April 5, 2020 – What’s-a-matter-you?
The
other day my husband was talking to a feral cat on the back patio that came up
to him and circled his ankles.
“What’s-a-matter-you?”
he said – all one word like my Dad used
to say when I was young. I stopped
my nearby weeding and looked up at him.
“Been
a long time since I’ve heard that phrase, Dad used to say it, not often, but
every once in a while.”’
I
turned back to weeding in the warm sunshine and pondered about that phrase. It
was a phrase Dad used on children who weren’t talking, or children who came to
him crying. His “What’s-a-matter-you?” usually
eased their tears or elicited a few words.
He also used it on animals that sauntered up and wanted some attention.
I
dug deep in my memory. I remember the
last time I heard him say that was to a neighbor’s dog that came up to him and
rested its chin on his knee, Dad’s big hand dropped down automatically and
rubbed the dog’s ears.
“What’s-a-matter-you?”
he asked and the dog jumped with both paws onto his chest and licked his face. It was the neighbor’s German Sheppard and he
visited Dad often when he was out in the yard or garden. [See blog September
29, 2016, BAH-Hamburger, Herb Hamburgers, and
Where’s the Beef?]
Dad
patted him a while, talking to him and then the dog laid down at his feet as if
it was his master. I’d seen this
duplicated before, when he visited my home and a neighbor’s dog came up. That time, the dog jumped into his lap. I
though it was so funny I took a picture of it.
Dad had a calming voice among children and animals, just like my
husband, Russ.
Russ
has that voice, that soothing voice that eases and comforts cats, dogs, raccoon,
and even skunks. [See blog November 8, 2016 for The Skunk Whisperer.]
Then
I shifted to another section of the garden to weed – spring weeding is always a
long ordeal – weeds want to grow in the South in the winter – I find it so amazing,
even after 34+ years.
My
mind went back further down memory lane; it was when my niece and nephew were
little, Jeff a toddler and Stef a few years older. I had flown home for a visit and we had a
family outing. My Dad was sitting in his
favorite chair and Jeff brought a toy to him.
Jeff was quiet that day, maybe because he didn’t know who I was, and
Dad, said, “What’s-a-matter-you?”
Dad
didn’t get an answer, just Jeff’s deploring eyes who looked at me suspiciously and
then back to his Grandpa. Dad took the
toy offered to him, looked it over and handed it back to him, which seemed to
satisfy him. Jeff sat down at his feet
to play; I guess he knew he was in a safety zone, away from a strange Aunt
sitting across the room.
A
good phrase that - “What’s-a-matter-you?”
I need to dust it off and use it more often.
https://quailthicket.blogspot.com/2016/09/september-2016-bah-hamburger-herb.html
https://quailthicket.blogspot.com/2016/11/november-8-2016-skunk-whisperer.html
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