He didn't say anything for the rest of the lesson. I was surprised to see how irritated Aunt Sally became after just a few moments of this racket, but she gently told Echo to be quiet and after he repeated the phrase 'Please quiet down!' a few times, Echo fell silent. They bothered me and made a strange feeling squirm in my gut. Halfway through the lesson, however, Echo began to make strange whining noises, like high pitched squeals, and was fluttering his wings erratically. I assured her that it was fine and we began our lesson. And I'm sorry, I didn't have time to bake anything for you today.' 'Sorry, dear,' she said with a warm smile, 'I was in the bathroom. The curls in her brown hair were slightly more tangled than normal, giving her the appearance of just rolling out of bed, but I dismissed it. I considered calling her on her phone when suddenly she came down the stairs, giving me a pleasant smile. Sighing, I glanced at my watch fifteen minutes after one, when our lesson was supposed to start. I would have liked to see that she was such a nice person usually. Maybe Echo had been particularly noisy one day and Aunt Sally had yelled at him. I was slightly confused at this, but was amused all the same. Shrugging, I went to Echo's cage and began to tickle his feathered chest through the bars. I couldn't hear Aunt Sally walking around upstairs, and she certainly wasn't in the kitchen or the family room, as I could see both rooms from my vantage point at the table. Confused, I dropped my backpack on the chair and looked around. One day, however, I went over and noticed that no treat was waiting on the kitchen table where we usually had our lesson. She also found new ways to help me understand complicated mathematical concepts, often laughing at herself when she used the acronym for that order of operations that inspired her name.

She always had some kind of treat waiting for our lessons-scones, cookies, trail mix, stuff like that. Most of the school year passed, and Aunt Sally and I became better and better friends. Plus, my grade in Algebra was a high B, which was the best it had ever been. It was slightly childish but I had too much fun to care, and was beginning to look forward to going over for my lessons more and more. I couldn't help but laugh, and was sad to put him back in his cage as we headed for the door again.įrom then on, every single time I went over for my lesson, she would take Echo out for me and we'd play with him a little, giving him ridiculous sentences to repeat. 'Long ago they were!' Echo chirped happily, fluttering his feathers in response. 'He's called that because he always repeats the last words he's heard, no matter how long ago they were.' 'His name is Echo,' she said with a smile. As soon as I pointed it out she was excited to show her pet to me, and took him out of his cage for me to hold. To be honest, I was a little excited too, as I had a hard time learning anything and I had a feeling she would make algebra easier to understand.Īs my mom and I were standing to leave after several hours of pleasant chatting, I noticed the birdcage on a stand in the other room, with a brightly-colored yellow and green parrot perched inside. She hung onto every word, complimenting me over and over again on how nice and friendly I was and how excited she was to teach me. I told her about my time as a homeschooler and the types of education I had gotten over the years, along with some of my favorite personal hobbies. It was easy to talk to her, and she was a very good listener. 'So, tell me a little bit about yourself!' 'Just a little bit of math humor,' she said with a laugh as we sat down in her living room. Her name was Sally Neckerson, but she told me everyone called her Aunt Sally because of the acronym 'Please Excuse my Dear Aunt Sally' to remember the order of operations. We met up a few days before school at her house to get to know each other, and she seemed like a very nice lady. I've been homeschooled ever since I was little, so it wasn't a surprise when my mom hired a private algebra teacher for my freshman year. 'Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally' by TwilightDagger

Please excuse my dear aunt sally