The milkman’s daughter

When I was a little girl, people would tease me and say, “You do not look like your sisters. Was your dad the milkman?” When I answered “yes,” they never knew quite what to say. My dad was the milkman, the last home-delivery milkman of Surry County for many customers in Mount Airy. He delivered milk, ice cream and other milk products for over 30 years.

A favorite memory of mine is riding with him on his truck to deliver milk to my babysitter, Ms. Brown, who lived three houses down the street. The ride in the big truck was the adventure of my day. It seemed to take hours, to jump on the truck, ride to Ms. Brown’s house, jump off and hand her the milk, and jump back on the truck. In later years I realized it was only about five minutes, but they were my five minutes alone with my dad, without my sisters intruding on our time together.

I am now 50, and for years no one did home delivery. But things come full circle. Somewhere a little girl is being asked, “Is your dad the UPS man?”

Paula Sauls, Fremont, Tri-County EMC

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