[July 10, 2023] I was born in Arkansas, close to a line of small towns that ran south into Louisiana along what is now state Route 165, where all my relatives married, worked, raised their families, and died. My hometown is Mer Rouge, where I learned to be a young man. I lived in this little village, without… Read More »
[July 5, 2023] Granddaughter! Perhaps you are now wondering why I’m writing these letters to you, a growing, beautiful young lady. You are the oldest of my grandchildren. And like your father and like me as your grandfather, we are each the firstborn and with that position comes special privileges and also expectations. While I am confident that… Read More »
[June 28, 2023] Sometimes, things come along just when you need them most. The hard-boiled eggs were colored in pastels, craftily hidden throughout the backyard, tucked behind a tree, hidden in the grass, behind a bush, and on the fence post. And there was Mom gathering all her children together. It was Easter Sunday, the first Easter in… Read More »
[June 27, 2023] It was my first day cleaning a pigpen, and I knew I had stepped in it big time. Yep, that’s me all right, taking on a job that I had absolutely no idea what I was doing or getting into. But I was also too hard-headed to admit I was over my head, thinking I… Read More »
[June 23, 2023] Looking back on my time as a kid, I’m not so sure I was using my thinking abilities properly. Yeah, the men in my town were nearly all combat veterans. I was enthralled by their harrowing experiences, cool demeanor, pretty girlfriends, tales of growing up in the boonies and swamps of Louisiana, great physical strength,… Read More »
[June 20, 2023] Picking Cotton. My first real job was picking cotton at my Grandpappy’s home in southeast Arkansas. I learned many valuable lessons, including that I was not cut out to be a cotton picker. I was ten years old in the Summer of 1962 when I picked cotton for the first time. A “real” job meant… Read More »
Letters to My Granddaughter, No. 5 (the JFK Election) [June 17, 2023] I was a young kid when Dwight D. Eisenhower was in office, but I do not remember him. Politics was beyond my understanding and appreciation for what that meant. As a eight-year-old, I wasn’t totally ignorant, just nearly so. To me, they were faces in the… Read More »
[June 9, 2023] Family. Family. Family. I’ll update my letters to my granddaughter in an ongoing series for future reading. My granddaughter is the oldest of my grandchildren and the only girl. And she is a very active child and smart as a whip. Today’s topic is family. Regular readers know my stance on families and will not… Read More »
[June 3, 2023] Summer jobs, side jobs, and odd jobs. This article is my latest update to letters to my granddaughter. Growing up in the 1950s was good for me. By now, you know that we were rich (by local standards), and that meant my parents were married, my dad had a steady job on the railroad,… Read More »
[May 29, 2023] From the stories told by my parents, my first doggie – Rusty – was my forever companion. He was there when I was born and lived with us for many years. I’m convinced our close, very close bond was the reason for many decades of wonderful relationships with animals throughout my lifetime, in particular, pet… Read More »