The best childhood memories

 Old pictures from the net.

For today:

I was too little to know the situation of being a pastor’s son. The moving and all.  I just remember one day the family packed up our stuff in a utility trailer and moved from town to the country, that was fine with me, I still had Bingo the family dog, and Tom, the cat I called mine. Well, I thought I did. Just as soon as unpacked in High Shoals NC, Tom disappeared. I learned something, There was no way I could have found my way back  the 30-40 miles to our old house, But Tom did. .

Shirley, Kat and me in the chicken lot.

I remember the chicks coming from Sears Robuck via the mail man. They were in a past board box with holes all round it. It wasn’t long before I had my first job at about 4 yrs old. I learned to gather eggs for mama.

We always had homemade jelly for breakfast, but honey or molasses were special. In High shoals I learned something not many 4–5-year-olds know. That is how molasses was made. The sugar cane was cut and gathered by the farm family. There was a pole like affair (a long wooden limb) attached. I learned the center post thing was really a little mill that squeezed the juice out of the cane.  The mill was run by a mule that walked around and round pulling the limb arm, turning the mill. The cane was stuck into the mill and it pulled the cane thr shiny rollers squeezing the juice right out into a bucket. 

A different mill but you get the idea.

The bucket was then taken to a big flat pan over a wood fire. I remember their pan was about a foot deep, and 2 feet wide and about 5 feet long. The juice was cooked until it was perfect, judged my Mr or Mrs Davis then skimmed off into waiting jars.

They were a wonderful family.  The first Black Folk I had ever known. They were our closest neighbors, so we kids played together.

Kids back then were ignorant of segregation. It was a way of life. I never knew the danger the family was in if some white kid had gotten hurt on their farm. So instead of allowing me to run in and jam cane into the mill, Mr. Davis made me ride the mule. Is that punishment or what?  I had my own merry go round. LOL

It was a fun time. It was the best of childhood memories.

Nite Shipslog

PS 

Still THANKFUL for all the visits, Love you guys. Of course each of you is special. Life can be good....