Lee Ann Sontheimer Murphy

      Someone once claimed they learned everything they needed to know for life in kindergarten. I won’t dispute the idea although in my kindergarten class we finger painted, sang songs, had recess, and enjoyed a graham cracker snack with milk. I’m not sure any of those activities, while fun, prepared me for life.   The beauty shop, however, is a different story. Both of my grandmothers were frequent visitors to small beauty shops within the neighborhood. Granny made the trek every few months to keep her hair trimmed short and to have a rinse to preserve her original hair color as long as possible. Grandma, however, had a standing weekly appointment at the salon two blocks from my childhood home.   Some weeks I would stand in the front yard and peer down 11 th Street to catch a glimpse of her red Comet station wagon. At other times, she picked me up and took me along. I didn’t always have my hair cut but the ladies often styled my long locks and allow...

                  I write stories. That’s what I do and have done since I was a little girl.               As you might guess, I also like to read. As far back as my memory goes, my parents and sometimes my grandparents read to me. My dad, who worked long hours at the Swifts Beef Packing Plant in my hometown of St. Joseph, MO, sometimes fell asleep over the storybook.     I remember some of the Little Golden Books and owned a large collection. I loved fairy tales and poetry and the rhyming rhythm of Dr. Suess. Before I could read, I dictated a story and my mother wrote it down in pink crayon for me. Once I mastered reading, it became a favorite pastime and I devoured books the way most kids do candy. Me, however, I preferred a story to sweets.   I made up stories in my mind. When my grandmother remarried and moved to a differe...