By Saja Day, October 7, 2014
I used to live with my grandmother, two older sisters, two first cousins, an aunt, and three of my uncles in Memphis, Tennessee. I was, I thought, a happy little girl in that I was 10 months old when I took a trip Memphis to stay for a little while. A change was on the horizon, though. When I was seven years old, my two sisters and I went to Chicago to resume living with my parents and my younger brother. I was going to start second grade in Chicago. As anxious as it was, it was just as exciting.
I only really knew my parents through their visits to Memphis or gifts and clothes they sent to us. I felt like I was going to live with strangers, especially that boy child, my brother. That seemed so weird in that I only had a bond with my sisters.
The day was so sad when I had to say goodbye to my grandmother and the relatives that lived on Cameron St. And the ride to Chicago didn’t seem real. My dad kept talking about our rooms and my brother. He also said we had a dog named Butch. When we arrived in Chicago, we made a stop to see my great-aunts. They were so beautiful, welcoming, and lovely.
Soon we arrived at our apartment. I was so nervous. I saw my mother and she showed us our rooms. My two sisters would share a room and I, being the youngest, would have to share a room with my brother, Jr. My mom took me to my room and I saw Jr. sleeping in the bunk bed. He woke up and was reintroduced with his three older sisters. Then I suddenly met my first and best friend in Chicago (and the whole world), Butch the dog. It was love at first sight.
We talked some more, but it was late so to sleep in our new beds we went. I slept well that first night. And it was just the beginning for a little girl from the south coming to Chicago.