Chapter 1
Onya walked up the five floors to her apartment. Taking the elevator was a risky endeavor in this building. Between the periodic stalls between floors and the noises generated by the worn-out gears and pulleys, Onya would rather take the stairs, even after working ten hours. The only time she had taken the elevator was at the same time as the train passed behind the building. The additional noise and vibration from the train made for a particularly terrifying experience, and Onya was having no part of it.
She arrived at apartment number 511 and knocked on the door two times, followed by a long pause, and one more knock. A few seconds passed before she heard the slide of three deadbolts before the door opened. As always, Momma greeted her after her long day of work at the greasy café where she served breakfast, lunch, and the early dinner shift.
Although only twenty-six with a natural beauty, Onya looked older. The life of a single mother, part-time student and working a fifty-hour work week at the café, had taken its toll. Onya’s life existed in a constant state of complete exhaustion. Her ambition of earning her nursing degree and landing a better job to create a better life for herself, her mother and daughter seemed like an impossible task given the circumstances. Nevertheless, she pushed on. Onya, her mother, and her beautiful seven-year-old daughter lived in a tiny one-bedroom apartment in a building that should have been condemned a lifetime ago. Onya’s father, a blue-collar worker in the auto industry, passed away when she was only thirteen, leaving Momma and Onya without much other than a tiny pension and $237 a month of Social Security. Between the pension and Onya’s job they earned barely enough to survive, but surely not enough to live. Momma and Onya never complained, but Onya wanted more for her daughter and wasn’t afraid to make sacrifices to achieve it.
“Hello, Momma. How was your day?”
“Good honey, how was yours?”
“Tiring, but okay.”
Momma closed the door behind Onya, re-latching the deadbolts. Just then, Onya’s bundle of joy and energy came running from out of the bedroom towards her. Her long hair bounced behind her while she opened her arms to embrace Onya. She ran at full speed to ensure a small jump could launch her into Onya’s arms.
“Mommy!” She yells.
“Sarah! Come, give mommy a kiss!”
As soon as Onya saw Sarah, she perked up as if pure adrenaline had been shot into her. Onya quickly threw her purse onto the kitchen table. Perfectly synchronized and well-rehearsed, Onya bent down while Sarah jumped into her arms. Once Onya had a sure grip and bear hug firmly established, she lifted Sarah up to continue the hug. Momma looked on from the kitchen and smiled. These few moments were enough to get Onya through each day.
Onya kissed Sarah on the cheek. “How was your day today, sweetheart?”
“Good.”
“Just good?”
“No, great!” Sarah proclaimed.
“What did you learn in school today?”
“Stuff.”
“What stuff?”
“Mommy, will you read me a book tonight?” Sarah said, trying to change the subject.
“Yes, but you still didn’t tell me what you learned at school today.”
“Just stuff.”
“Okay, we’ll talk more about that a little later, young lady.”
Onya leaned over and placed Sarah firmly on the floor. Momma chimed in.
“I made dinner, but I have to leave for my ladies church group in about thirty minutes.”
“Oh, yes, of course, I almost forgot its Wednesday, do I have time for a quick shower?” asked Onya.
“Yes, please do, you smell like a cross between a bacon cheeseburger and hash browns.”
“Very funny Momma, but it is actually bacon cheeseburger and French fries.”
“That’s the same thing dear, but you smell a little better than the dinner I fixed, so go shower.”
Onya kicked her shoes off and began to walk to the bathroom.
“Your dinner smells great Momma, I’ll be out in ten.”
Onya turned the shower knob to fully hot, she knew it took a full 2 minutes to get any hot water from this old building, leaving her only 8 minutes to shower. As she waited, she undressed, laid her towel out then looked into the mirror above the sink and pondered life. She bowed her head and said a short prayer. Lord, thank you for Momma and Sarah. Please give me strength and help me be a good mother.
Steam began to rise from the shower. Onya adjusted the temperature then stepped in under the water. The next 8 minutes was about the only time that she could tune everything out. She washed her hair and body but opted for a minute or two of relaxation rather than shaving her legs. Adjusting the temperature higher, she allowed the hot water to run down her shoulders, back and body while she cleared her thoughts. Minutes felt like they were reduced to seconds. She forced herself out of the shower, quickly dried off, threw on a pair of flannel pajama bottoms and a t-shirt and walked to the kitchen and engaged Momma in conversation.
“How were our two lovebirds above us today?” Asked Onya.
Onya was referring to Sid and Nancy in apartment 611, directly above Momma and Onya’s place. Sid and Nancy were an odd mix of oil and water. This was the only couple Onya knew that in a single day could be screaming and throwing things at each other one minute, then disrupting an entire floor above and below with their loud lovemaking that same night.
Momma chuckled. “Oh, Sid was screaming at Nancy about something, but I really couldn’t make it out. I heard Nancy call Sid a nasty name then threw something that hit the wall and broke which sounded like a plate. They’ve seemed to have calmed down now.”
Onya smiled at Momma. “Boy, I wish I had a nickel every time Nancy threw something at Sid. They must have had to buy three entire sets of dishes since we’ve been here.”
Onya yelled out to Sarah, “honey, it’s time for dinner. Please hurry, nana has to leave soon.”
Sarah came bolting out of the bedroom and jumped up to a chair at the kitchen table. Momma and Onya served up three plates and brought them from the kitchen to the table. The kitchen table was classic 1970’s, a lime green top with a chrome ring wrapped around its sides. After Onya’s dad had passed and their small savings were exhausted, they moved from their larger rental home in a good neighborhood to the rundown Strom apartment building. They took only three of the chairs and pushed one side of the table against the wall to free up space in the tiny apartment. It was a constant reminder it was just the three of them. Momma would occasionally have visitors, mostly ladies from her church, but that was during the day when Onya was at work, and Sarah was at school. Adequate space for three ladies gossiping and having mid-morning tea. Onya never had visitors as she had little time for friends or entertainment with her work and school schedule.
“Who’s going to say the blessing tonight?” asked Onya.
After a bit of intentional pause from both Onya and Momma, Sarah raised her hand as if she were still in class.