Free The Lucky Stone by Lucille Clifton Page B

me a man named Kenford Gamble run up and confessed every one of his sins, and it took him a good forty minutes with the thunder threatenin and the saints all full of amen.
    “It was a time, a time!
    “Then they tell me some young people walked upon that stage one by one and stood there alone.
    “Vashti was the last. She just stood there movin back and forth and back and forth, and all of a sudden she reached her arms out and flung ’em wide and started singin ‘Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross.’ She was wearin a string ’round her neck, and on the string was a pouch. Don’t you know while she was singin the string broke and the pouch fell off her, and it bounce one time and then bounce again off the stage.
    “Vashti stopped right in the middle of singin. She put her arms down and stood still for a minute. The people all got still. Even the skies seemed to stop their threatenin and be still. Vashti stood there on the stage by herself.

    “Then she said all of a sudden, ’My stone!’ and she jumped right down to the ground from the stage and reached for the pouch. And bless Jesus, just as she jumped down the storm broke! A great arm of God’s lightnin shot out of the sky and struck that stage right where Vashti had been standin!
    “Oh, everybody jumped up and started scramblin and runnin for home, but not ’fore they saw the stage catch fire and crumble to the ground.
    “Vashti picked up her pouch, they say, and poured out this stone, shiny and black as night, and just held it in her hand.”

    They sat for a while in the twilight.
    “That stone was sure lucky for her, Grandmama,” Tee whispered after a while.
    “That’s ’cause it’s a lucky stone.” Her Great-grandmother smiled.
    “Was it ever lucky for you, Grandmama?”
    Mrs. Pickens chuckled.
    “Well, I just might tell you about that some day, Baby.”
    And they went into the house.

THREE

    Mrs. Elzie F. Pickens was rocking slowly on the porch one afternoon when her Great-granddaughter brought her a big bunch of dogwood blooms, and that was the beginning of that story.
    “Ahhh, now that dogwood reminds me of the day I met your Great-granddaddy, Mr. Pickens, Sweet Tee.
    “It was just this time, spring of the year, and me and my best friend Ovella Wilson, who is now gone, was goin to join the Silas Greene. Usta be a kinda show went all through the South, called it the Silas Greene show. Somethin like the circus. Me and Ovella wanted to join that thing and see the world. Nothin wrong at home or nothin, we just wanted to travel and see new things and have high times. Didn’t say nothin to nobody but one another. Just up and decided to do it.

    “Well, this day we plaited our hair and put a dress and some things in a crokasack and started out to the show. Spring day like this.
    “We got there after a good little walk and it was the world, Baby, such music and wonders as we never had seen! They had everything there, or seemed like it.
    “Me and Ovella thought we’d walk around for a while and see the show before goin to the office to sign up and join.
    “While we was viewin it all we come up on this dancin dog. Cutest one thing in the world next to you, Sweet Tee, dippin and movin and head bowin to that music. Had a little ruffly skirt on itself and up on two back legs twistin and movin to the music. Dancin dancin dancin till people started throwin pennies out of they pockets.

    “Me and Ovella was caught up too and laughin so. She took a penny out of her pocket and threw it to the ground where that dog was dancin, and I took two pennies and threw ’em both.
    “The music was faster and faster and that dog was turnin and turnin. Ovella reached in her sack and threw out a little pin she had won from never being late at Sunday school. And me, laughin and all excited, reached in my bag and threw out my lucky stone!
    “Well, I knew right off what I had done. Soon as it left my hand it seemed like I reached back out for it to take it back. But the