What Goes Up…..

Written for Great Minds Think – “Oops”.
Our hosts, Sarah & Rohini, ask us to write
a poem or story about a situation where the
best of intentions ended in the worst results.
Also for Gerry & Sue’s Weekly Prompts –
The One Day Prompt.

A story I originally wrote in 2016…..

It all happened one day in 1964. My cousin Marianne was getting married which meant my mother, sister Rosemarie, and I needed to buy new dresses and shoes. For weeks my sister and I looked through magazines for the perfect dresses and excitedly talked about the upcoming wedding.

When shopping day finally arrived, we all hopped into Mom’s car …. even Dad who was always game for a shopping trip. Off we went to Macy’s, happily chatting about what kind of dresses we wanted to get …. grown-up ones this time. Dad said maybe he’d look for a new suit but Mom shot down that idea, reminding him that he had “a perfectly good suit hanging in his closet reserved for weddings and funerals”. Maybe a new shirt and tie but that was it. We weren’t the Rockefeller’s after all. Dad grumbled something and Mom informed him that she would be glad to turn the car around and take him home. She was in charge and we knew today was going to go her way or not at all. The rest of the ride to the store was in sullen silence …. not a good sign. Finally, Mom pulled into the parking lot and we excitedly jumped out, making a beeline for the entrance.

“No running!” Mom yelled after us, and we froze in our tracks. “This is a fine department store and I expect you to behave like young ladies. And we stay together. No wandering off. Is that understood?”

We hung our heads and mumbled “Yes, Mom.” 

Once inside, Mom instructed Dad to meet us back in this exact spot in one hour and off he went to the men’s department, happy, I’m sure, to be on his own. Mom, Rosemarie, and I went to the elevator to get to the ladies’ formalwear department on the 2^nd Floor. When we got there, we found the elevator was out of order; a sign directed us to the escalator, but we discovered it was being serviced at the same time.

“Well, isn’t this dandy!” my mother huffed. “How are we supposed to get upstairs?”

One of the repair men replied “Up the down escalator.  Just walk up to the top and jump off. See …. everyone’s doing it” and he pointed to the busy down escalator which was working perfectly.

“That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard! That escalator’s moving!” my mother declared indignantly. “I’m not doing that. We’ll just have to come back another day.” 

“No, please!” my sister and I pleaded. “We’re here already. Come on …. we’ll help you.”

This was not the excursion my mother had planned. She never liked surprises and this development tossed her a curveball of epic proportions. Eventually, after much debate, Mom quite reluctantly agreed to the down escalator route.

We gingerly stepped on and started walking up. The escalator wasn’t moving too fast and the climb was actually easy …. until we got to the top. Rosemarie and I jumped off but Mom couldn’t do it. In a matter of seconds, this practical, stoic, fearless woman took on the appearance of a distressed hamster on a wheel, arms reaching out and screeching “Help me! Help me!”

We tried to help Mom jump off but she was too frazzled to attempt it. Then we told her to just stand still and simply ride the escalator back down to the 1^st Floor, but that suggestion didn’t register. People kept leaping past her like gazelles on the Serengeti while she sweated and huffed and puffed, treading water. Rosemarie and I realized this was going to end very badly, so we stepped back on the escalator, held Mom’s arms to keep her steady, and rode down to safety on the 1^st Floor. Mom was an absolute wreck …. and totally mortified.

Smoothing her hair and dress, she walked to where Dad was dutifully waiting for us.

“Perfect timing! Did you girls have fun?” Dad asked, apparently oblivious to Mom’s disheveled appearance.

He was rewarded with Mom’s most withering look. “Fun? It’s a miracle I’m alive! How I ever let these two talk me into attempting a death-defying act is a mystery. This store has definitely gone downhill. When we get home, I’m going to write a letter of complaint to the management. We will not be coming back here any time soon. I’ve had quite enough excitement for one day. We’re going home. Everyone back to the car. Now!”

Our new dresses and shoes would have to wait.

NAR©2016, 2026

This is “Spinning Wheel” by Blood, Sweat & Tears

Oops

Weekly Prompts – The One Day Prompt (28)

^{Everything on The Elephant’s Trunk was created by me unless otherwise indicated, and may not be used without permission. Thanks for your consideration. NAR©2017-present.}