Subject: Story: Mom's Best Friend
From: Carolina Jim <carolinajim@greenvillenc.com>
Date: 19 Nov 1997 16:48:54 -0800
'Tis often said that patience has its limits. It was slow in coming ,but Sue Turner reached hers on a hot August morning in 1965...
The widowed mother of three was up early that Saturday morning and had breakfast on the table by the time her oldest, 15-year-old Linda, entered the kitchen. "Good morning, Mom...", the tall, brown-haired girl said with a kiss and a smile. "I'm going to have to eat and run. Mrs. Mayer wants me to be there a little early today."
"I understand, Dear. That's no problem. You and I will go shopping next Saturday. Just the two of us." Sue was really proud of Linda. The teen had spent the entire summer, and most Saturdays, babysitting for the Mayers. On top of that, she had kept up with her share and more of her chores at home. That didn't leave Linda with much time to spend with friends, but there was no complaining.
Linda took a sip of her juice and shook her head. "Boy, I don't envy you today, Mom. Peggy and Marsha have been grumpy all week. They've done nothing but argue the whole time!"
"All week?", Sue harrumphed. "Try all summer! I've never seen two youngsters carry on like that! Between the smart-alec remarks, backtalk, bickering, fighting, and just plain sassiness, those two have been driving me crazy. If I had said some of the things to your Grandmother that your sisters have said to me, I wouldn't have sat down for a week! I know I haven't spanked them in years, but I have to admit I've come close to warming their little behinds a couple of times this summer."
"They're probably just bored, that's all.", Linda offered. "They'll be fine when school starts. You'll see."
The conversation ended abruptly when Peggy, followed a second later by Marsha, straggled to the table wearing frowns that could turn a sunny day cloudy. Sue's pleasant "good morning" was greeted with unintelligible grunts.
"Do we still have to go shopping today...", Peggy whined. "I want to go over to Joanne's this morning."
"And I want to go to the movies.", Marsha added. "All my friends are going."
Sue shook her head and sighed. "Look, I told you over a week ago we were going into town today to get you some new clothes for school. I also told you not to make any other plans."
"How come she's not going...", 14-year-old Peggy pouted, pointing to Linda. "She never has to do anything she doesn't want."
Marsha quickly seconded her sister's accusation. "Peggy's right.", The 12- year-old sneered. "It's not fair! Besides, why can't I wear the clothes I wore last year?"
"In case you haven't noticed, Marsha, you're getting taller. Those dresses and skirts are too small for you now. They'd be much too short." Sue threw up her hand, knowing what was coming next. "Don't even think it, young lady. No daughter of mine is leaving this house wearing a mini-dress or skirt. That goes for all of you. As for Linda not going with us, she's babysitting today. I don't know why I have to explain this to you, but she and I are going next week. Is that OK with you?"
"No.", Peggy said under her breath. "But I guess that doesn't make any difference."
Sue took a deep breath. This was going to be one of those days. "No, it doesn't make any difference. Now hurry up and eat your breakfast and then get dressed. We need to leave pretty soon."
The girls' sour disposition changed not one iota during the drive into town. They sat stone-faced, Peggy in the front seat next to her mother and Marsha in the back, and said hardly a word. Any attempts by Sue to lighten the situation were met with a cold silence. Even an offer of hamburgers and ice cream sodas at the store's lunch counter after they finished shopping fell on deaf ears. "Look...", Sue finally told them, "I'm getting a little tired of all this. Now start acting your ages and make the best of it." Her daughters replied by staring out the side windows. Neither one heeded the edge in their mother's voice.
It's what happened after Sue parked the car that really sent her blood pressure rising. With a look on her face that could kill, Peggy got out and slammed the door just as hard as she could. Not to be outdone, Marsha did the very same thing. Without looking back, they proceeded to walk a good ten feet in front of the now simmering Sue to the department store's entrance. "That's all right...", the angry mom said softly to herself, "keep it up. Just keep it up..."
Things got worse once they were inside. The girls were determined to make life as miserable as possible for Sue, and they pretty well succeeded. Every suggestion she made about trying on a dress was scoffed at or ridiculed. She was already doing a slow burn when a saleswoman approached and asked if she could be of some help. "No, you may not!", Peggy replied in a mean tone of voice as Marsha instantly burst out laughing.
Sue was absolutely mortified. She grabbed each girl by the arm, her firm grip sending shock waves down Peggy and Marsha's spines. They hadn't expected this, nor did they expect to hear the next words out of their mother's mouth. "I'm sorry, Ma'am.", Sue apologized to the saleswoman. "We need a few minutes to make up our minds. Can you direct me to the dressing rooms?"
The saleswoman pointed to her left. With her daughters securely in tow, Sue headed in that direction. "Mom, where are we going!", Peggy pleaded, very aware of all the curious eyes of the customers on her. "I didn't mean it! Really!"
On the other side, Marsha was equally as scared. She hadn't seen that look on her mother's face in years. "Please Mommy! I'll be good! I'm sorry!"
"Quiet! Both of you!", Sue hissed just before entering the large dressing room. "You're about to find out what happens to rude, disrespectful young ladies!"
Sue quickly found an empty cubicle. She released Peggy from her grip and ordered her not to move. She took Marsha inside, closed the curtain, and put the lone chair in the middle of the small room. Seating herself, she pulled the terrified Marsha towards her and yanked down the 12-year-old's shorts and panties in one effortless move. "Mommy no...", she cried as Sue put her across her lap.
"You and Peggy have been asking for this all summer!", her mother whispered loudly just before her hand descended on Marsha's small, bare buttocks. "And now you're going to get it!" SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK!
Outside the cubicle, Peggy could clearly hear what was going on. So could everyone else in the dressing room. At the sound of the first smack, three heads peaked out from behind curtains. The 14-year-old buried her face in her hands and began to cry.
SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! It didn't take very long at all before Marsha's little bottom was heated to a glowing bright red. Tears streamed down the repentent girl's cheeks while Sue added a few spanks to the back of her thighs, far enough down so they could be seen after her shorts were pulled up.
Moments later, the curtain opened and a tearful Marsha emerged, rubbing her eyes with one hand and the seat of her shorts with the other. Peggy heard her mother call her name, and the shaking girl entered the cubicle. "Close the curtain.", Sue commanded. Peggy obeyed, and before she knew what hit her the shorts and underpants were travelling down her long legs. "Mommy please! I'm sorry!", she wailed as she was put across the maternal lap.
"You're going to be a whole lot sorrier.", Sue said matter-of-factly as she began spanking. "I've put up with all I'm going to, young lady!" SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK!
"No more Mommy! Ooooohhhhhh! It hurts..." SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK!
"Keep your voice down..." SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! "or the whole store will hear your spanking." SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! "Do you want that?" SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK!
Not until Peggy's adolescent behind was glowing the same color as her little sister's and the back of her thighs bore the handprints of her mother was she allowed to get up and retrieve her garments. She barely had them in place before Sue shoved her outside to join Marsha.
"The first thing you're going to do is apologize to that poor saleswoman.", Sue told the sniffling girls. "Then, you will try on some clothes. And you better have a better attitude than you've been displaying lately. Is that clear?" Peggy and Marsha nodded. "Good. It better be, or those spankings you just got will be nothing compared to the ones I'll give you when we get home."
The chastised daughters reluctantly stopped rubbing their seats, gave their eyes one last wipe, and followed their mom out of the dressing room. The vivid red handprints on the back of their legs for all to see drew approving nods from several patrons as well as the saleswoman. "Of course I forgive you.", the woman said after the meek apologies. "I see your mother got to the 'bottom' of things. Now let's find you some new clothes..."
For the next two hours, Peggy and Marsha were perfect angels, allbeit red-bottomed and red-faced ones. They weren't exactly cheerful under those circumstances, but they were polite and well-behaved. There was a hundred percent turnaround in their attitude, and Sue was impressed.
Sue was so impressed, in fact, that they made one last stop before leaving the store. "I'd like to see some hairbrushes.", Sue told the girl behind the hair care counter as the blush on Peggy's and Marsha's faces deepened and their hearts started pounding. They dared not say anything, though.
The girl, who looked about 19 or 20, placed several plastic brushes on the counter. "We sell a lot of these.", she stated. "They're lighter than the wooden ones, and the bristles are better."
Sue examined them and shook her head. "Those brushes look fine, but they're not exactly what I had in mind. I'd like something a bit heavier and bigger, like those old-fashioned wooden ones. And I'm not really concerned about the bristles at all. It's the other side that will be doing most of the work."
"I see..." The girl looked at the two scared-looking youngsters and blushed a little herself. It was perfectly clear what that hairbrush was intended to be used for, and it wasn't brushing hair. She excused herself and returned a minute later with a fine-looking wooden brush, an oval one that was perfectly suited for the task Sue had in mind. "I think this is what you're looking for, Ma'am...", the girl said, sounding a little embarrassed. "My Mother has one of these. She calls it "Mom's best friend'. Forgive me for saying so, but I don't like it at all. I hate it, if you want to know the truth." Her hand absent-mindedly rubbed the back of her skirt as she spoke. "But it's perfect for what you're looking for."
The hairbrush bore an uncanny resemblance to the one Sue's mother kept on top of her dresser when she and her sisters were growing up. Like the salesgirl, she wasn't too fond of it, either. "I'll take it!", Sue said with far more enthusiasm than Peggy and Marsha cared for...
Linda got home from babysitting around four that afternoon. She found Sue in the kitchen starting supper. "Did you get all your shopping done today?", the 15-year-old cheerfully asked after giving Mom a kiss on the cheek.
"Yes, I did, Dear...", Sue replied with a big grin. "It was a very productive day if you ask me."
A puzzled look came over Linda's face. "Boy, it sure is quiet around here. Did you leave Peggy and Marsha in town?"
Sue chuckled. "No, they've been upstairs in their rooms since we got home. How about telling them to come down to the living room. I think we need to have a family meeting."
Linda hid her apprehension. Family meetings were usually held after someone did something wrong, but not always. "OK, Mom.", she said, and went to get her sisters.
Five minutes later, the family was gathered in the living room. Linda, Peggy and Marsha sat side-by-side on the couch while Sue held forth in the recliner across from them. The two younger girls, now contrite, had changed out of their shorts and put on slacks to hide the fading handprints on the back of their thighs. Linda didn't notice, but they also sat down very carefully. Their bottoms were still quite red and sore.
"The reason I want to talk to you is because of a rather unsettling incident that took place today while we were shopping.", Sue started. "Linda, to fill you in, your sisters were acting like spoiled brats and their behavior was totally unacceptable."
"What else is new!", Linda laughed. She knew as soon as she said it that it was a mistake.
Sue shot a disapproving look to her eldest. "Please don't interrupt.", she chided before continuing. "After one smart remark too many, I took your sisters into the dressing room, pulled down their pants, and warmed their backsides." She stared at the red-faced girls. "Didn't I!"
"Yes, Ma'am...", the red-faced Marsha and Peggy whispered in unison.
Linda sat up straight. "You...you spanked them?", she asked her mother.
Sue nodded. "Yes, I did. And that's what this meeting is about. I've been thinking about it for a long time, and today was the clincher. I've come to the conclusion that Dr. Spock was wrong. There will be no more reasoning, pleading, and begging to get you to act and behave the way you should. From this day forward, you will be soundly spanked when the situation warrants it." Sue paused and pulled the hairbrush from her apron pocket amidst a chorus of groans. "Since you are young ladies now and not little girls, I will use this on your bare bottoms instead of my hand. And, believe me, I know from experience that it can set an uppity teenager's behind on fire that will be remembered every time you sit down for a few days. Peggy and Marsha, you got off very easy today. You would be standing up right now if I had used this. In addition, I'm going to use another of Grandma's tricks. After your spanking, you will stand in the corner for thirty minutes with your pants down. That way, I know you've had time to think about your transgressions. Do you have any questions?"
There was no response. Peggy and Marsha sat transfixed, looking at their laps while Linda stared out the picture window. "Linda, you DO realize that this applies to you, too.", Sue said.
The 15-year-old found it difficult to swallow. "Yes, Mother.", she finally managed to say.
"Good. Hopefully, I'll never have to use this.", Sue finished, holding the hairbrush. "The best thing would be is if it collected dust on top of my dresser." She stood up and smiled. "OK, enough said. Let's get supper on the table!"
THE END PART ONE