When I was a young girl I was told to go to the front  yard and pick out a hickory stick.  Mama would say it had better be a good one.  You did not want to pick one that would break because she would just go get another one.  Times were different back then.  Parents had control over what their children did.  I use to think that being corrected for something wrong was a stupid thing.  I do admit that in some cases I felt it was undeserved.  But when I look at the youth of today I feel as though I should be thankful that I was made to respect my mother's authority.  I had respect for teachers, preachers, neighbors, friends, and co-workers.  I received respect because I  obeyed rules,  even when I might not agree with the concept.  I have kept my mouth shut at work when most people would have gone berserk,  but it is because of the lessons I learned about authority.  My little girl is just the opposite,  she is so opinionated,  that I worry that she will ever hold a job.

My dad taught me a lot.  Mom was the boss and he was a humble man,  and I respected him.   I thought about him when a song came out about being  strong enough to bend.  Living in WVA I saw a lot of trees.  I saw them weather many storms.  I finally knew what I saw in my dad.  He never felt the need to be right.  He just knew he was right and nothing else mattered.  Now I know that you can not make a person change their mind.  So I learned that as long as I know I AM RIGHT it is not neccessary to argue a point.  Now I just laugh under my breath and say  ok,  and let them think  they know something they don't.  Like a tree in the forrest I want to  stand tall for the world to see,  but when the storms of life come I want to just bend with the hard times so that I will still be standing tall tomorrow.