Little Norma's Miracle Easter Dress

[snopes]

"Don’t worry, honey. I’ll think of something.”

With that reassurance from Mother, my seven-year-old sister bounded upstairs to bed, danced a little jig in the hallway and finally settled down for restful sleep. Mother always “thought of something.”

Mother stood alone by the curtained window. She had been unwell for months. Part of her problem was pernicious anemia, a condition that left her drained and bone-weary. Giving birth to six children in twelve years had taken an alarming toll on her frail body. The years of the Great Depression of the 1930s had ravaged not only our family financially but millions of other families as well.

Little Norma wanted a new dress for Easter. A green one. The hand-me-downs from her three older sisters had been handed-down one time too many. Easter Sunday was “dress-up-day” at our small church in upstate New York. Ladies wore spring hats and colorful voile dresses. Little boys wore stiff, new suits and ties. And little girls sashayed down the center aisle with their crinoline petticoats peeking from under full pastel skirts and tight bodices. It was the one day in the calendar year every little girl wanted a new dress.

Mother crossed her arms and wondered where she could find material to make little Norma an Easter dress. Buying cloth was not an option; there was barely enough money for food. In fact, food was in such short supply that more often than not tomato dumplings or hamburg gravy were served to the less-than-enthusiastic children who gathered expectantly around the large oak dining table.

Finally, Mother walked out on the front porch which was partially covered with orange trumpet vines providing a lattice of protection and privacy. Sitting on the metal porch chair, she began to pray:

“Father, my little girl needs a dress to wear to church. I can make one if I can just get some material. And she wants a green dress for spring. Please, Lord, help me figure out what to do.”

The next morning while Mother was hanging wet sheets on the back yard clothes line, a kind neighbor approached her. “I brought over a dress for you. It’s plain brown but it’s made of excellent material. Perhaps you or one of your daughters could use it.”

Mother accepted the brown dress and thanked her warmly. After a pleasant conversation, our neighbor left and Mother rushed inside.

Little Norma was in school so Mother began ripping out the seams of the brown dress. Her excitement grew as the dress separated into several pieces of fabric.

She talked quietly to herself. “I can bleach the pieces of material, but where will I get five cents for some green Rit Dye? This would make a lovely Easter dress for little Norma. I could surprise her with it.”

Mother carried the pieces of fabric to the kitchen sink where she filled a large pan with water, pouring in the small amount of Clorox still remaining in the bottle.

What she witnessed left her speechless.

Slowly and effortlessly, the Clorox removed the brown dye from the material, leaving it the most delicate emerald green cloth Mother had ever seen. She rinsed the material in cold water and rushed to the back porch to inspect it in the bright sunlight.

It was breathtakingly beautiful. There would be no need for a 5 cent envelope of Rit Dye. No dye could ever replicate this lovely shade of spring green.

She raised her brimming eyes toward heaven. ‘Lord, I know this miracle came directly from You. I can’t explain it otherwise. Thank you, Father, for such a lovely Easter gift for my daughter.”

Two days later, Mother quietly carried a little green dress with puffed sleeves, a white collar, and full skirt into little Norma’s bedroom. Mother hung the dress in the closet, then bent to kiss her sleeping daughter lightly on the forehead.

“Happy Easter, darling.”

[Dropbear]

So how come I'm waiting for the kid to die and be buried in the dress and for her to see God in heaven and she would be wearing the dress and God would say:

"Hmnn I thought it would come out more turquoise"

Dropbear

[Ramblin' Dave]

Later on, Mother asked the neighbor why she brought the brown - er, green - dress to our house instead of the thrift shop on the next block.

"I was going to," the neighbor admitted. "But when I headed for the store, there were two big guys standing in the alley that leads over there. So I came to your house instead because you didn't intimidate me the way they did."

[Nonny Mouse]

I vehemently deny ever wanting a green dress.

Nonny

[stagemanager0610]

Little Norma was in school so Mother began ripping out the seams of the brown dress. Her excitement grew as the dress separated into several pieces of fabric.

I understand that the mother would want to clean the dress, but when you can't be guaranteed the green dye, why would she rip apart the dress right away?

Lord, I know this miracle came directly from You. I can’t explain it otherwise.

I can - that was one heck of a dirty dress, and the chlorox was just that strong!

[Buckle Up]

Doesn't it seem odd that little Norma was the only child in church who didn't have a nice dress or stiff new suit? Was this family the only one in the church that was ravaged by the Great Depression? Everyone else could afford their spring hats, voile dresses, and crinoline petticoats, but not Norma's family. Stupid Dad, had to invest in that canned tomato dumpling company.

[Cactus Wren]

Not enough guilt. Uncle Arthur's Bedtime Stories handled it better: in their version (as I recall) the little girl has been invited to a birthday party, and is endlessly whining to her mother for a new dress, hoping she won't have to go in "that old cotton thing" when allllll the other girls will have beautiful new dresses in silk and even nylon. Widowed mother, working full time, won't make any promises, but little girl sulks on. One night she hears a noise in their apartment and goes to see what it is: Mother, exhausted from a day's work in the factory, is sitting up past midnight at the sewing machine making her a silk dress. Here the point is not the miracle of the beautiful fabric, but Mommy's fatigue and sacrifice and the little girl's guilt.

[Cervus]

Am I the only one who pictured Mother making a dress out of the curtains, a la Scarlett O'Hara?

[inkrose115]

Originally Posted by stagemanager0610

I understand that the mother would want to clean the dress, but when you can't be guaranteed the green dye, why would she rip apart the dress right away?



I can - that was one heck of a dirty dress, and the chlorox was just that strong!

Miracle chlorox! Now, if I can only fix the holes in my sheets from where my dad tossed bleach directly into the washing machine. Lord, please remove the gaping holes...

[rlobinske]

Originally Posted by Cervus

Am I the only one who pictured Mother making a dress out of the curtains, a la Scarlett O'Hara?

I was thinking of the Carol Burnett version (complete with curtain rod)

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by Cervus

Am I the only one who pictured Mother making a dress out of the curtains, a la Scarlett O'Hara?

Julie Andrews in "The Sound of Music" comes to mind as well.

[Radical Dory]

Originally Posted by Cervus

Am I the only one who pictured Mother making a dress out of the curtains, a la Scarlett O'Hara?

As soon as line about standing by the "curtained window" was mentioned. I also thought of the Carol Burnett version.

And I really don't want to think about the "brown" that came off of that dress.

[Ryda Wong, EBfCo.]

Originally Posted by Nonny Mouse

I vehemently deny ever wanting a green dress.

Nonny

Actually, I want a green dress right now. It's in the window of the DressBarn on the 16th Street mall in Denver. It's so cute and springy, and, even though I'm not a big dress wearer, it would be perfect for me.

Perhaps I should pray to God, but trumpet vines don't grow round here.

Oh, and my neighbors are pretty poor, too.

Hold it, hold it, hold it. We have a glurge violation....

Originally Posted by snopes

In fact, food was in such short supply that more often than not tomato dumplings or hamburg gravy were served to the less-than-enthusiastic children who gathered expectantly around the large oak dining table.

In glurgeland, depression-era children are never less-than-enthusiastic. They love their poverty, it's far more fun than wealth. Their little sticks and pieces of tin or wood are all the entertainment they need.

We know this b/c of all the "kids of today" threads posted by grizzled veterans of the depression.

[Bettie Page Turner]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think crinolines were popular until the fifties. Neither were full skirts.

This was funny Well-to-do woman hands poor family a filthy piece of clothing rather than, you know, clean it. Because it's got nice fabric. Under the, you know, filth.

I was going to ask what in heck hamburg gravy was, but I found a recipe - sounds like a homemade Hamburger Helper except good. I would use one of those new stock concentrates (such as Better than Bouillon) instead of those little salt-cubes, though. http://alumnisandstorm.com/Recipes/RecHG01.htm I had never heard of tomato dumplings either but they might also be worth a try. http://homeparents.about.com/od/favo.../dumplings.htm Could be a nice way to use garden tomatoes.

Really I don't see why they'd be so unenthusiastic - they sound like fine dishes to me. Since when was meat a bad thing to have during the depression anyway - even lowly burger?

[boogers]

Ma could sell that big oak dining table and then maybe they'd have enough money for dresses and some type of food besides tomato dumplings. Sure, they'd have to eat on the floor but that probably builds character and makes them count their blessings and all that.

[Richard W]

"Please, Lord, help me figure out what to do.”

"OK, here's what - you do nothing, and somebody will give you the dress you want. How about that? Does that work for you?"

[Lainie]

Originally Posted by snopes;115354Slowly and effortlessly, the Clorox removed the brown dye from the material, leaving it the most delicate emerald green cloth Mother had ever seen.

[snip

No dye could ever replicate this lovely shade of spring green.

"Emerald green" is not "spring green," any more than navy blue is azure.

Originally Posted by Cervus

Am I the only one who pictured Mother making a dress out of the curtains, a la Scarlett O'Hara?

Originally Posted by rlobinske

I was thinking of the Carol Burnett version (complete with curtain rod)

"I saw it in the window and just had to have it. . ."

[queen of the caramels]

Originally Posted by snopes

The next morning while Mother was hanging wet sheets on the back yard clothes line, a kind neighbor approached her. “I brought over a dress for you. It’s plain brown but it’s made of excellent material. Perhaps you or one of your daughters could use it.”


Mother carried the pieces of fabric to the kitchen sink where she filled a large pan with water, pouring in the small amount of Clorox still remaining in the bottle.

What she witnessed left her speechless.

Slowly and effortlessly, the Clorox removed the brown dye from the material, leaving it the most delicate emerald green cloth Mother had ever seen. She rinsed the material in cold water and rushed to the back porch to inspect it in the bright sunlight.

Originally Posted by stagemanager0610

I can - that was one heck of a dirty dress, and the chlorox was just that strong!

Originally Posted by Radical Dory

And I really don't want to think about the "brown" that came off of that dress.

Originally Posted by We'veBeenHad

This was funny Well-to-do woman hands poor family a filthy piece of clothing rather than, you know, clean it. Because it's got nice fabric. Under the, you know, filth.

Sorry but the brown was the dye. I know it cos it says so in the orginal "story".
I'm not too sure about dye technology but would this really happen??

And green, isn't green one of the Devil's favourite colours?