My Daddy was the first man I was in love with!! I was the first born child and was probably the most spoiled of the three girls. My Daddy took me everywhere with him....hardware store, grocery store, movies, football games--you name it, I was there with him. More important than anything, however, my Daddy (along with Mama) took me to church. He sat with me while Mama sang in the choir. I can still hear my Daddy's voice as he sang those old hymns. Daddy was not a little man; he was over six feet tall and weighed over 300 pounds. I remember his hands....how large they were and how they were callused from working as a pipefitter for over 45 years for Texaco. Just prior to retiring from Texaco Daddy taught a pipefitters course at Lamar University (for someone who did not have a college degree this was very impressive). Daddy's gardens were amazing. Our house was situated on two lots. Daddy used the extra lot to garden....and the lot was full of wonderful homegrown vegetables. People would stop to see his okra or corn or huge tomatoes. My Daddy worked hard to provide for us. He taught me the value of working hard. He had very high work standards....if you work for someone, work for them!! Don't be lazy and expect the pay anyway. I am very thankful for the example Daddy was for me. He loved me and I knew it. He told me he loved me every day. He showed me he loved me every day. In fact, the last words he said to me on the night that he died was, "I love you baby." Thank you, Lord, for my Daddy, and the gentle man that he was. He was the example I used when I was looking for a husband.
My Mama was quite a lady. She was born into a farming family. Her Dad and many generations before her were wheat farmers in the panhandle of Texas. My Mama knew how to work. She grew up that way. Her mother passed away when my Mama was just 8 years old. She had a younger brother and sister. They lived near her Dad's parents so Mama was with them more than she was at home. She learned to cook for large numbers of people when she was just a child because she cooked for the farm hands. Mama learned the importance of working together to achieve a goal. She learned how to care for people, which she did all her life. Mama was a WWII bride. She left the panhandle and moved to southeast Texas when Daddy was discharged. She had a new baby, new home and new in-laws to deal with. In her usual manner, she took charge and everything was great!! Mama was in her early 20's when she came to know the Lord as her personal Savior. She joined Trinity Baptist Church and became a very important member of the flock. She taught 7-year-old primaries for 30 years. When meals were to be prepared for the church, my Mama was the one who did it (along with Lillie Hyatt and Kinnie Lee Woods). Mama was appointed the Children's Coordinator and directed Children's Church and Parent's Day Out. In the late 1960's Mama had her own television program for children....every Wednesday at noon....first for 15 minutes and then it was expanded to 30 minutes. The men who ran the sound and lights and cameras told her that they learned more about Jesus during those times than they had in all their lives. She told Bible stories, did handcrafts and sang with the children via the television. In the late 1950's Mama started going to the black churches in the area during summer months and taught Vacation Bible School to the children. She taught the ladies of the churches how to do Vacation Bible School. I would go with Mama every day and learned how to lead and teach and love everyone. After she was 60-years-old Mama was stricken with ovarian cancer, had a quadruple by-pass surgery, developed diabetes, had a broken shoulder, and numerous eye surgeries. Through it all she praised the Lord and thanked Him for giving her another day of life. Mama lived with my family the last 6-1/2 years of her life. This was not something she really wanted to do. She was always very independent and now she had to depend on my family for assistance. Although her eyes were very bad, Mama read her Bible every day. She kept it by her side. She had a prayer list and would pray every day for the people on that list. One of the many strokes she had left her voice very weak. Mama loved to sing and was very good at it. I can remember the Sunday at Highland Terrace Baptist Church when she tried to sing again and it worked!! The song was "Amazing Grace" and she sang as loud as she could. She looked at us and said, "I can sing again!!" I am thankful that Mama came to live with my family. Don't get me wrong, it was not always smooth and easy; but, I would do it over and over again. You see, I learned a lot more from Mama during those years. I learned to praise the Lord through disappointments and pain and I am thankful that God gave me that time with Mama. I am thankful that my children were able to be with their MawMaw the way the other grandchildren were not. They learned so much from her....to serve the Lord by serving others, to love people whether they are "good" or not, to strive to be all that they could be. You should have seen Mama the day she died. An angel came and took her home and peace could be seen on her face once again.
Thank you, Lord, for my wonderful parents. I am who I am today because of their love, their care, their guidance, their example and most important, they taught me Who You are and they taught me to love You!
I have MANY more reasons to be thankful, but that will be another day's post.
2 comments:
Her own TV show? How fun. I didn't know your dad, but Mrs. D was sure an amazing woman =)
I miss Mawmaw. She truly did touch many lives.
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