Friday, October 21, 2016

Flowers come in Three

I was outside watering today and kept finding flowers in threes...
Three is pretty significant in my family because I had 3 brothers and there are 3 sisters. I had 3 children and so did my brother Leeroy and Clifton.
So when the three flowers came up this morning, it made me think of my siblings. We are all older now, my brother Ernest the middle child in the family picture below is gone now, and all of us have made our own way in the world.
My sister Ruby and my brother Lee have passed their 50th wedding Anniversaries. I feel that is a testament to will and love and devotion and a lot of prayer because that is not easy.
Ruby has 5 children, their ages like doorsteps, and I don't know how she did that, to this day. They all love the Lord and one of them devoted her life to Missionary work. That takes a special person to do that, not that all of them aren't special, but I have a soft spot for those that give to others. I think that there are special blessings for those that give to the poor and minister to the sick...
Lee Peacock has 3 and his son has served our country and so has his son. I always honor those that sacrifice for us because when they touch American soil, it is like being born again, they are so happy.. ( that is what my Vietnam Vets had told me)
He has two lovely daughters too who have amazing families in and around the place where I was born. One of them married a farmer. You can't get any more salt of the Earth than that.
Clifton has 3 and his son lil clif was like my own. He came to Ca. and spent the summer with me when he was 12 and I never wanted to let him go. I am so glad that we are still in touch:-)
Ernest never married or had children because a motorcycle accident almost took his life when he was 21. 3 months in a coma later, he woke up but was never the same, except he smiled every day and loved the Lord for many years. I know that he is in heaven, whole, with his missing limb recovered and no longer in pain.
I have 3 children and 2 Grandchildren. My oldest is a Nurse who takes care of me, along with her wife, in a way that is hard to articulate. I love them so much for their sacrifice to making the rest of my years comfortable and loving.
My middle child has the voice of an Angel. When she was growing up, she would takes walks and I had neighbors tell me that they thought it was the radio when she would walk by. She sang with Jim Pagano in a little village called Heuvelton in upstate NY and I can still hear them in my mind.
My youngest is in college and will finish in a few months.. I always love a success story, especially when it comes with sweat and strife...
My baby sister Donna is the Angel of the family. She doesn't think of herself like this but she is.
When daddy stroked at age 62, she was the one that nursed him back to health. She and Peggy helped teach him to talk, to count money, to walk, to enjoy and have a life again.
When Ernest wrecked his bike, and after a two week respite at my place, he went to live with her in a full body cast and she fed him, cleaned him, talked with him to clear his mind and kept at it until he could walk and care for himself. If that is not an Angel, I don't know what is....
So lest I write another book, I will just say that the three flowers that came into my view this morning, started a flood of memories from my life and my siblings lives. We are apart in miles but will always be close in my mind because we are blood and that is thicker than water....
I love you all and pray that if you have a brother or sister that you can tell them that you love them today. Because one day that flower will wither and fall off the branch and you will miss them, just like I do Ernest and Daddy and Mama and Uncle Andy... Love, Kimmee

Tuesday, October 4, 2016

Dirt Road Memories

Afternoon family and friends,
One of my cousins wrote about how dirt roads make her feel and a flood of memories came to me. I remember them so fondly growing up in Jay.
"My" road was named after my 2nd great Grandpappy but I did not know that as a kid.
Morristown Road was its name. It was a clay dirt road and when it rained , it became a gooey clay mess, that you had to drive down in the ruts to make it anywhere. If you got out of those ruts, you were going to have yourself a ride to remember.
Riding on the bus was an adventure on those days and I admired our bus driver, Raymond Diamond's, ability to keep it on the road and in between those huge ruts.
I think all of us kids on the bus held our breath and if truth be told, I think we hoped that the bus would get stuck, but only if we were going to school. LOL.
Raymond Diamond was one of the most caring people. Yes, he was our bus driver but he was also our protector and teacher. I think that is what makes for a good bus driver. Often times, especially these days, they are faced with discipline challenges and he met those with a firm hand and a kind smile. I never knew that he was my cousin growing up and that his Daddy, Bernie was too.
I went to Bernie's store every week to buy candy. It was 3 pieces for a penny and for 10 cents, I could have candy all day long. I bought Red Hots, Coconut sticks, Mary Janes, Bubble gum, Sugar Daddy Mini's and my favorite Bit of Honey.. Man, those were the days and candy has never tasted so good as it did then.
Sometimes Daddy would take us to the five and dime in town. That was a wonderland of toys, candy, household items and all kind of geegaws for a pittance. The bins were filled with things of wonder and I remember going up and down the aisles with my eyes as big as saucers wanting one of every thing I could see. There was a coke machine at the front and for a nickel you could get the coldest 6.5 oz coke in a bottle. Coke back then, burned a little when it went down. It wasn't all watered down like it is today. And it was good, so good.
Daddy worked so hard but he always gave us a dime if we needed it and when I got old enough, I started working in the cotton fields to get my "candy" money for the week.. Years later I still feel guilty that I worked in the fields for candy and the people that I worked alongside were working for food. I was a young kid and I did not know that people were hungry or that my Grandmothers own family had been hungry.
Daddy always made sure that we had shelter and food. He worked for such little money and although there were 6 kids, I don't ever remember needing something and not having it. Most of the time I had my wants too and that was a blessed way to grow up.

I am so thankful for the Raymonds, the Bernies, and the Bauldree fields which gave so many people jobs. One day remind me and I will tell you of my cotton field days in which I learned about humanity. Of course at 10, I did not understand, but today I do...
I hope that you all have dirt road memories. Love to all, Kimmee