Going through some of my moms stuff after she passed I found this picture. It shows six little girls lined up in a row walking down a hall. An adult woman, maybe a teacher giving some instruction from behind. The girls are all holding books on their head. Each girl is in a nice dress and patent leather shoes with ankle socks and gloves. Looking at the picture gave me a shock of butterflies in my gut.

On the back of the photo it says "Chris and Amelia 1968". I would have been six or seven that year and Amelia would have been a little less than a year younger.

Looking close at the photo I thought I recognized Amelia as the fifth girl back. Mom had written "Chris and Amelia" on the back and given the year. Amelia is obvious in the photo. But I'm not. Why would mom write my name on the photo then.

Since I was scanning all the family photos I decided to forward the image to Amelia in a text. A few minutes later she responded.

"I remember that school." She said in a text. "That's me fifth from the front."

"where was it taken?" I texted back.

"That's the country club charm school." came her text a few minutes later. "Mom made both of us girls go every summer."

My other sister, Cara was two years older than me.

"We went to that charm school one week every summer till I was 15." She texted again.

"Mom wrote 'Chris and Amelia 1968' on the back." I texted back.

"I think that's you in the front of the line." She responded.

I looked again at the girl in the front of the line. She was toe head blond with short thin hair that looked like it might have been curled with a hot iron. Her dress was the same hem length as all the others in the photo. Just above her knees. She was not looking at the camera.

I looked at some of the other photos of me at that age and I guess that I did recognize her face. That girl was me. But I had no memory of ever going to charm school. Much less of ever dressing as a girl.

"I can't believe mom did that to me." I texted back.

"Yup. I'm pretty sure that is you." Amelia texted back.

I added Cara to the chat and forwarded her the picture.

"Do you remember this school? Amelia said you both went to it every summer." I added as a caption.

It was a few minutes before Cara responded.

"That's you and Amelia in the photo isn't it?" She texted. "You were so cute."

"Mom dressed me up as a girl and sent me to charm school?" I texted back.

"Amelia and I went to that school for years. One week every summer." Cara texted back. "It was fun for a while but I got kinda sick of it before the end."

Amelia added, "I think you only went for that first year."

Cara added, "There was some row and you never wore dresses again after that."

I reread her words a dozen times. I wore dresses before that? I remembered other things from first grade. Why did I not remember wearing dresses?

"The last two years it was always the fancy 'cotillion' dinner for the older girls. Mine would have been in 73." Cara continued.

Amelia texted, "I don't remember you in any of the classes. But that has to be you in front."

Cara texted too, "That sure does look like you." she said.

"Thanks." I texted back. I wonder what the whole story was. I had no memory of ever wearing dresses. But here was a photo of me doing just that.

I posted another text, "I have no memory of every wearing dresses."

"We'll be together for the funeral. We can talk then." Was Cara's last post on the topic.

"See you soon." Was the text form Amelia.