From Pompoms to Prison

The Bathroom

My friends and I spent many hours in this bathroom. Talking about our lives , dreams, and loves :))  We sat in there because we would crack the window and smoke cigarettes feeling as if we were adults. This pink bathroom ( it has not changed at all ) makes me smile :))

David's Room

This was David's room. It was strange going into it because for so many years the doors were shut and an entrance into it almost seemed forbidden. I would avoid it at all costs. But it is just a room, now an office where Judy spends most of her time. It was really quite pleasant .

Hallway of my dreams

This hallway is significant to me because it was the setting for my recurring nighmare after mother died where she and David chased me down that hall in clown makeup riding tricycles. They would taunt me and accuse me of killing her. Terrified  I would run from them trying to get away  wondering why no one loved me. Relief would wash over me  after I would wake up in tears and a cold sweat realizing it was only a dream but then I would remember I was still alone . This was one of the darkest periods of my life. I dreamed that dream every night for so long and it was always the same. 

But another memory  that surfaced from that hall  was of me and Barbara Ellis Kline riding our hoppity hops  in and out of the rooms playing Batman , she was always Cat Woman and I was always Cat or Bat girl, I can't remember. We usually had our Ms. Beasley dolls in tow also . This memory made me laugh :))

In front of my home

Standing victoriously in front of my Childhood Home. I will refer to it as a home from this point forward. No longer is it a house of horrors , it was my home.

The Powder Room

This is where I would usually find my mother passed out. I don't know why she was in the powder room but she was. On my 17th birthday I leaped over her body to see myself in her mirror. It was like I was able to ignore there was a passed out person on the floor. God protected my heart and let me feel joy during some very sad circumstances. I am so thankful for that .

The Sunken Den

This is the den. It was pretty cool that it was a sunken den. My dad really did a nice job on this home, he did a lot of the design himself. This den is where I sat and celebrated my 17th birthday alone and then a year and a half later I sat on that rug alone again after finding my mother's body , gently rocking myself for comfort. This room brought up so many mixed emotions.

My bathroom

 Me standing in my bathroom :))

Susan's Room

Me standing in my teenage room :)

My Triangle Bathtub

My cool triangle bathtub !! I would pull my TV into the bathroom while bathing in that tub. I must have been very tiny because it is a very tiny tub .

Where I found my mother

This room was the room of my childhood and I am sure where I experienced the most happiness. So many people tell me I was adored by my parents and that they doted on me before that fateful 4th of July, sadly I don't recall that but I am sure it happened while this was my bedroom . Ironically this is the room where I experienced the the worst tragedy of all : finding my mother'sbody. There were so many conflicting emotions as I spent time in there. 

My mother's room and where the fire was

Another angle of the room with the fire