So I walked beside her.
At the crosswalk, we waited for the signal.
I watched the traffic.
So did Mom.
When the little white walking man lit up, Mom went first.
And I stayed right at her side.
Sounds of Easton is a tiny store. It smells like wood polish and old sheet music. There are guitars hanging all over the walls. And a little bell over the door that jingles when you come in.
An old man with a white beard and suspenders looked up from behind the counter.
“Afternoon, ladies,” he said. “Heard there was some excitement over at Macy’s.”
“A little,” Mom said. “We’re fine.”
She rolled right up to the counter.
“I’m looking for a gift for my granddaughter. She’s turning twelve. She loves to sing.”
The old man’s face lit up.
“Well, now,” he said. “Does she play anything?”
“Not yet,” Mom said. “But she’s always wanted to learn.”
He came out from behind the counter and took a small instrument down off the wall.
A ukulele. Pale wood. With a little painted sunflower on the body.
“Easiest thing in the world to learn,” he said. “Four strings. Three chords and she can play half the songs ever written.”
Mom held out her hands.
He set it in her lap.
She strummed it once. Badly. It made a little twangy sound.
Mom laughed out loud.
“Can she play ‘You Are My Sunshine’ on this?” she asked.
“First song in the book,” the old man said. “C, F, and G. She’ll have it by Thanksgiving.”
Mom looked up at me.
Her eyes were shining.
“This one,” she said.
I didn’t say, are you sure? I didn’t say, maybe we should look at the jewelry instead. I didn’t say anything.
I just nodded.
And I watched my mother pay for her granddaughter’s birthday present with her own credit card. Out of her own wallet. In her own handwriting.
Adrian Hawthorne is a celebrated author and dedicated archivist who finds inspiration in the hidden stories of the past. Educated at Oxford, he now works at the National Archives, where preserving history fuels his evocative writing. Balancing archival precision with creative storytelling, Adrian founded the Hawthorne Institute of Literary Arts to mentor emerging writers and honor the timeless art of narrative.