"Nuh-uhn my mama ain't raisin black! Leest my mama aint bald-headed like yours! A is for apple J is for jack yo mama ain't got no hair in the back! Das why she be on the corner in her gown with one sock and no shoes and yo daddy dirty doo-rag singing Lil' Bow Wow! And yo mama so stupid, somebody told her it was chilly outside and she came outside with a bowl!"

All of the kids standing around erupted in laughter at the victim's expense. Taja was hands down the hoods jonin' champ. "Now you betta leave me alone before I kick your Sherman Clump Payless Pro Wing wearin' biscuits and gravy a...!

"Taja Sekai! Get your little ass in this house!"

Taj's mom yelled interrupting her string of insults to the little fat boy that was now crying. "What did I tell you about your mouth little girl? Everybody's not gonna take lip from you. I keep warning you, you are not as tough as you think. Besides, its not nice to tease."

"Well Mama Corey's fat self was talking about you and I was not havin' that! Sayin' you black and stuff Mama. He make me sick! I can't stand him."

"Taj, I have told you, I don't care what those little raggedy kids say. They don't shame me."

"Mama I care. I get tired of them talkin' about my "black" mama all the time. If I hear one more "Yo mama so black..." I'm gonna slap somebody!"

"Watch it little girl. You're not going to slap anybody. They're just jealous their moms can't be black and beautiful, they just black..."

"Mama! You told me don't talk about people! Look at you!" Taj said with laughter in her voice. Her mother always had a way of calming her down unexpectedly. "You're right Mama. You are beautiful and I hope I am as pretty as you when I grow up."

"You are already prettier than me! When you get my age you'll be a knock out!"

"Thanks Mama."

"You're welcome, now get your little high-yella but upstairs and take a shower so you can eat."

"Love you Mama."

"Love you too baby."

****************

The truth is, the "black" jokes still stung her mom just a little and Taj knew it. Even as a adult she still saw herself as the little black nappy head girl from her childhood, a purgatory she had yet to be released from. She had endured the worst teasing growing up. She told Taj she couldn't remember a day when she didn't cry herself to sleep as a child. The children's comments never really bothered her as much as her own mother who constantly told her she was too black to be this, too black to do that. And then laughing when she would come home and tell her mom what "you so black" a kid had said. Taj never met her grandmother and never cared to for that very reason. Anybody that would treat their own like that was not worth knowing, grandmother or not. Taj's mom explained that her grandmother was dark too and was teased. So, Taj couldn't understand how that lady could treat her mom so cruelly. Her mom tried to make an excuse for her saying her mother did not know how to heal herself, so on went the vicious cycle of self-hate. But she promised God and herself it would stop with Taja.

"Taj are you diggin' a well?!? Get down here before this food gets cold!"

"Comin' Mama Dag!" Taj came flying down the steps in her giant furry house shoes, some Betty Boop pajama pants and a pink t-shirt that said "I'm the princess, so we'll do things my way". The street lights were on so asking to go back out after dinner was out of the question. So she conceded defeat and started thinking about who she would call after dinner. Taj got to the kitchen table and sat in front of a large plate of spaghetti, greens, potato salad and boneless fried jack fillets. Her mom knew she hated bones. Everything was always about her and she knew it. But, she was careful not to take advantage of that. She loved her mama too much. She didn't care what her mother said, NOBODY was going to talk about her or they would have to pay. That woman was the only somebody in the world that cared about her. Taj would protect her mom with her life. Which is what she had been doing up until this very day.

*********************

"Ms. Frazier you have a call on park one."

"Thank you Joshua."

"Frazier and Associates this is Ms. Frazier. Oh hi Mama! How're you doing?... Are you sure old lady?... Mama you know if you need something as small as a loaf of bread or a fingernail clipper, you better not hesitate to ask, you hear me mama?... No problem. I'll bring it over tonight... Love you too."

Amongst the current maelstrom of her firm handling the most sensationalized racism case of the last five years, her mom managed to ease her nerves a little. Which was right on time because she was about to meet with her client's opposition. She knew it would come down to a logjam in this meeting but she was ready for anything. She wasn't the CEO of the most reputable firm in the nation for nothing.

Taja strolled down the corridor to the conference room ready for war. She opened the two large mahogany doors and almost fell out. She never, ever forgets a face. She quickly regained her composure though. She greeted the opposing attorney with a smile and a handshake, trying not to make too much direct eye contact. It may cause problems if he recognized her. But she was not about to crawfish this case.

"Ms.Taja Frazier, it has been a very long time. Nice to see you again. Wish it could be under different circumstances."

"I didn't think you recognized me. However, its nice to see you too Mr. Parker."

"We go back too far, please call me Corey."

*****************************

This piece was created for the Serendipitous Nouns Game from the Discussion Board utilizing the following words:

crawfish, maelstrom, doo-rag, logjam, raisin, purgatory