Now that I am 50 I often think back to my childhood and to the ones that first introduced me to my Lord. My earliest memories are at the age of 4 and being in church singing in the choir as loud as I could and no matter what the song was I sang it my way. The pastor wouldn’t let them make me sit down. His reply was out of the mouth of babes. (I still can’t carry a tune).
My grandparents were married 55 years when my grandmother passed away. Not many people can say that today. Grandma was 14 when she was saved and Grandpa was 15. Christ never left their lives from that minute on. Before every meal a prayer was said. Before their heads hit the pillow they were on their knees praying. They not only believed in the word of God they lived it. I never heard them say a bad thing about anyone. I can remember getting mad at someone and shooting my mouth off, as a kid will, when my grandfather told me, “Sister, don’t let nothing come out of that mouth that you wouldn’t want God to hear”. That was my first lesson on biting my tongue.
My grandparent were from the old school. Women didn’t get their hair cut because that was their glory and they didn’t wear pants, make up or short skirts. A lot has changed since then. On the hottest days Grandma would take us to the creek, she in her skirt with grandpa’s pants underneath and we had a ball.
Grandma and grandpa sang on the radio every Sunday morning before church. I can remember waking up at daylight sitting by the radio to hear their voices. They always had time to come and get me for church.
I think grandpa is where I get my since of humor. He loved a good prank. Like one time he called the pastors wife and told her that the phone company was blowing out the phone lines so she might want to move her furniture and cover it up so it wouldn’t get dirty. Then he would go there after about an hour and help her move it back in place. He had a big laugh over that one.
There were only 2 things that I can say my grandfather loved and that was the Lord and his family. Oh, he had a lot of likes but these were his loves. He didn’t believe in killing animals unless it was for food to eat. He liked to fish but never on Sunday. If he told you it was going to snow you can bet it snowed. If you didn’t want the truth about something then you didn’t ask him. He set a lot of my values. He told me one night when we where having one of our many talks that he would be nothing if not for God. I really didn’t understand back then because I thought he was wonderful. Now I know he was wonderful because of God.
When I was 15 a bunch of my cousins and I went for a walk. We lived in the country down a dirt road with farms all around us. It was hot that day and one of my cousins had the bright idea of going over to Mr. Foster’s field and getting a watermelon (stealing a watermelon). So we ran out into the field and grabbed 2 melons and took off running. We heard a man yelling and running after us as we got to the fence so we dropped the melons trying to escape. I being the last to go through the fence got caught not by Mr. Foster but by Mr. Foster’s rock salt. He shot me in the backside with rock salt! Let me tell you if you have never had that joy, pass it up! Sure was hard trying to run when a certain part of my body was on fire. We got to the house with my cousins laughing on how we had a great adventure and escaped with our lives. Well, I didn’t feel like I had escaped. As we came into the yard grandpa was there to meet us.
“Where you young un’s been”? “Just down the road”, we replied. “I am going to ask one more time where you kids been”? I replied, “We were down at Mr. Fosters”. “What were you doing”? They replied, “Just playing”. “I am going to ask you one more time. What were you doing”? One of us replied, “Getting a water melon”. “Did Mr. Foster tell you that you could take one of his melons”? I spoke up (like a nut), “It was two melons”. “Well I am waiting, did he say you could get two melons”? With our heads bowed we had to say no.
He told us to get into a line. He took his belt off and started at the head of the line; this smack was for lying, this smack was for the watermelon, this smack was for the second melon (as all heads turned to me with evil looks), this smack was for stealing. As he went down the line dread had really set in. Four smacks on top of the rock salt! As he got to me he told me to turn around and I asked him, “Grandpa I know I deserve this spanking but could it please wait a day or two”?
“Why should it wait… give me one good reason”. So I turned around. He told me to go in to my grandma. For 4 days I couldn’t sit down. On the 5th day I got my 4 licks. I have never stolen another watermelon. That was the first and last time grandpa ever had to give me licks. When I am in doubt about something I wonder what he would do. I was 36 when he passed away. I was holding his hand and praying as his journey ended. He is at home now singing in the heavenly choir.
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