We
were making good time… until I saw flashing red lights in my rearview mirror! I
pulled over, and got out all the necessary documents to present to the police
officer. Meanwhile Melissa is very curious as to why we have suddenly stopped,
when we need to be at school! While the officer takes his sweet time stepping
up to the car, our conversation goes like this…
Melissa: “Mama, why did you
stop?”
Me: “A police officer
flashed his lights and I had to stop.”
Melissa: “Uh oh! Are we going
to jail Mama?”
Me: “No. I was speeding.
I will get a ticket, and we can’t tell Daddy… okay?”
Melissa: “Okay! Can I tell
him about the lights?”
All
I could do was shake my head as I watched the officer approaching the car in my
side mirror, and I noticed that I had been stopped by a rather large, uniformed
cowboy… it was the Constable! He stepped
up to the window, and as he peered in and tipped his cowboy hat at us, I heard
a little giggle next to me. You see, Melissa loved cowboys because her daddy
wore a cowboy hat too! So this is how the conversation goes…
Constable: (in a thick Texas
drawl) “Mornin’ ma’am. Why are you in such a hurry?”
Me: “I’m running
late…just trying to get to work on time.”
Constable: “Well ma’am, that
didn’t work out too well for you, now did it?”
Me: “No sir it didn’t.”
Constable: (pointing at
Melissa, who is smiling from ear to ear) “Well now, who do we have here?”
Me: “This is my daughter
Melissa.”
Melissa: “Hi! My name is
Melissa! I am 5 years old and I am in kindergarten! What’s your name?”
Constable: “Well little lady, I
am pleased to meetcha. My name is Constable Jones.”
Melissa: “Are you a Texan?
Are you a real cowboy or a for fake cowboy like my daddy?”
Constable: “Yes, li’l missy, I
am a Texas cowboy with horses and everythang. Now, I need to talk to your mama
for a minute.”
Constable: “Ma’am, I’m gonna
let you go with a warnin’ this mornin’, but you make sure you use your time
wisely so you aren’t runnin’ late and risk getting’ yourself into an accident.
We want to make sure li’l missy over there gets to grow up to be a fine young
lady.”
Me: “Yes sir.”
Just
as I am about to breathe a sigh of relief that I am getting a warning and not a
ticket, li’l missy pipes up…
Melissa: “Sir, did you know
my mama was drinkin’ and drivin’ too?”
OMG!
I couldn’t believe my ears! I reached for the can of Dr. Pepper in the drink
holder, held it up and pleaded, “Sir, it’s just soda! She got that from TV, but
doesn’t know what it means!”
Constable: With a knowing grin
he said, “Ma’am I’m gonna take your word for it. You have a good day now.” Then
tipping his hat to Melissa he said, “Li’l missy, you take good care of your
mama!”
Needless
to say, we were late for school that day and Li’l Missy promptly told her daddy
that I got a ticket!!!