Day 4: Just the two of us…

My sister Debby was born 19 months after me, but she started school early, so we were only one grade apart. Being that close in age, we played together with our friends Donna and Greg down the street almost all the time. Donna was my age and Greg was close to Debby’s, so it worked out. Growing up we did pretty much everything together until I got old enough to play football with the gang down the street and it was boys only.

In the early days, we were in a queen bed together and used to play a game at night where one person would draw a picture on the others back with their fingernails. If you guessed the picture, the person had to draw it again…great way to get your back scratched.

With Donna and Greg, we made up games like snake in the gutter. We had a sidewalk in front of our house and a paved sidewalk up to the house leaving three grass areas around the sidewalks. So, the snake had to stay in the gutter (the sidewalks) and we could be in the grass jumping from section to section until you got tagged, then you were the snake. I have no remembrance if anyone taught us that game or if we made it up, but it was fun.

Then there was “No Bears Out Tonight”. Someone was the bear, and they would go hide, then the rest of us would skip around the house signing “No bears out tonight, Grandpa killed them all last night” until you rounded a corner and there was the bear who jumped out, growled and chased you down…then you were the bear.

“Red light, green light” was another favorite along with “Hopscotch” which we drew with chalk on the sidewalk and the always favorite “Kick Ball” if we had some neighbors join in.

In the summer, we would play until the streetlights came on at night. Barefooted every day, which meant at least one or two bee stings a summer, we would be a mixture of sweat, dirt and more sweat from head to toe by the end of the day…it was humid in Greenville, NC.

For the most part it was a carefree childhood until the night came and our parents would fight. Daddy would drink and at some point, there would be a disagreement. Sometimes just yelling, but sometimes, much worse. One night Debby and I were sleeping in the same room that had a window right by the back door of the house. Daddy got mad at Mama and threw her out of the back door. Debby and I heard everything as Mama banged on the door to get back in and we sat by the window, which was wide open, crying unable to help her.

I’m sure the neighbors heard the yelling and fighting because neighborhoods were pretty quiet in those days…but no one said anything, you mind your own business in the South.

When I started writing “Stories for Joshua” I made sure that the kids in that family had parents who loved them and cared for them. They also taught “Life Lessons” so they weren’t pushovers, but they were fair and loving as they taught their three children in the stories.

I had a respect for God as a child. We went to Sunday School and Church, except for Daddy. However, I really didn’t know God until later or have a real connection with Him at that time. In my stories I made sure that Joshua and his siblings were all connected with God from an early age.