Stories

Told by Rodgene (Embarrassed) 1941

I was nine or ten years old when our family was living in an apartment complex in Raleigh, NC. Daddy had this young Italian working for him, and I thought he was the best-looking man I had ever seen. One day I heard someone knocking at the door. Thinking it was a friend, I went skipping and singing, �Who�s that knocking at my door, who�s that knocking at my door?� When I opened the door, there stood that young man. He began to sing �Barnacle Bill the Sailor.� I was so embarrassed.

Told by Pearl (Steak Bone) 1948

When Dolores was dating, she had a boyfriend named T-Bone Williams and sometimes I would mistakenly call him Steak Bone. Years later, T-Bone became very rich selling trailers. He also was known for saying that his trailers were �solid as a dollar� on TV ads.

Told by Gene (Down the River) 1949

We had some Marine friends that would come to our house on their day off. There was Phil McDougall, George, and one we called little Phil. One day while at our house on Sunset Avenue little Phil had to use the bathroom. We forgot to tell him to watch the toilet because it would run over from time to time. Moments later we heard the toilet overrunning and someone yelling �Man overboard, Man overboard.� I went to the bathroom to stop the water and found little Phil standing on the tub rim singing �Row, row your boat gently down the stream.�   He was pretending to be rowing with the plumber�s friend.

Told by Pearl (Pit of Dead Dogs) 1916

Although I like pets, I always had a fear of them or rather a strange feeling when around animals. I think this is because when I was very young, some boys told me that they were going to throw me down into a ravine of dead dogs near our house in Roanoke, VA. I can still see the dead dogs. That still bothers me even today.

Told by Icky (Buzzard�s Nest) 1944

Daddy used to tell me that Pearl and he found me in a buzzard�s nest. When I was very young, I believed him.

Told by Rodgene (Dammed Yankee) 1950

When Dolores married Phil and moved to Michigan, Daddy would cry when he thought about it. After that Daddy always referred to Phil as that �Dammed Yankee,� even to Phil�s face.

Told by Daddy (The Head) 1911

When I was a little boy living in Goldsboro, NC, there was a terrible car wreck near our house. A man was decapitated. Some of my friends and I found the head before the police arrived. We wrapped it in burlap and buried it in my backyard. We hoped that the skin would rot away in a couple of months and we would have a skull. Later when we dug it up we only found a smelly rotting head. We buried it again and never went back to get it.

Told by Peggy (A Trip to Fort Jackson) 1965

Bobby Evans (Icky�s friend), Daddy, Pearl, Kathy, and I traveled to Fort Jackson, SC to visit Icky who was there for boot camp in 1965. Bobby drove his car and wanted to buy all the gas and pay his own expenses. However, Daddy insisted that he would pay for everything. He also told Bobby that he was on the wrong road all the way down. This was Daddy�s last out of state trip and he was still in good heath.   Later Bobby would joke that he had to stop the car several times on the way home to let the tears out. We all cried when we left Icky at Fort Jackson.

Told by Icky (The White Hair) 1955

My best friend, Vester Jackson, and I heard that there was an old cemetery out in the country where you could see a dead body in a grave. So one day we decided to go there and see for ourselves. There it was, a concrete and brick tomb. One corner was missing and through it you could actually see a dead body. It was a man who was buried seventy-five years earlier. Although the coffin had rotted away, you could still see a skeleton dressed in a suit with long white hair. Vester poked the head with a long stick causing the skull to roll to one side. Before we could get it back in the right position, someone yelled at us to get out of there. When we got back home, Pearl made lunch for us. While we were eating, I noticed Vester had a long white hair on his shirt. We didn�t enjoy eating lunch after that.

Told by Mandola and Rodgene (The Toy Gun) 1945

It was in the early 40s when Pearl faced a burglar with a toy gun and saved the family from an unknown fate. We were living on a country road just outside of Raleigh, NC. It was night and Daddy was working late in the city. All of us kids had gone to bed. Pearl and Grandma were in the kitchen talking. Then Gene heard someone outside cutting the window screen to the girls� bedroom. She kept the bedroom light off, crawled on the floor, and looked out the window. To her horror, she saw a large black man with a knife. She quickly told Dail and Mandola what was happening. They hurriedly got Charles and Icky out of bed and ran to the kitchen to tell Pearl. Pearl grabbed a toy gun and ran to the bedroom. Grandma was hard of hearing and was confused about what was going on and followed Pearl to the bedroom. Pearl walked over to the window, pulled the shade up, and yelled �Get away from the window, I have a gun!� Grandma, still not knowing what was happening, turned on the light and said, �Pearl, what are you doing with a toy gun?�   This could have been the turning point of our lives; however, the man either didn�t hear Grandma or it could have been our dog that chased after the man as he ran away.

Told by Mandola and Gene (Nor-Nay) 1950

It used to make us mad when Charles and Icky would answer us by saying �Nor-nay� to every question that we asked back when they were young. I think that this stupid response came from �The Little Rascal� shows.

Told by Charles (Harry Lee) 1970

When we lived on Sunset Avenue there was a kid next door named Harry Lee Stokes. Because he had a problem talking, he used to say �DiDoDome� when he wanted to say �I going home.� Icky and I quickly started using �DiDoDome� to worry Gene and Mandola. Harry, years later, was killed during a drug sale somewhere in Virginia.

Told by Harold (Wrong Room) 1964

While painting our house in Williamston, NC, Daddy was working in one room when he gave out of paint. He went outside for another gallon of paint. When he returned, he went to the wrong room. Before he realized he was in the wrong room, he had painted part of a wall. Although I joked and laughed with him about this, I knew that his health was beginning to decline. This made me very sad because he was a professional skilled painter who provided a good living for his family.

Told by Daddy (Dead Men Don�t Rock) 1911

When I was young we had black tenants living on our farm. If you know anything about blacks, you know that they would not bury a person until weeks later after the death. So when one did die on our farm, they lay him in a coffin and displayed the body in one of the tenant houses.   About a week later, some friends and I sneaked up to the house one night to look at the body. No one was there, so went inside, pulled the body from the coffin, and placed it in a rocking chair. We tied one end of a string to the chair and stuck the other end out the window. To make things worse, we placed a half eaten potato in the man�s hands. We then waited outside the window until some of the blacks came back. When they turned on the lights, we began pulling the string. The chair began to rock and the blacks began to yell.

Told by Icky (Little Shit) 1946

When I was young, Dail used to call me �Little Shit�. After I grew up, she would always ask me did I remember her saying that. I did and I wish I could hear her say it again.

Told by Charles (Mineral Water) 1912

Daddy, when he was a young boy, would ride his bike from Goldsboro, NC to a small town called Seven Springs to get mineral water. The water, from an artesian well, was well known in Eastern North Carolina and thought to have health benefits. When he got home he would then pour the water into small mason jars, which he sold to waiting customers. After a while, the trips to Seven Springs and back soon became exhausting. Daddy resolved this problem by filling the jars with tap water.

Told by Gene (Jesus) 1970

Pam was around three years old when she heard someone knocking at the front door. She knew that she had been told never to open the front door by herself but decided to do it anyway. After opening the door, she then ran to the kitchen where Pearl and I were sitting. At first she didn�t say anything but stood there with her eyes wide open. She finally yelled, �Someone at the door looking Buddy, I think it�s Jesus!� I went to the front door not knowing what to expect but was relieved to find one of Buddy�s friends. He was a hippy.


Told by Peggy (Phil�s Airplane) 1960

I once heard, and I�m not sure I have it right, that big Phil built an airplane in the living room. When he finished it, he realized that he couldn�t get it out the door. He ended up tearing down one wall so he could move the airplane outside.

Told by Icky (To Get His Baby Girl)

When Mandola married Jake and ran off to Elizabeth City, Daddy was furious. The next day Daddy got Harold to drive Pearl, him, and me to Elizabeth City to get his baby girl. I had to go because there was no one to watch me. That was Mandola�s usual task. When we got there, Daddy told Jake to take me somewhere so that they could talk to Mandola. We went down to the river to swim. I remember Jake pointing out the blimp hanger across the river. When we returned to the house, I was expecting Mandola to come home with us. However, she didn�t get into the car, and we left. I enjoyed being with Jake that day, but I often wonder what was said while Jake and I were gone.

Told by Rodgene (A Puzzle Death Notice)

Lucille was reading an old death notice about my great grandfather. I noticed that he and my great grandmother did not have the same home address. I asked Lucille if they were divorced. She said, �No, they just couldn�t live with each other. They still would visit each other on holidays and have Sunday dinner together.�

Told by Rodgene and Mandola (Herman) 1950

There used to be a ghost, whom we named Herman, living in our house on Sunset Avenue. Herman made his presence known by misplacing things such as hairbrushes, combs, or any of our personal items. However, not being a mischievous spirit, he would let us find the missing items only after we asked him to return it.

Told by Icky (Herman makes an Appearance) 1956

I remember Herman�s antics as a young boy when the front door would open all by itself and for no reason. Although we would blame Herman, I never really believed that we had a poltergeist in our house. My attitude about Herman quickly changed one night when I was in high school. Something woke me up by shaking my bed.   I sat up and looked around. Not seeing anyone, I began to feel a little bit apprehensive. Then I saw it: standing in the hallway was a manifestation-- what could only be Herman. It was in the shape of a human but was smoky in appearance. With goose bumps all over my body, I turned on the lights. Herman was gone, so I walked slowly to the hallway. There I saw that the floor oil-burning stove was glowing red-hot. The thermostat had malfunctioned. If I had not turned it down, there could have been a fire. It has been forty-three years since that night, and I still believe Herman saved my family from a certain tragedy.

Told by Rodgene (A Call for Help) 1935

Our Aunt Shirley was confined to a wheelchair by a crippling disease that finally took her life in 1964. As a young girl in the early 30s, she was still able to walk; however, the sickness was beginning to affect her.   One night we were sitting down for dinner when Daddy said, �Be quiet, I can hear Shirley calling for me!� No one else heard anything, but Daddy insisted she was calling him. He then got up, put his coat on, and went outside where it was cold and snowing. He later returned, carrying Shirley in his arms. She had fallen in the snow about two blocks from our house after leaving a church Christmas party. Someone was to bring her to our house after the party, but she decided to walk by herself. If Daddy had not mysteriously heard her calling him, she might have died that night.

Told by Rodgene (The Limousine) 1935

One day a big limousine stopped in front of our house. A chauffer stepped out with Shirley and came to the front door and knocked. We found out that she had fallen while walking home from school. The driver and his employer had given her a ride home. His employer didn�t get out of the limousine, and we never met him. Later Shirley began to receive a bottle of milk ever day and presents at Christmas. Years later the milk and presents stop coming. We believed that the man in the limousine must have died.

Told by Rodgene, Mandola, Icky and Peggy (Mama) 1979

Pearl used to tell us that when she dies she would try to contact us and let us know what it is like on the other side. We all laughed, thinking she was just joking with us and really didn�t want to consider her passing away. That dreaded day finally arrived, and there were several incidents that occurred that made us think about what Pearl told us.

The day of her funeral, Halloween day, was warm and sunny. Family and friends had gathered at the gravesite for the burial service. When the preacher began to pray, a dark cloud came in and blocked the sun, the temperature dropped, and the wind began to blow. Pearl�s coffin began to move, causing the preacher to pause for a moment. We looked in horror as the coffin rocked back and forth three times. Then the sun came back out. The winds stopped. It was warm and sunny again. No one talked about this until later.

That night at home, we were sitting at the kitchen table. The phone rang three times. It wasn�t a normal ring but that of a bad connection. When we answered the phone, no one was there.

These could have been a coincident or maybe something else. We will never know until we each crossover.

Told by Icky and Peggy (T-H-E) 1976

After getting our house ready for Halloween, Peggy told me to get our black cat, T-H-E, in the house because it was getting dark outside. We had heard that college students would sometimes steal black cats during Halloween. I went outside, looked around, and called out �T-H-E�. When he didn�t show up, I began to worry. Then I saw a movement in the bushes: it was a small black kitten. I went inside carrying the kitten and told Peggy that �T-H-E� was not here, but look what I did find instead.   We kept the kitten inside until we went to bed. The next morning we opened the front door and found T-H-E sitting on the steps, but the small kitten was gone. Since then, we often wonder if some type of witchcraft was involved. Had T-H-E been turned into a kitten that Halloween night in 1967?


Told by Gene (Queen of the Jungle) 1938

When we were very young, Dolores and I considered Mandola as a baby, and we didn�t like her following us. Everywhere we went, she was not far behind. One day we placed her on a low hanging tree limb and told her she was the queen of the forest. As queen, she should sit there until we returned. Mandola, liking her new position, sat on the limb most of the day. On our return, we found her patiently waiting for us.

Told by Icky (The Plane) 1951

My best friend, Vester, and I decided to build a plane and fly it off the roof of his parents� house. We found all the building materials that we needed at a local furniture store trash bin. After dragging the cardboard boxes and wood strips to Vester�s house, we were ready to start construction. About then, Charles showed up and wanted to know what we were doing. After hearing our stupid plans, he quickly confiscated our cardboard and wood and carried it home. Charles used this material to build a very realistic looking plane, not to fly but to play in.

Told by Icky (The Porpoise?) 1959

Charles and I were swimming at Atlantic beach when we spotted what we thought was a porpoise about 100 feet away. We tried to wade out to it, but the water became too deep. After awhile, Charles decided to go back to the beach, but I stayed to watch the porpoise. I was in water up to my shoulders, but I could still see the porpoise�s fin as it kept getting closer. Finally it was about 10 feet away from me, and I could see it in very horrifying detail. It was a shark, about nine feet long! I turned around and started swimming and didn�t look back until I reached the shore. A woman started fussing me out and saying that she had been yelling at me for the past 20 minutes that a shark was stalking me. The recent shark attacks in 2001 have made me realize how lucky Charles and I were during that summer of 1959.

Told by Rodgene (The Old Pecan Tree) 1949

There used to be a large old pecan tree across from our house on Sunset Avenue. One day a friend of the family, Bobby Barnhill, was walking down the street in front of our house when a bolt of lightning stuck the tree. He was knocked to the ground but was not hurt. Icky told me later that he was sitting in the living room when this happened and felt a tingle when the tree was struck. Fortunately, no one was killed or injured since this tree was a favorite play area for the neighborhood kids.

Told by Icky (The Red Truck) 1954

It was a very hot summer back in 1954 when a friend of mine, Jimmy Churchill, invited Vester Jackson and me down to his aunt�s cottage on the Pamlico River. When we got down to the river, we found an old boat that was covered with sand by a hurricane the previous year. We spent most on the morning trying to dig it out so we could go boating. Before we could finish, Jimmy�s aunt came up and said that she had noticed a red pickup truck down the road. It had been there for about three days and she wanted us to go and check it out. None of us had a driver�s license, but that was �OK.� We were six miles from the main road, and the truck was on a dirt road that was not well traveled. Vester, being the oldest, drove Jimmy�s aunt�s car to where the red truck was parked. We drove slowly by looking for anything unusual. We couldn�t see anyone but noticed the passenger door was open. We then turned around and stopped about 20 yards away. We got out of the car and walked cautiously toward the truck. We began to smell dead fish and saw flies all around the truck. As we got closer, the smell became stronger. Then we looked in the cab. There was a dead man. We quickly got back in the car and drove to an old county store on the main road. We ran inside and told the storeowner what we had found. He called the local sheriff�s office and told us to wait until the sheriff arrived. This worried us because we didn�t have a driver�s license and now we might be involved in a murder. When the sheriff arrived, he told us to drive to where the body was and he would follow. After we reached the red truck, we parked about a hundred feet away so we couldn�t smell the stench. A few moments later the coroner arrived. We could see him and the sheriff checking out the body. Finally the sheriff walked toward us. Were we in trouble? To our relief, he said that the dead man apparently died of a heart attack about three days ago and we could leave. Later on, we all agreed that finding a dead man was bad enough, but the worst part was finding a dead man that had been dead for three days in the hot sun.

Told by Icky (Bedtime Stories) 1947

It has been about 55 years since Gene used to tell Charles and me bedtime stories. Although I have since forgotten what the stories were about, I still can clearly remember how much Charles and I enjoyed them.

Recently, Gene told me that the stories were about a poor colored family that lived out in the county a long time ago.

Told by Rodgene (I want to be Pretty) 1937

Grandmother was a very straightlaced woman. She wanted her family to appear proper and respectful to others, almost Victorian. One day when I was young, she was playing cards in the den with three of her girlfriends. I was in the next room listening to their conversations. They were talking about her son, Charles Lucas. He had divorced his first wife and married Adie, whom they referred to as a floozy. I thought floozy must mean that someone was beautiful. She had blond hair and used lots of makeup. She also would wear a leopard fur coat and hat. She looked like a movie star to me. When I walked into the den, one of the women asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up. To Grandmother�s dismay, I quickly replied, �A floozy, I want to be pretty like Adie!�

Told by Gene (First day of School) 1937

We had a dog, a German Shepard, that very protective of my sisters and me. He would get extremely upset if we would leave the yard and wouldn�t be satisfied until we returned. I remember my first day of school. Dail walked me to school, which were only a few blocks from our house. All the way our dog kept trying to drag both of us back. By the time we got to school, our sweaters were stretched and torn. Finally, I got to my classroom and sat down. When I looked up, I saw my dog walk in and sit down beside my desk. My teacher came over to me and asked was that my dog? I said �no.� She then reached out to get him, but my dog began to growl. She left the room and returned with Dail. My teacher knew that he was our dog and told Dail to take him back home. Several years later, Uncle Jim accidentally killed him.

Told by Peggy (Donald Duck) 1972

One Thanksgiving on Sunset Avenue, Pearl decided to serve duck instead of turkey. The duck was wrapped in plastic with a large picture of Donald Duck. When the kids saw the picture, including me, we all began crying and saying Donald Duck was dead. At dinner, very few servings of the duck were eaten. None of the kids ate any.

Told by Peggy (Beat the Drums) 1971

I used to love to hear Pam sing, � Salvation Army Knows How to Beat the Drums.�

Told by Icky (The Toy Truck) 1970

One Christmas on Harvey Drive, I gave little Roger a toy truck. It had eight wheels and ran off a battery motor. It would climb over any obstacle because of the eight wheel drive. Later on, I heard that Roger used Becky�s head as an obstacle. It took Mandola several minutes to untangle the truck wheels from Beck�s long black hair. I think Beck�s hair was cut to get the truck loose.

Told by Mandola (Camel Cigarettes) 1949

Daddy did not like to see women smoke, especially us. However, we did, and when we saw him coming home, we would quickly hide them. We thought that we cleaver and could easy keep a secret from him. One day Daddy came over to me and said, �Mandola, give me one of your Camels, I am out of cigarettes.� I was flabbergasted but handed him my pack of Camel cigarettes. I since realized that Daddy knew what was going on in his own house, but I still wonder how he knew what type of cigarettes that I smoked.

Told by Peggy (No Kids to Play With) 1984

Icky, Laura, and I were visiting Gene when she was living in Ayden. Laura was young and became bored because there were no kids to play with. She began to fuss and wanted to go home. I said �you are lucky that Debbie�s not here, she would slap you all the way to Winterville�.   Laura looked at me and said, �you think she could slap me all the way home?�

Told by Peggy (Teapot Surprise) 1972

One Christmas Eve on Harvey Drive, Pearl said that she had gotten every thing she wanted except a whistling teapot. I leaned over and whispered to Icky, �Go out to the car and get the teapot from the cooking set that my parents gave us.� Icky returned and gave the teapot to Pearl and said, �This should make your Christmas because it whistles.� Years later Icky and I still agree that the teapot was one present we got pleasure out of because it made Pearl happy.

Told by Peggy (The Key)

Kathy had not been married very long when she called home to get someone to pick her up from Pitt Plaza. She couldn�t find her car keys and was extremely upset. When she got home, I asked her to take everything out of her purse and make sure the keys were not there. Kathy, still upset, said they�re not there but that I could look if I wanted to. I took the purse and found the keys in about three seconds. Kathy, looking surprised, asked how in the world did I find them? I told her the keys had fallen between the purse lining and I felt them as soon as I put my hands in the purse.

Told by Peggy (Tea set for Christmas) 1973

It was Sunday, Christmas Eve, and all the stores were closed.   Out of the blue, little Pam told Gene she wanted a tea set for Christmas. Gene told Icky and me what Pam had said and she didn�t know what to do. Pam had never expressed a desire to have a tea set. We told her we would ride around and try to find an open store. After a while, we decided to go to Ayden. There we found an old store on Main Street still open. To our luck, they had one tea set in stock, thus making everyone happy.

Told by Icky (Wild Indians) 1973

One summer Peggy and I drove Pearl and Ricky up to the mountains. We stopped at Chimney Rock and picnicked. Afterwards, Ricky and I hiked up a steep trail to the top of a 600-foot waterfall. The walk was hot, so Ricky took off his coat. When we returned, Pearl asked where was Ricky�s coat? The thought of going back up the mountain to find his coat was not promising. So we decided to tell Gene when we got home that wild Indians attacked us and stole Ricky�s coat. It didn�t work.

Told by Icky (The Broken Bed) 1948

When we lived on Sunset Avenue, Daddy got Charles and me a bunk bed. Being young we saw every thing as a toy that should be played with. The bunk bed was no exception. To us, it was a pirate ship. The ladder to the top bunk was a ladder to the crow�s net. One night while playing rough, we broke the ladder. Hoping not to get into trouble, we pieced it back together. The next day Pearl came into our room to make the beds. When she climbed up the ladder, it came apart. She fell to the floor and broke her arm. It took sometime before Charles and I got enough nerve to tell Pearl and Daddy what we had done. Surprisingly, we were not disciplined. Rarely did Charles and I receive any punishment from Pearl or Daddy. However, this was one time we should have been taken out to the woodpile.

Told by Charles (The Tunnel) 1972

I don�t know why but Chuck and Bill got in their heads that they needed a short cut to each other�s rooms. They tore a hole in the sheet rock between the two rooms and were able to crawl from one room to the next. I wonder where they got these crazy ideas.

Told by Lucille (Welcome Home) 1944

I was living out west with Johnny while he was in pilot training. After he received his pilot�s license and before being sent to the war in the Pacific, he brought me back to Raleigh. When I visited Pearl , the first person I saw was Icky. He came running through the living room, stopped when he saw me, and yelled, �Lucille, tell Charles to stop chasing me,� then kept running. I thought this was astonishing since he was only four years old and had not seen me in two years.

Told by Gene (Hawaii) 1941

When I was young, we used to get Pearl to dance for us. She would let her long black hair down, put on a grass skirt, and do the hula dance. She was a good dancer and was able to move her hips just like a real hula dancer. When she stopped, we would beg her to do it one more time.

Told by Gene (Do You Remember)

Do you remember Pearl�s apple dumplings, applejacks, home made rolls, lemon pies, and puff wheat balls? Although she and Daddy didn�t have a lot of money, they were always able to provide us kids with great meals.

Told by Gene (Old Christmas) 1947

Daddy used to tell us about a Christmas he would never forget. He was young but still could remember his parents decorating a holly tree instead of the traditional fir tree. To him, that was Christmas. He now wanted to share this experience with us and bring back an old Christmas that he enjoyed as a child. Each year he would say that he was going to buy a holly tree, but we always talked him into buying a fir tree. Then one Christmas, without saying anything, he brought home a holly tree. After it was decorated, it turned out be beautiful. Now we all could remember a Christmas like Daddy had so many years ago.

Told by Icky (Where is Mandola?) 1947

Pearl had gone to town and left Mandola to watch Charles and me. Since we were at the park playing, she decided to visit Peggy Barnhill who lived down the street. If anything went wrong, we should be able to find her. After getting tired of playing, Charles and I decided to return home with about six of the neighborhood kids. No one was there, so we did what normal kids would do and had a good time. I went back to one of the bedrooms and used the bed as a trampoline. I think I bounced about tree times before hitting my head on the wood at the foot of the bed. It must have been a loud noise because all the kids came running into the room. They took one look at me and started yelling, �find Mandola!� Everyone began panicking because the back of my head was bleeding. Charles told me to stay there and he would find Mandola. They all then ran out the front door and headed for the Shackelford�s house. I didn�t want to be left behind, so I followed just behind them. When they found out Mandola wasn�t there, they headed for the Pugh�s house, then to the Barnhill�s house. This must have been some sight to see, a bunch of kids running and yelling �Mandola, Mandola� and a smaller kid, running not far behind, crying with blood dripping from his head.

I had to go the doctor to get my head sewed up. After that, Mandola claimed that every time Pearl was gone, I ended up breaking my head open. I think she overstated it; it was only two other times.

Told by Icky (Did You Know?)

Daddy�s co-workers called him Holly.

Vester Jackson changed my nickname from Itsy to Icky.

Charles used to be called Gus.

Kathy liked the color purple.

Becky loves bears and lighthouses. She said she had two fancy weddings but found happiness with the third�a small wedding at the courthouse.

Gene enjoys puzzles and solitaire.

Ricky and Chuck learned serious cussing from construction workers. Ricky practiced the �new words� when he answered the door, much to everyone�s dismay.

Told by Charles (The Perfect Christmas Tree) 1944

One year Daddy, jokingly, told Icky and me that he couldn�t afford to buy a Christmas tree and we should look for one in the woods. Believing him, Icky and I set out for the woods near our house to find one.   After walking around for several hours, we finally found what we thought was the perfect tree. Yes, it was a fir tree all right, but thinking about it now, it was bent and straggly looking. However, that day we were sure that we had found a prized Christmas tree. We only had a toy ax and saw, but we were determined to cut it down and proudly show it to Daddy. We chopped and sawed for the longest time, but the tree wouldn�t fall. It was cold and the sky was filled with dark gray clouds. I told Icky that we should hurry because it was getting dark and might snow. Then we heard the tree crack. We gave it a few more whacks and the tree fell. One thing I didn�t count on was that the tree would be so heavy and Icky too small to be much help in dragging it out of the woods. After dragging with all our might, over scrub trees and rocks, we finally made it back home.   At that time, Daddy drove up the driveway with a tree tied to the top of his 1938 Ford. By now we were ready to give up our prized tree, which at this point had broken limbs and looked very pitiful. Daddy looked at our tree and realized how much trouble Icky and I went through and decided to use it as the family Christmas tree. I don�t know what happened to the tree Daddy brought home, but that Christmas Daddy made us feel very special.