, suddenly, I panicked. I am now past 85 years old, but in my body I can still remember my first ever big panic of my life. What did I do?
She ran out, and a bit later, my mom come in. Looked all around, then told me on a quiet voice.
"Julie, you have to learn that all actions have consequences"
I understood action, and that she was not happy, but what meant "consequence"?
"Julie, you have to clean now all, not leave one drop either on the table or the floor."
With a humid swiper, I begun to clean. Not so bad! It was interesting. And toward the end, she come back and found more and more drops here and there.
But I did not get from then on, spinach purée for longtime and never was force-fed.
So, I did learn my lesson. "It is worth to fight for what is important. Worth to pay the consequences. I do not have to give up."
