American Girl

North Carolina

Binta stood on the rise above the plantation house. Its tall white pillars shaded the portico where Master sat, puffing his cigar. She could not see him in the shadows but knew he sat in his wicker rocker. The sun sank behind the massive structure, casting the porch deeper in its shade. Entranced, Binta remained rooted in her spot.

"You better hurry," Kizzy gasped, climbing the hill and standing beside her. "Missy is waiting for that water."

Binta cast her faraway gaze toward her younger sister. She shifted beneath the weight of the yoke across her shoulders. Two heavy pails of water dangled from the yoke chains. Saturday night meant they all took baths. Behind their slave cabin, Missy heated the water and filled the wooden tub. Binta and Kizzy each had made many trips to the pump.

When the tub was filled, Papa would bathe, then Mama. Missy followed Mama, then Josiah, Whynot, and Binta. Kizzy bathed last since she was the youngest. Each slave family had a one-tub allowance of water.

Fourteen-year-old Kizzy hated going last. Binta didn't feel much better about it. She would have felt cleaner with fresh water.

The following day, they would walk to the slave church in the knoll. Neither Binta nor Kizzy knew how to read, but they knew all the Bible stories and the Negro spirituals. Education didn't matter much to the slaves, but they were encouraged to practice the Christian religion.

Binta dreamed of a better life. In her heart, she felt different from the other slaves. She didn't look the same. Papa and Mama had rich, dark skin and kinky black hair. Missy, Josiah, and Whynot had the same appearance. However, Binta and Kizzy had skin the color of coffee with too much cream, and, strangely, they both had blue eyes. Their hair grew straight with a slight wave and had an amber hue woven through its brown strands.

Kizzy hurried toward the pump, but Binta took one last long look at the plantation house. Deep in her imagination, she pictured herself living there. Master treated her kindly. When he noticed her, he spoke to her and gazed at her affectionately. Cupping her chin in his hand, he often studied her face with his soft sapphire eyes. Once or twice, he caressed her cheek or her hair.

Papa worked in the North Carolina tobacco field. Mama assisted Mammy in looking after Master's children, Priscilla and Thaddeus. During the previous year, Missy began working in the kitchen while Josiah accompanied Papa into the fields. Whynot ran errands for the stablemaster.

Binta could not understand why Master hadn't put her or Kizzy to work yet. They were both big, strong girls. Still, besides puttering around the cabins and tending the slave garden, they had very little to do. Papa grumbled about their lack of employment also.

Something about Papa made Binta wary. Although he showed affection to the older children, he rarely smiled at Binta or Kizzy. She noticed that he seldom spoke to Mama. Her parents slept with their backs to each other and never embraced beneath the covers. Occasionally, she heard Mama crying in the night.

When Kizzy returned from the pump, she found Binta still standing on the rise. Binta stared at her with blank eyes and then came to life. They hurried toward the cabin together, sloshing water between their ankles.

"It's about time you two showed up," Missy complained bitterly. "Skylarking again, I assume."

"That was Binta," Kizzy exclaimed quickly. "Staring at Master again."

"Best stay out of Master's sight, both of you," their older sister grumbled. She poured the water into the cauldron quickly. "Best he don't notice you."

Binta and Kizzy exchanged glances. Missy had changed since she began working in the big house. Once a bright young lady, she suddenly seemed morose and secretive. She was quick to criticize Master and complain about his spoiled children.