In 1976 Melissa was hired to watch me through the summer. We all had a good time. Melissa and I decided she needed to teach me to drive. After a couple of days we decided to take a different route down from our house. I went down this road and was to go over a long creek bridge. I chickened out so Melissa told me to turn around. In the process of backing up I ran the back wheel off into a ditch. I couldn't get out! Earl Charles Wyatt came by on his tractor and pulled us out. He then told me I better tell my dad or he would. I said I would (I didn't!). On the way home I was so scared that when we reached our drive I turned in going about 40. Hit the hedge - knocking it down (broke). We didn't know what to do so we decided it was our secret and propped the hedge back up. No one would notice, Right?
Around 4:oo, Mom comes home. (SHE DOESN'T NOTICE!) If she didn't notice than dad won't either. We're safe and Melissa goes home.
Later Stanley Johnson came by. We were all outside talking in the drive when Dad comes home. He gets out of his truck walks over to Stan and says "Did You do that?" (HOW DID HE NOTICE?) Stan thought he was joking and says "Yes". "Well, what are you going to do about it?" (CRAP!) Stan is scared by now and wants to know what he means. Mom walks over to Dad and Me & Dennis are sweating. Mom and Dad looks at the hedge and Stan leaves. Mom tells Dad, "It looks like Ralph and Hazel (our neighbors across the road) had a refrigerator in the back of their truck. It fell out and hit the hedge." (SAVED!) I tell them, "Yeah, that sounds like what happened". And that was all that was said about it.
UNTIL!
A couple of years later Mom took Dennis to the dentist and they were talking about "old times" when Dennis says "Like the time Donna Kay ran over the hedge!" Mom says, "Yeah, now what happened again?"
HE TELLS HER!
Mom says that Dennis felt really bad about telling her when she told him that was the first she had heard the story.
When Mom told Dad they just laughed and I cried. I don't know if it was relief or the fact I had lied to them and got caught. A little of both?