UMGC names Limestone students to dean's list

Jun. 8—everywhere. They raised and foraged nearly every bite they ate.

He raised broom straw and made brooms by hand during the winter — a lost art, I'm quite sure — for bartering. His son owned the only grist mill in the area, so everyone took their shelled white corn to Willard to be ground into cornmeal.

They gave land to their children to build houses, raise gardens and families. At least seven of their children and several grandchildren remained on the homestead. They were faithful members of the Old Regular Baptist Church, baptized in May 1921.

As a farmer, he was keenly aware of and predicted the weather with accuracy. He was a diviner and witched for the well at my birthplace, which is still in use today.

One of the blessings of being the oldest sibling is you have wonderful memories that younger siblings have only seen photos of, yet I have no recollection of photos of them in younger days.

Memories of Grampaw's wake remain. His was the first corpse I'd seen in restful repose. The outdoor display of his satin-lined casket was beautiful and covered with a sheet of glass, revealing his peaceful face. We followed the hearse leading the path to the mouth of the holler, about a mile, to the cemetery on land they had donated originally as a cemetery and for summer religious services and reunions. The last time I visited there, it was discovered I was related to every single one buried there, and it is one big cemetery.

Good men like Grampaw weren't hard to find back then. Images of him as a teenage husband and father intrigue me still.