Heir-looms
January 22nd, 2021
Starring: Jerome (male, 40-50), Georgia (female, 40-50)
Night. Past usual bedtime. A small study. A cluttered desk, with boxes and manila document folders. Georgia stands in the center of the room, holding a long, antique cavalry sword. She unsheathes it slowly, looking at the blade. She tries to catch it in better light, and in doing so, gets close to slicing the ceiling. Jerome calls softly from the doorway, holding tea:
JEROME
Watch the fan, Zorro.
GEORGIA
Oop!
Georgia lowers the blade, carefully. She puts it back in its sheath.
GEORGIA
Crazy how its aged so well. The blade’s still not rusty.
JEROME
Where’d she keep it?
GEORGIA
In her little study room, on the mantel. She probably didn’t touch it for 40 years.
JEROME
Do you know what they sell for?
GEORGIA
No. It’s an heirloom, she wouldn’t sell it.
JEROME
What about you?
GEORGIA
Well now it’s my heirloom.
JEROME
Mhm…
GEORGIA
And I’ll probably use the same logic.
JEROME
So we’re keeping it?
GEORGIA
I’d like to honor her somehow.
Not just her, the lineage. The whole idea of passing a thing down.
JEROME
But what if you don’t want the thing?
…
Wait do you want the thing?
GEORGIA
I do, yeah.
JEROME
So to clarify, you want your great-great grandad’s Confederate sword hanging in our house?
GEORGIA
We don’t know if it is. There’s nothing on here that confirms that. She only started saying that as she got senile—
JEROME
So let’s get it appraised. Then we’ll know for sure.
GEORGIA
But why do we—
JEROME
We should know. Because if it is, we can’t have—
GEORGIA
It would be horrible.
But—
JEROME
If that’s even a possibility, why would we want it at all?
GEORGIA
It’s not the memory I have with it! I look at it, and I think of my Mom. Her house, her smell, her life. It’s a positive association.
JEROME
It doesn’t excuse what it could be.
GEORGIA
IknowIknowIknow. But I’m the only child, ok?! It’s on me to keep the streak.
JEROME
Streak? Fuck the streak! You’re you, you don’t owe anyone anything.
GEORGIA
That’s pretty easy to say when it’s not your family. When it’s not on you to hold that up.
And I know you had mixed feelings about my Mom—
JEROME
I loved your Mom—!
GEORGIA
You tolerated my Mom. There was a little love, and a lot of resentment. You know it, I know it. Up to her last day, even she knew it.
…
I’m not saying you have to support this. Honestly, I don’t think I do.
But either way, I need your support. I really do, right now.
…
JEROME
You’ve got it. Even if you can’t feel it, you’ve got it.
…
How about we sleep on it?
GEORGIA
Ok. Sure, we’ll figure it out tomorrow.
JEROME
You coming up?
GEORGIA
In a minute.
JEROME
Take your time. I’ll check on the kids.
GEORGIA
Ok.
Thanks
Jerome tries a smile and goes upstairs.
Georgia looks back down at the sword. She gets on her tiptoes and places it on a high shelf, overlooking the room. Just for the night.