Dancing with Nat Cole

Midway through a cool Christmas Eve morning Cordelia Maxwell's kitchen was a symphony of fragrant, almost-irresistible aromas dancing from both ovens and all four burners of her range. The air was humid with savory perfumes of roasting meat, simmering vegetables, and spicy pies.

Cordelia, a chubby, buxom, tobacco-colored woman of 67 eventful years, was bustling around making sure the ham was still juicy and the turkey was still secure in its foil tent...tending to the yams and the rice and all the other dishes she would serve up during her traditional gathering. As usual her face was focused (those who didn't know her would call it stern and forbidding...the error was their loss) and, as usual, her eyes were ablaze with the bright light of a thousand smiles and the glistening weight of a thousand tears.

On top of the refrigerator was a small radio from which the silky voice of Nat "King" Cole was wafting filling the room with "The Christmas Song". She paused and smiled a complex smile filled with memories, expectations, and sweetly-aged and savored passions.

Cordelia opened the right oven and pulled the rack out so that she could get at the turkey. She peeled open the foil on the bird and started to baste it. "That's right, Tom," she said jovially, "you just keep roastin' nice and pretty like that. My babies are gonna be hungry and you're gonna to be the guest of honor at our table tonight."

"That bird's been dead for a long time, old woman," a gruff, amused voice called out, "ain't no sense in tryin' to hold a conversation with it now."

Clarence Vernon Maxwell, Sr., wearing his favorite terry cloth robe over his pajama bottoms, walked directly to the refrigerator. "And sweet Jesus, ain't there no other Christmas songs on the radio? I'd give that ugly negro some chestnuts if he wasn't already dead!"

Cordelia chuckled softly as she recovered the turkey and pushed it back into the oven. She closed the door of the oven and turned to her husband of nearly 50 years.

Vernon (as he preferred to be called) Maxwell was darker than his wife; his smooth face was crowned by a cottony field of close-cropped hair, a well-earned testament to his 71 years on God's green Earth. His bifocals were dangling casually on the end of a chain that went around his neck...they bobbed above the unapologetic paunch jutting out from his open robe.

"You got so much stuff in here I can't find my beer," he groused. "A-ha! There's one!" he exclaimed happily reaching for a long necked brown bottle.

Cordelia stood, her hands crossed across her chest, saying nothing.

Vernon closed the door, his prize in hand, and raised an eyebrow at his wife's expression. He knew she was not as annoyed as she was trying to look but he also knew that he was in for a scolding the same. "Don't you start with me, girl," he said, impishly challenging her.

"I thought you were getting dressed, Clarence Maxwell," she replied evenly. "It's almost noon and the children will probably start getting here soon."

Vernon twisted off the cap of his beer. "It ain't like they never seen me in my robe," he protested. "'Sides I found a game on and I got involved." He took a swig of beer and then, with a gleam in his eye, he slid closer to Cordelia. "I did take a shower and shave," he said nuzzling her face with his own. "I got some'a that Old Spice you like so much on..."

Despite herself, Cordelia laughed and gently pushed him away. "You so crazy sometimes, old man!" She turned back to the pots boiling on the stove.

Vernon set his bottle of beer down and spooned himself against Cordelia, bringing his arms around and cuddling her belly. "And you wouldn't have it any other way would you, baby," he cooed.

Cordelia sighed silently, luxuriating in her husband's embrace for a moment, then she tried to shrug him off. "Will you go get dressed, old man," she said, "I ain't got time for any of your foolishness, I got food to cook!"

Undaunted, Vernon cupped his hands under Cordelia's ample breasts and peered up over her shoulder at the pots she was trying to tend to. "Ooo baby, it smells like you put your foot into them pots as usual," he said disingenuously, "I can hardly wait." He paused and then added, "And it seems like you got everything under control so why don't we slip upstairs for a few minutes and you can give your lover man some sugar..."

Cordelia laughed and, after lingering in his embrace for a few moments, pushed him away gently but firmly. "I told you I ain't got no time for your foolishness! Get your crazy old black ass up those stairs and get yourself dressed!" she ordered with amusement and seriousness intertwined tightly in her tone of voice.

Vernon recognized the tone but decided to ignore it. He picked up his beer and took a few steps back. He let out a long, low whistle. "Damn," he said impishly, "why you wanna be like that, baby? All I wanna do is show you how a real man takes care of his big ol' fine black gal!"

Cordelia turned around and put her hands on her hips. "Look, sweet talkin' ain't gonna get you nothin' but a kick in the pants! Now get out of my kitchen and get out of that raggedy old robe 'fore I have to put my foot where the sun don't shine!"

Vernon affected being wounded. "You look, woman," he shot back petulantly, "I'm a grown man and I'm old enough to know when and if I want to get dressed!"

"You also old enough for me to rap you upside your head if you don't get outta my kitchen!"

Vernon harumphed and spun on his heels. "Fine!" he said barely able to conceal his smile, "Be that way! Man can't get no peace..or no lovin'...in his own house" He exited the kitchen chuckling softly. "Got me some business to take care of anyway!"

Cordelia let the smile she had been suppressing come to full flower as he disappeared through the door. "And no more football today!" she shouted after him.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he called back. "I wonder sometimes why I've put up with you for all these years, old woman..."

"'Cause I'm the best thing that ever happened to you, mister man!" she shot back playfully.

Vernon nodded as he started up the stairs. "Got that right," he murmured.

"I heard that!" Cordelia called out from the kitchen.

Vernon laughed boisterously and climbed the stairs towards their bedroom.

Presently, Vernon came back downstairs wearing his favorite red flannel shirt and a clean, neatly pressed pair of tan corduroy slacks held up by a pair of black suspenders that climbed up over his belly and over his slightly-slumped shoulders and back down the back. He was carrying the still half-full bottle of beer. He was also still barefoot. He paused at the bottom of the stairs and looked into the spacious family room silently admiring the tall, brightly-decorated Christmas tree with the small mountain of brightly-decorated boxes underneath it.

He slipped back more than 40 years remembering the first Christmas he and Cordelia had spent with C.V. The tree was much smaller and the gifts far fewer but it was magical just the same...C.V., using the unconscious whimsy of an 18-month-old, completely ignored the toys they had managed to get him and crawled happily inside one of the boxes and stayed there for hours. Clarence Vernon Maxwell, Jr. was his own man even at that early age.

That Christmas, Cordelia, already pregnant with Sister, had never been more radiant and Vernon, tired from working two jobs, had never been more content.

Until now. Vernon smiled and moved towards the dining room.

"You sure we got enough stuff under that tree?" he asked with a puckish gleam in his eye, "I'm pretty sure that I might still have a couple of nickels left in my pocket if you wanna go spend them too."

Cordelia, making sure the dining room tables...the long one for the adults, a smaller folding table for the children...were in place, looked up and smiled as Vernon ambled into the room. "It's Christmas, old man," she said simply. She winced when she saw that he wasn't wearing shoes but knew better than to press on that subject. "Everything’s comin' along just fine," she said pleasantly.

"Uh-huh," Vernon replied, glancing around. "I thought Amy and Sister were supposed to be coming over to help you."

Cordelia nodded. "They'll be over soon, Amelia still trying to get Leroy away from the damn football game." She cocked an eyebrow and looked into Vernon's eyes. "You did remember to turn off the TV upstairs, didn't you?"

Vernon rolled his eyes. "Course I did, woman," he said. "You think I'm gonna risk you going off on me again?"

"Dorothy will be over once her fella shows up," she continued.

Vernon frowned. "She still goin' out with that slick Jerome? Who invited him? I don't like him."

"I invited him, he makes Dorothy happy and that's all that matters," she replied firmly " And his name's George...and you never liked anybody who went out with Dorothy."

"None'a them no-count rusty butt negroes was good enough for Sister," he sniffed. "Especially not that smooth-talking ex-husband of hers..."

"I liked Michael," Cordelia replied. "It's a shame it didn't work out."

"It's a shame she married the lazy negro in the first place far as I'm concerned."

Cordelia drew closer to him and put her arms around his neck. "You're lucky I like grumpy old men, Clarence Maxwell," she said.

He smiled and said, "And you're lucky that gal down at the supermarket who likes me so much is too yella for my tastes." He winked and kissed her tenderly.

Cordelia patted his behind and stepped back towards the kitchen. "That girl would kill you, old man," she teased. "You'd be dead of a heart attack before you could get those suspenders off..."

"Hey!" he replied indignantly, following her into the kitchen. "Like my daddy use ta say, don't matter how much snow is on the roof as long there's still a fire in the furnace."

Cordelia poured herself a cup of coffee from the percolator on the counter. "Your daddy use to say a lot of things," she said with a sly smile playing on her lips, "but he was a God-fearin' man who didn't know anything more about messin' round with other women than you do." She sat at the kitchen table.

Vernon sat down across from her. "You're pretty sure of yourself, ain't you?"

Cordelia took a sip of coffee and smiled confidently. "Damn straight."

Vernon looked directly into her eyes for a long moment and then they both began to laugh warmly.

Vernon stood up and poured out the rest of his beer in the sink. He poured himself a cup of coffee and then sat back down.

"Okay, so how many people gonna be eatin' up all of our food this year," Vernon said gruffly.

Cordelia frowned thoughtfully and then said, "Well, Dorothy and her boys, of course..."

Vernon shook his head. "Kevin's getting fatter every year...when I was his age..."

"...you couldn't walk to the corner without stopping to catch your breath!" Cordelia interjected. "You leave that child alone, you hear me? He's a big boy and that's just the way it is and he don't need no smart-mouthing from you about it." She paused to take a breath. "'Sides you ain't got no room to talk there, big daddy," she said affectionately.

"Hey!" he said indignantly, "I’m an old man and I earned my belly, that boy is 16...ain't never gonna get him no girlfriend..."

Cordelia sipped at her coffee. "Matter of fact, Dorothy tells me he's been keeping time with a little gal in his class name'a Gina..."

Vernon's eyebrow shot up and then he smiled. "Really? Wouldn't think that the boy would have gotten up the nerve to talk to a girl being as quiet as he is most times..."

"Apparently, this Gina does most of the talkin' while Kevin just smiles a lot...it seems to suit both of them according to Dorothy."

Vernon chuckled. "That's my boy." His expression changed to something more somber. "James still gettin' into trouble?"

Cordelia nodded. "Dorothy's at her wit's end with that one," she said. "He's such a charming boy when he wants to be, I don't know why..." her voice trailed off. "Those boys of hers are like night and day..." she added.

Cordelia slipped back to a long gone Christmas Eve. C.V. was 6 and Dorothy, who had been renamed "Sister" by her brother, was 4. The twins were less than 4 months old. They were living in the house that Vernon's parents had owned until the time they passed away...it was an old, drafty house but it had become home nevertheless. Vernon had been working for the Post Office for two years and he was out late working and she and the children were alone together watching "Holiday Inn"...C.V. and Dorothy, not fighting for a change, snuggled under her arms, the babies snuggled in their crib upstairs.

Vernon had trudged in just as the movie ended and the children, too excited to be sleepy, had vaulted into his arms. Cordelia could almost see the fatigue leave his eyes as they peppered him with questions..."can't we stay up?"..."why don't we just open everything now?"..."did you see Santa while you were out?"...until he shushed them and endured their torrent of complaints and pleas as he carried them up to their rooms. He had paused and winked at Cordelia and she, seeing that he was having the time of his life, smiled back and made no move to relieve him of his precious "burden". The moment stayed with her forever.

Vernon cleared his throat. "Delia? You still with me, girl?"

Cordelia shook out of her reverie. "I was just remembering..."

He nodded. "Lot of that going on nowadays," he said knowingly. "Must be alla that goddamn Nat King Cole music in the house..."

"Must be," she replied wistfully.

"C.V.'s comin' ain't he?" Vernon asked.

"'Course my boy's gonna be here," Cordelia said. "Where else would he be?"

"I don't know," he said. "Boy ain't been the same since his Mary passed." He paused thoughtfully and then asked, "Is Petey coming too?"

'Yes, of course," she replied. "He and Robert called to ask if they could bring anything..." She narrowed her right eye waiting for his response.

"Robert?!" Vernon snarled. "I don't want that sissy in my house!"

"Don't you start that sissy stuff, Clarence Maxwell," Cordelia said sharply. "Peter and Robert are good boys...and they're happy together...and I won't have you badmouthin' them in my house!"

"Don't mean nothin'," he said petulantly. "Jus' didn't expect that C.V.'s boy would grow up to be a...to be one of those people...ain't right..."

"He is what he is. Like my Aunt Daisy used to say, he's my boy until he gets bigger...and then he'll be my bigger boy," she said resolutely. "The good Lord don't make no judgements on the boy and neither are we..."

Vernon shook his head sadly but then he looked up and smiled. "Guess I can't argue with the Lord...or with Aunt Daisy..."

Cordelia reached over and gently tweaked his nose. "Damn straight."

They sat quietly, listening to the music coming from the radio and the rattling of the pots on the stove.

This old house, Vernon thought, this old house has seen a lot of living...a lot of laughing and crying...a lot of warm Christmases. He remembered when the twins, 10 years old and not as enamored of being bookends as they once were, came to him in that very same kitchen and demanded that they not get the same things that Christmas. Cordelia had, of course, already predicted that particular turn of events and the gifts for them were not at all alike. But Vernon had patiently listened as Amelia described the dollhouse of her dreams, and then Angela extolled the virtues of the portable phonograph she wanted "more than anything in the whole wide world."

"When are Angie and William getting in?" Malcolm inquired.

"In a couple of hours," Cordelia replied, getting up to check on her ham and turkey. "Jake and Lori and the baby are going to pick them up at the airport and they'll all come together from there."

The baby...Vernon felt a bittersweet wave of emotion roll through him...it was still hard to believe that Jacob had made him a great-grandfather. "Jake and the white gal did good with that little girl of theirs," he mused aloud.

Cordelia spun around. "Clarence Vernon Maxwell! I do wish you'd stop calling that child 'the white gal'! She's a part of this family and it don't matter none that she's white."

Vernon shrugged and took a sip of coffee. "Calm down, Delia," he said patiently. "You know I love Lori...and she knows it too...she don't mind me joshin' her a little so why do you?"

Cordelia turned back. "It ain't right, that's all," she said as she pulled the ham out of the oven. "Besides I'm not sure it's all joshing...you weren't happy when Angela told you her Jake was marrying a white girl..."

He shook his head, remembering his knee jerk anger which had sent Angela running from the house in tears just three Christmas Eves past. "Can't say that I was," he admitted reluctantly. "But that Lori is a pistol," he said proudly. "She didn't take no guff from me and I respect that. White gal or not, she's okay with me." He smiled up at her, "Besides, she's threatened to start callin' me 'Papa Chocolate' the next time I call her 'white gal' to her face...you can't be expectin' a man to ignore a challenge like that."

Cordelia sighed heavily. "What am I going to do with you, old man?"

Vernon's eyebrow shot up devilishly. "I gave you a right interestin' answer to that question before...but it's too late now, you missed your chance. Day after tomorrow I'm going down to the supermarket where the women appreciate a real man."

Cordelia pointedly ignored his jokes. "Ham's ready...so's the turkey..." she announced pulling both from the oven and putting them side by side on the counter. "When the girls get here, we should be able to get everything else done in no time flat."

"Meantime, I'll entertain the boys in the den," he said impishly. "Gotta be another game on."

Cordelia started to protest but then, as it turned to 2:00, Nat Cole came back on the radio as a "very special dedication to Cordelia from her Vernon" and gasped at the sound of their names and then smiled. The year the record had first come out came to mind...it was Christmas Eve and the children were asleep and she and Vernon were in the kitchen wrapping toys and sweaters when it came on the radio. Almost as one, they had put aside the gift wrap and stood up, and took each other's hand, and then came almost shyly together, waltzing in the kitchen on a quiet Christmas Eve with Nat Cole.

It was the beginning of an unspoken tradition that they shared almost every Christmas Eve since.

Vernon put his bifocals on the table and stood up and held out his hand. Cordelia took his hand and he pulled her close and they began a slow, shuffling waltz while Nat King Cole sang his song of Christmas love and peace.

Vernon closed his eyes and held his wife close. There were many days when they had cried and fought...many nights when they'd been up tending to sick children. Many days when it looked like familiarity and other smiles would conspire to separate them...but there were many more days when the only thing that made sense in the world was this woman and this place. He gave a silent prayer and thanked God for her...for his children and beautiful grandchildren and his beautiful great-grandchild...for Christmas Eve afternoons filled with the aroma of food lovingly prepared and with the gentle strength of the woman in his arms.

Cordelia looked at Vernon's closed eyes and knew what he was thinking as sure he knew himself. He was an exasperating, willful, and utterly endearing man...more so now than he was when they first met so many years ago...and that was as amazing as anything that could happen on a magical Christmas Eve. Soon their children would come and the day would take on a new, more insistent energy...an energy she both welcomed and celebrated...but here and now, this was all the magic she needed...holding her husband, swaying with him while Nat Cole crooned.

As the song ended, they clung to each other in a tight embrace and then they pulled away slightly. Vernon bent forward and their lips met for what seemed, delightfully, like the one millionth time. Their eyes met but they said nothing. They kissed again and then drew reluctantly apart.

Vernon picked up his glasses. "I'm going to make sure the reception on the TV in the den is okay," he said, picking up their coffee cups and rinsing them out in the sink.

"Wouldn't kill you to put on some shoes, old man," Cordelia said to him as she shuffled towards the door.

Vernon smiled and turned back to her. "Wouldn't kill you to leave a man in peace, old woman," he said with a smile in his voice. "It is Christmas Eve after all." He winked at her and disappeared through the door.

Cordelia shook her head once more. The sound of car doors closing in the driveway signaled that the children were starting to arrive. She closed her eyes, feeling the gentle familiarity of her husband's arms still surrounding her... so safe forever, but especially on heart-warm and God blessed Christmas Eves, dancing with the man she loved.