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“The grandmother didn’t want to go to Florida. She wanted to visit some of her connections in east Tennessee and she was seizing at every chance to change Bailey’s mind.��

This famous short story was first published in 1953, eighty years ago, and is also the title of a longer book of Flannery O'Connor stories.

The grandmother lives in Georgia with her adult son, Bailey, his wife and two children. She tries to convince them to go to Tennessee instead of Florida by carrying on, waving a newspaper article, and talking of a killer in that area.

�� ‘Here this fellow that calls himself The Misfit is aloose from the Federal Pen and headed toward Florida and you read here what it says he did to these people. Just you read it. I wouldn’t take my children in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it. I couldn’t answer to my conscience if I did.����

She gets no support from the wife or the kids, who suggest she stay home, but they know she’d never miss out on a trip. The next day, she’s the first one in the car (sneaking the cat in as well), and they’re off across Georgia, headed for Florida.

She points out all the sights, including a �� ‘cute little���� black boy standing at the door to a shack who waves at them when they stare.

�� ‘He didn’t have any britches on,�� June Star [the girl] said.

‘He probably didn’t have any,�� the grandmother explained. ‘Little n*s in the country don’t have things like we do. If I could paint, I’d paint that picture,�� she said.��

During the trip and at a rest stop, “Red Sammy’s��, she carries on about how times have changed. Her grandchildren are not respectful the way children were in her day. He agrees. She says he’s a good man.

�� ‘A good man is hard to find,�� Red Sammy said. ‘Everything is getting terrible. I remember the day you could go off and leave your screen door unlatched. Not no more.��

He and the grandmother discussed better times. The old lady said that in her opinion Europe was entirely to blame for the way things were now. She said the way Europe acted you would think we were made of money and Red Sam said it was no use talking about it, she was exactly right.�� ��

When she suggests revisiting an old plantation house she thinks she remembers, the story really takes off.

Not the usual family road trip, but it is only short and worth your time!

Thanks to the Short Story Club for the link to a PDF of the story online:



The club
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