To Garner Wisdom

"Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy. The amount of work is the same."~~~Francesca Reigler

Tuesday, June 19

Don't Let Him

I am fifty years old. I really don't feel that old, but it is a fact. That makes me being born in 1961. August 30th and 31st are my birthday's. I have two because my Mama thought I was born on the 31st, but when I received a new birth certificate it had the 30th. It really does not matter, fifty years is still fifty years. What difference should a day make. I was raised during the time that men were held in much higher regard than most of them deserved. The women stayed home while the guys went to work and where ever the hell they wanted. Women, most of them knew that when the men didn't come home, what they were up to. This is what my grandmother referred to as, "it's a man's world." She was a prime example of a women was to do what was right to cover-up for her man's indiscretions. It did not matter to her if the other women was her daughter-in-law or even a child. "Don't let him", was the words I heard her use when she discovered that Granddaddy was trying to abuse a female. To her that would end the problem. Would it? How could something that evil end that easily? This is an assault that never goes away. It is taking something from an innocent soul, that can never be replaced.

Shade Tree Mechanics

Shade Tree Mechanics
Working on a car can be dangerous. The car can fall if it is jacked up and fall. With daddy working on anything seemed as if fire was the main danger. Grandmother's house had not been built back long after their fire. We were living in a new brick house, which I thought was a mansion. I drive by there now and am amazed at how small it seems. That night he had pulled the navy blue Dodge Dart he was driving at the time beside the carport. I always got really worried when he tried to do something drunk. He had to, just had to get the car fixed, to go visit Parker. Parker was the local bootlegger. One of the local bootleggers. Lauderdale County was dry. Traveling to Pulaski was really not an option, considering the not so reliable car Daddy had. I could see out the kitchen door as he stood under the hood messing with the breather on the top of the engine. He took it off and was pouring gas into the carburetor. The next thing I knew flames were coming from under the hood of the car. Forget there being an easy way to put the fire out. There was not a water hose hooked up. It was before fire extinguishers were standard in homes. Dirt was the answer at that moment. I saw the fire and him getting sand from the pile that was left in front of the house from the building back of Grandmothers house. The fire was finally put out, but the car was in need of more repairs than before he started.

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