Lois Letchford reads the opening of her memoir Reversed, set in Brisbane in 1994. A mother photographs her five-year-old son Nicholas on his first day of school, surrounded by his brothers Nathaniel and Isaac. The passage captures the boy's fear and courage as he prepares to leave home with a stick-insect to show his teacher.
Chapters
Good morning, I'm Lois Letchford and I'm reading from my book Reversed: A Memoir. Yesterday I read the prologue. Today I will start with chapter 1, and it's set in Brisbane, Australia during the years January 1994 to June 1995. Disaster. Sometimes it is the people no one imagines anything of Who do the things no one can imagine. The Imitation Game. Smile, boys, I say, squinting through the camera lens. I feel the unforgiving Australian sun weigh upon my head, tiny beads of sweat forming at my hairline and trickling down my forehead. Wiping the side of my eyebrow clears any moisture that might interrupt my view. I steady the camera, ready for this photo. I want to remember this morning. It's Nicholas's very first day of school, and I don't know who is more nervous, him or me. We are standing in the backyard of our small 3-bedroom brick home in the leafy suburb of St. Lucia. Nathaniel, my elder, smiles with ease. He's ready for the 3rd grade. Leaning nonchalantly against the umbrella tree, he holds Nicholas's hand with an extra clench for courage to help him face the day. Nicholas clings to his brother, tensing every muscle. Can you smile, Nicholas? I ask, trading my camera for Isaac, my 20-month-old, with my husband Chris. Nicholas rolls his eyes as he shifts from one leg to the other. His mouth moves from a downward curve to a flat line, the closest a smile he can fake. A bloodless face displays an inner terror. Grim under the wide-brimmed blue hat that reads the school name, Ironside. This is the best photo we are going to get of Nicholas this morning, I think. Boys, you look great! My ever-optimistic husband chirps, snapping another photograph. I turn my gaze to the right for a moment, spotting a stick insect in the trees behind me. Look, Nicholas, I say, pointing to the bug. You can take this to school today. Nicholas nods, though the flat line of his mouth doesn't change. Show your teacher what you found. It can be a great first impression. Maybe having something to hold on to will help him through the day. He nods again. I sense the fear pouring out of his high 5-and-a-half-year-old body. And I'll stop there and I'll break this chapter up for you. This is Reversed: A Memoir. It's available on amazon.com. Thank you, and I will leave some reading tips for parents at home over this time. Thanks. Lois Letchford.
