Keep Talking

When we were in Round Mountain, Arkansas during a revival our family was staying in a small, two-bedroom house. 

For some reason when we went to bed one night everything seemed funny and we girls kept giggling.  Dad would call for us to quieten down, which we would for a few seconds then we were giggling again. 

Dad told us again to quieten down . We tried so hard but sometimes that makes everything funnier. So Juanetta and I giggled more. 

Suddenly Dad said, "I want the ones who are talking and giggling to go to the living room." He met us there and set two kitchen chairs facing each other in the center of the room. Then he said, "For the next hour I better not hear you two stop talking or I will paddle you." 

Juanetta and I started talking. It isn't easy to think up things to talk about when you are required to. Talking non-stop makes you very thirsty too. 

We had been talking for a while when one of us said that we needed a drink. We started trying to figure out a way to get a soda without being caught. And we finally came up with a plan.

While Juanetta kept sitting and talking to herself I slipped into the kitchen and got sodas from the fridge. Then I slipped quietly back into the living room and we continued talking while we drank our soda. 

By the time our hour was up Juanetta and I were talked out and ready to sleep. 

Been to the Bar?

Six George girls were meeting at a Marriott in Memphis to celebrate a major birthday. I can't recall whose birthday it was, but I think it was,  Rhonda's, and as everyone knows, when and where we get together, the fun begins. 

In quick succession Deb pulled to the door of the hotel in her Riviera for the bellhop to unload her Macy's luggage,  Rhonda pulled up in her Cadillac for the bellhop to unload her Louis Vuitton luggage and  Juanetta pulled up in her Yukon so he could unload her Samsonite. (Not sure that was the names on their luggage, just painting the picture)

By the time their luggage was on the bellmans cart I had pulled up and was  ready to unload. For some strange reason the bell hop acted a little taken aback when I handed him a cooler with sodas, bologna and mustard, my dresses hanging in a lawn trash bag and other items in WalMart bags.

After leaving our luggage in our rooms and going out for dinner we got back on the elevator to return to our rooms. Someone pushed the button, the door closed and hesitated then opened again. No one was there. Someone pushed the button again, the door closed, hesitated then opened a second time. Still no one there. We were all laughing and pretending to motion someone in.

The third time the elevator door closed, hesitated and opened, Deb pretended to greet someone and started dancing with them. As she started dancing, her foot slid off of her slides, she fell, and there was a domino effect, as Deb bumped Angela then she bumped me. 

Of course we were all cracking up over Deb's mishap so much that we had forgotten the elevator door. Amid the hilarity Deb, Angela and I were struggling to get off the floor while laughing uncontrollably and Rhonda, Juanetta and Sherlyn were bent double from laughing so hard, the door opened again. 

When the door opened, two guys got on the elevator and observed the scene for only a moment when one said, "Looks like someone beat us to the bar."

Cannibal Attack

When we were ages three, five, six and eight, Deb, Rhonda, Sherlyn and I went with some friends to a community church for an afternoon of singing and dinner-on-the-ground. 

As the singing was going on we girls decided we were thirsty, and got permission to go to the old pump for a drink of water. We would take turns pumping the handle while the others used a cup or cupped our hands to catch the water. 

We were so intent on getting a drink that we didn't notice Red joining us at the pump, at least that was the name people in that community called him. 

Red was a large man with reddish hair, who was walking the roads barefoot every time we went through that community. His feet must have been a size eighteen. As far as I know Red didn't talk and seemed to have the mentality of a young child. 

Before we realized that Red was at the pump with us he grabbed my forearm with both of his hands and started smelling of it. Why he was smelling of my arm, I don't know, but he did it in the same way a hungry boy would smell of a chicken leg before devouring it. 

I started to yank my arm away and run, but quickly thought that Red might get one of my little sisters if I did. So thinking quickly, I yelled at them, "Run!" and as they ran toward the church I yanked my arm free and sprinted in behind them. 

Deb, Rhonda, Sherlyn and I were breathless as we entered the church. We had just made a mad dash to safety from a possible cannibal attack and were happy to have all our extremities intact. 

Cough Syrup

AB came home from work one day with a sore throat, fever and a bad cough. After dinner and a shower he went straight to bed and asked if I would bring him the cough syrup. 

I walked into the bathroom and found the bottle of cough syrup in the cabinet. Somehow the label had been torn off, but  I gave it to him anyway. 

AB never used a spoon to measure his medicine, he would just turn it up and drink. He swigged the cough syrup so quickly it took a second for him to realize that it was not cough syrup. While sputtering and making a terrible face he told me that I had given him black draught. 

When we told Dad about the mix-up he said, "It will probably help AB's cough anyway, because he will be afraid to cough."

Jesus of the Scars

If we have never sought, we seek Thee now;

Thine eyes burn through the dark, our only stars;

We must have sight of thorn-pricks on Thy brow;

We must have Thee, O Jesus of the Scars.

The heavens frighten us; they are too calm;

In all the universe we have no place.

Our wounds are hurting us; where is the balm?

Lord Jesus, by Thy Scars, we claim Thy grace.

If, when the doors are shut, Thou drawest near,

Only reveal those hands, that side of Thine;

We know to-day what wounds are, have no fear,

Show us Thy Scars, we know the countersign.

The other gods were strong; but Thou wast weak;

They rode, but Thou didst stumble to a throne;

But to our wounds only God’s wounds speak;

And not a god has wounds, but Thou alone.

Written by Edward Shillito at the end of the First World War when he saw so many wounded coming home.

Stick-em-up

One day after eating lunch in the staff dining room at NWCX  I picked up my glass of tea and walked back into the kitchen. There were about fifteen-hundred men incarcerated there and probably fifty of the prisoners were employed in the kitchen. 

Where my two-way radio rode on my right hip the short antennae was irritating where it hit my ribs. The other correctional staff knew how to tuck its tip into a small ring on the side of the radio. Being a new employee, I was thankful for any tips. 

At corrections academy we were taught that you never let down your guard when working in a prison. And as  a new employee, my nerves were on constant alert whether I was supervising the cleaning, organizing and rotating of stockrooms, freezers, or coolers, the unloading of trucks, doing the inventory or placing orders. 

With my tea in hand the kitchen door swung shut behind me as I strode toward the stockrooms. Someone called my name and when turning to reply my antennae came loose and sharply popped me in the back. With tea still in hand my arm instantly shot up and the tea was tossed heavenward and drenched my head. Laughter erupted from every side at the spectacle I made of myself that day. 

Pepper Spray

There has never been a lack of entertainment when the George family gets together. Whether our time is spent in new adventures, pulling pranks, working together for a specific cause or reminiscing over the past we always enjoy those times. One such time comes to mind.

Years ago we were in Raleigh, Illinois for Thanksgiving with Ron and Juanetta  when we needed to pick up more supplies for cooking dinner. Six of us girls piled into the cab of my pickup on that cold morning and started to town. 

As we rode into town that wintery day Angela opened my glove compartment and saw a canister of pepper spray. Thinking she had thought of a fun prank she held it up and sprayed... Instantly the cab was filled with blind, weeping, coughing, laughing girls with faces burning. I quickly pulled off the road and we all bailed out and staggered around the side of the road as we tried to catch our breath. We may have heard how bad pepper spray can feel, but some people have to learn from experience. 

Trust?

"If you trust God, He will get you out of all your troubles."

"If you live for God, He will make everything in your life right." 

"Trust God and your troubles will be over." 

"If you trust God, He will do what you ask." 

We have heard these statements and many others like them through the years.  But do they mislead ones who don't know God, or for that matter, even some who do know Him?

How often do new Christians come to God and because of what we have told them, they think they won't have heartache, loss and trouble?

 How many times have the new Christians walked away from God because their new life wasn't trouble-free like we made them think it would be?

  How often do we think, that because we believe, like the three Hebrew children did, that "God is able to deliver us out of the fiery furnace," that alone is trust? 

Does trust not go farther than knowing He can?

When we were children we believed our Dad was Superman and that he could do anything. And though our earthly Dad's powers were limited we trusted him to either get us out of bad situations or help us through them,  and he helped us through many. Our Heavenly Father's powers are not limited by fleshly limitations, He really can do anything. But does knowing that mean that I trust Him?

If you recall the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, they told the king, "Our God is able to deliver us from the furnace. But if He doesn't, we will trust Him anyway." They had faith that God could, and trusted that if He didn't keep them from the furnace He would have still delivered them. Their faith became trust when knowing that He could, yet not knowing that He would, it remained steadfast. 

When we were children we dreamed of the day we would grow up and be big and strong  like our Dad. That couldn't be achieved by him giving us candy every time we asked for it. Nor could we grow into strong adults by being allowed to skip the broccoli or other vegetables that didn't taste good to a child. We had to eat the yucky tasting ones as well as the yummy ones to grow up healthy. And our spiritual life is much the same. 

The  main goal in our spiritual life is to grow up big and strong like Jesus. But we often want to achieve that by eating candy, Krispy Kreme and ice cream and skipping our vegetables in a spiritual sense..... 

As a child when made to eat vegetables I didn't like,  I would gag, and pretend to eat them by putting them in my mouth then spitting them in the toilet.   Or some of my siblings spread the vegetables over a wider area of their plate until Dad agreed they could just eat half, then they raked them into a smaller area. If we continually avoid the healthy food that makes us stronger  our growth will be stunted. The same is true in our spiritual life.

God knows when the bad things will help me grow stronger, and at times may save me through them instead of from them. It is my greatest desire to grow to be like Him, even when His answers to my prayers are achieved through methods other than the ones I wish for. I pray for His grace and strength to help me trust Him through them all.... 

Lets Scare Them

We were staying in Ron and Juanetta's vacation home on Kentucky Lake for a few days.  There was an continual fun and good food as we talked, pranked, played games and ate. One night, after a great and tiring day we had all retired when some of us came up with a mischievous idea. 

Deb, Angela and I had sneaked quietly through the long walk-through closet between two bedrooms. We stood inside, waiting for the right moment to jump out and scare Juanetta, Sherlyn and Rhonda. 

We three girls stood, quietly chuckling, while listening to our sisters talk and giggle. But just as we decided to make our surprise entry, the other girls got quiet. 

We stood with our ears pressed to the door, listening impatiently for the conversation to continue, when the three of them burst through the closet door.  All six of us screamed in surprise and burst into laughter at our shocking encounter. 

The three girls, unknowing that we were coming to scare them, decided they would sneak through the closet to scare us. We were all surprised.... 

License to Kill

The lights had dimmed and the previews had begun as Paul and I walked into the theater to watch the newly released James Bond movie, "License to Kill." 

We paused for a moment and waited as we entered.  Then a flicker of light illuminated the theater and we saw two empty seats  near the front. Quietly and cautiously I led the way while carrying a bucket of popcorn and Paul followed with our large Dr. Pepper. 

One second we could see the seats and the next, the room was in total darkness. But confident we were at the right row, we stepped from the aisle and sat down. Only the seat I sat in was not empty.  I screamed and tossed the bucket of popcorn as I jumped up and knocked the Dr. Pepper from Paul's hands. 

Everyone around us enjoyed our mistake with the possible exception of the people that were covered in soda. 

Barn-Jumpers

Barn-Jumping:

We were visiting with some friends, the Gene England family,  at Leachville. Several of us kids were exploring the barn when we were challenged by Darrell to jump.  Rhonda, Deb, Linda and I accepted the challenge.  

When Darrell dared us girls to jump he didn't warn us about not bringing our knees into our chin as we landed, but we learned it quickly as we rolled around on the ground in pain. That jars your teeth all the way into your brain.... Of course Rhonda waited until last to jump, and changed her mind after seeing our pain. 

We later moved to a large two-story house in the country near Leachville that had several out buildings. There was a chicken coop, a smoke house and a large barn. Since Deb and I were experienced barn-jumpers I suppose  we felt that we had to teach this skill to Rhonda and to Sherlyn, who was only five. 

On the ground in front of the barn was a large stack of lumber approximately six or eight feet wide. So Deb and I were good sisters and warned Sherlyn and Rhonda to jump wide so they wouldn't get hurt. We were daring, but we tried to keep the fun safe, if we thought of it.  

Deb and I were so intent on keeping Rhonda and Sherlyn from landing in the lumber pile beneath the barn loft, that we forgot to warn them about keeping their knees from hitting their chin. That is one of the incidents that Sherlyn blames her memory problems on today. 

Jump Board

Jumping Board:

A fun thing that Dad taught us to do as kids was jumping board. You take a twelve foot 2x10 board and lay it across an 18"-24"  block.(not certain of height) One person stands on one end which causes the other end to raise up and the other person jumps flatfooted onto it. The impact of a person jumping on one end of the board catapults the other into the air. Then as that one lands the other person is catapulted into the air. With good balance it is enormously fun. .

Dad and I were quite good at jumping board. He moved the board closer to one end to adjust for the difference in our weight and when his feet hit the board I felt like I was soaring high. 

Some friends, who were visiting us from California wanted to see how to jump board. So Dad and I were giving them an exhibition. For several minutes everything went smoothly and I felt the usual invigoration as my feet left the board and I sailed above their heads. Then, too quickly to act, my feet slipped at the same time Dad's feet hit the board and my balance was lost. When my feet left the board that time I was flipping through the air and landed sprawled nearby. 

Everyone who was watching the jump board exhibition said my head hit the ground first, with my body folded over it, and they were certain that my neck was broken. Dad picked me up and with everyone gathered around they rushed into the house to lay me on the bed, praying as they went. Thankfully I was fine after the incident but Dad would never jump board with us again. He thought he had killed me when I fell. 

After the fall I was knocked senseless but as he carried me into the house I heard Dad's anguished cry, "Oh God! I've killed my baby!" 

Tommy Walkers

Stilts from Cardboard:

When we visited with the Butler side of our family we had watched Dad and our uncles walk on "Tommy Walkers". (Tommy Walkers were stilts made from two long boards about two inches wide By two inches thick. You would  cut a block of wood and nail it to each of the long boards about eight inches to a foot from the ground, depending on your capabilities, then nail a small loop of leather to support your feet and a loop of leather to go around each wrist.)

We older girls had walked on Tommy Walkers before, but we created a new style of stilts that proved to be more fun and took more skill. (Though we never accomplished much skill.)

Dad was laying new linoleum in our house and the large cardboard tubes that it came in, were tossed outside to be burned later. We were quick to grab them and our imaginations went to work to figure out the best use for them. 

After several discarded ideas we hit on one that we all liked. One of us girls sneaked a knife outside and we cut the tube into sections, probably three feet long each. Then with two sections of the tube laying side-by-side on the ground, one of us held them still, while the others helped one girl to slide her legs into the tubes. 

The feet of the girl, whose legs were inside the tubes were probably a foot or more from touching the ground and she could not bend her legs. With one girl on each side we helped her to her feet and propelled her forward until she was ready to walk on her own. Of course trying to walk in these was not as easy as the Tommy Walkers because you could not jump off if you lost your balance. 

Even when we were helping each other to stand and walk in our new stilts, it was hilarious. Picture us, as we lifted one girl to stand upright,  when her weight shifted forward, it threw us all forward. We ran forward to regain our balance while still holding her up. Then we tried again only to be  thrust backwards as we over compensated, and ran backwards.  

This forward and backward dance might continue for several minutes before we thought the one on stilts was steady enough to turn loose. Then we stood and watched for the inevitable collapse  we knew would happen so the next one could take her turn. 

You might be able to walk steadily for several feet before starting to lose your balance. Then to the enjoyment of the watchers you would start the little forward and backward dance again before collapsing to the ground amid the peals of laughter around you. 

Spring Forward?

We got to the church and were surprised to be the first to arrive.... We couldn't believe we were the only ones to remember to set their clocks. But since everyone would start arriving after a while, even if they were an hour late, we decided that we would just wait. 

After sitting for an hour we finally heard a car pull in and shortly Nina and Billy Joe came walking into the church.... We teased them because they had forgotten to change their clocks while we waited for others to arrive. 

We were well into our second hour of waiting for Brother and Sister Bourn and the other church members to arrive at church. And we were wondering why they were so late before it dawned on us, we should have "fallen back" not "sprang forward." So we had a two hour wait before church time arrived. 

Clorets Anyone?

Brother Robert Bayer, was called The Walking Bible, because he could quote whole chapters or books of the Bible. He was preaching at an auditorium at ASU in Jonesboro, and several of us were riding together to hear him. 

We stopped at a Jr. Food Mart to pick up drinks and Nina and I got a bright idea. We bought  Feenamint gum and Clorets, and switched their boxes. We each put some Clorets in our mouth before going back to the van, then we put the Feenamint pack in our purse. 

When we got into the van Nina and I asked if anyone else would like some gum. Two or three people took some, and thanked us. But before Brother Bayer's message was over that night they were not thanking us. 

Brown Floater

When they were about the ages of three and four my girls always enjoyed a bubble bath. So one night I filled the tub and it had so many bubbles the girls were almost hidden. 

I tossed two wash cloths into the tub with Darlene and Dayna before walking into the kitchen. It had only been a few minutes when Darlene yelled, "Mama! Come here!" Her voice didn't sound urgent, but I knew she needed something, so quickly walked back into the bathroom. 

When I stepped into the door two little girls blonde heads were visible above the bubbles. Darlene pointed to a dark spot through the bubbles and asked, "What is that?" Me, knowing that I had just tossed two brown wash cloths into the tub reached in and picked it up, to show her as I said, "It's your wash cloth, see?" But to my dismay, there I stood holding a little brown turd..... 

There was no question of who the guilty culprit was that was responsible for the turd in the tub. The sparkle in three-year-old Darlene's eyes let me know that she was the proud owner. It is unreal that such pranks could come from such an angelic looking little girl. 

Jason

Rhonda and I were chatting as we shopped in Walmart one day when we  suddenly noticed that two-year-old Jason had disappeared. We started calling his name and hurriedly checked the next aisle, where, to our relief we found him. 

As we walked around the shelves I cracked up laughing and Rhonda about died from embarrassment. Jason had his back to the aisle, as if it was the most natural thing in the world to pee on the shelf at Walmart. 

A Scream

          

 

The scream split the silence of the quiet night as we all slept! It wasn’t the first time a girl at Haven of Hope (HOH) had nightmares that interrupted my sleep! But one does not adapt so easily to being awakened in this way! I bolted upright in bed; my hair seemed to be standing on end, every nerve tense and ready to charge into action!

We have heard enough stories of rape, abuse, and molestation that you automatically suspect the cause of the nightmares. Then later they often tell the stories that stir a desire in you to help ease their agony, and to open the eyes of many who are clueless to such things happening. The pain they have been made to suffer for someone else’s selfishness and perversion is heartrending.

This night was much the same as I rushed into the room to awaken her from the horror she was reliving. She must be awakened gently or she will come out of bed fighting.  So after placing my hand gently on her shoulder, I softly called her name several times before she responded. I talked to Julia a while then asked if she would be alright before I returned to my room.

 Hopefully this would be a night she could return to a peaceful sleep, but it was not to be. The same scenario occurred a second time later in the night. This was not an uncommon occurrence for Julia.

Julia didn’t tell that night why she had nightmares so frequently, but later her story came out. She was one of several children who were abused physically, emotionally, and sexually in many ways. It is sad that children must face such merciless, atrocious abuse. But, the most infuriating thing about her case was that her dad and step-mom were the ones who did these appalling things to Julia and her siblings.

It isn’t easy for children to separate the natural love they feel for a parent and the anger, the hurt, the fear, the betrayal, and the confusion of their feelings. It isn’t something that comes natural to admit and confront those feelings, and to recognize the scars that have resulted from the actions of their abusers. 

Children have a tough time talking about these things because they feel they are being disloyal to their parents. And often they carry guilt over the things that were done to them because they have been made to feel that they are to blame. But until she can face the past, clean out those old wounds, and have help from God and others who love her she can’t heal, and the scars will cripple her for life.

As time passed it was amazing to go to church and see Julia with her hands raised and tears dripping from her chin! It was thrilling to watch as she talked to God about the feelings she didn’t know how to deal with! It brought such great excitement to see her filled with joy when God’s Spirit filled her heart! And watching her change daily as she began walking with Christ was what we strive to see happen in each child’s life we work with.

Sure Julia has had, and will have more set-backs that hinder the relationship she began with God at Tupelo Children’s Mansion. But, we witnessed the beginning, and pray for Julia as we look forward to seeing or hearing of ‘God’s Amazing Grace’ continuing the work He began in her. We confidently expect to hear of how she is using her story to help others who have suffered much the same as she.

                                                                                   

Oxygen

LaNelda, like us all, was so overwhelmed over Dad's inability to breathe when he was so sick. She was with Dad one day and had stood it as long as she could, before passionately saying, "I'm going to get you an oxygen tank if I have to steal it and hold Mayor  Brodell hostage to keep from being arrested." 

Dad was accustomed to LaNelda being boisterous in her opinions and plans, so, like the rest of us, didn't think much more about her rant. But as Sherlyn was driving into town I told her about what LaNelda had said and that she had gone to her doctor and come back with an oxygen tank. 

Sherlyn smiled as she walked into the room where Dad sat with his oxygen tank, breathing easily. She said to us all, "Did you hear about the old woman at Nettleton dying a couple hours ago, because someone stole her oxygen tank?" 

Dad had such a shocked look on his face after Sherlyn's statement. LaNelda said the look said, "LaNelda Jean George, what have you done?" Then he looked into Sherlyn's face and realized she was teasing, and he chuckled as he realized that he had been got. 

Broken Dishwasher

Mark was sixteen and excited  about  his job at  "Sizzlin' Catfish" as a dishwasher. His first public job. Friday and Saturday nights were always busy and Mark took pride in doing a good job but more in his speed. 

It was common to hear Mark say on a busy night,  "Y'all can't get me backed up, because I'm so good and fast." When he arrived one Friday night he was surprised to hear, from the other employees that the dishwasher was broken, but went right to work. 

Hearing about the dishwasher being broken was bad news to Mark, but he was gung-ho about his job and took it in stride. 

It was the busiest time of the night and dishes steadily piling higher, as Mark sweated, elbow-deep in suds. Being a dishwasher was a tougher job than he imagined, but he wasn't raised to shirk his duty or whine so he    worked doggedly to get caught up. 

One of the owners, Thurl Mason had been working in the front of the restaurant all night. But in the busiest time he was making his rounds to see that everything was running smoothly in the kitchen. 

Thurl had been in the kitchen a couple minutes, watching his new dishwasher doing dishes by hand. He walked over and said, "Mark, why aren't you using the dishwasher?" As Mark started to reply, he saw the mischievous sparkle and grinning faces of the other kitchen staff. He knew he had been had. 

Once Mark started using the dishwasher, he was caught up in no time. 

My Babysitters

My Babysitters

Mom and Dad were busy one day when I was about three and asked Grandma Pride to babysit me. She told them later that I kept eating the green apples as she was cutting them up for canning. 

Grandma Pride said she started to worry about me eating so many green apples, and told me that I needed to stop or they would give me a stomach ache. I replied, "If I get a stomach ache my Daddy will pray for me and Jesus will heal me." 

With that reasoning, Grandma Pride said she couldn't stop me, and just  let me eat all the green apples I wanted.  Thankfully I didn't get a stomach ache..... 

Another day Mom and Dad got Mr. and Mrs. Cox to babysit me when I was around the same age. I can recall sitting on their front porch and listening to him tell stories about the occupants of the woods surrounding their home. 

Mr. Cox told about the little hoot owls and baby foxes in their woods. I was captivated by his stories and couldn't wait till Mom and Dad picked me up. Immediately I began telling them the stories. I said, "There are little odells and baby coxes in those woods."