C'mere

Charlie and Maggie shared a womb and were born eight minutes apart. Their mother was gravely ill when they entered this world, living on a black dirt farm in New Hampshire with their two older brothers, their parents, and their grandparents. As their mother's health deteriorated, the woman forgot most of her words and simply called Maggie, Girl. When she wanted Charlie's attention, she yelled out, C'mere, which weighed on Charlie, who longed for his mother to remember his name. This is a coming-of-age story about farm life, family, and Charlie's thirst for his mother's affection.

This tale was inspired by a man I am fond of who lost his mother when he was a child. At age 86, he is still sharp, and he sometimes tells me about being orphaned and growing up in poverty on his sister's farm. I asked him one day if his mother called him by his nickname or his given name and he smiled. Apparently, she didn't use either name towards the end of her life. He claimed she simply yelled out, C'mere, if she wanted his attention. His recollections of his difficult childhood touched my heart and planted a seed for this story.