A Look At Life

It is so amazing how we look at life.

When I was younger being raised with Father and Mother I was ungrateful.  Ungrateful because daddy made us work.  We raked yard, feed hogs and chickens, picked butter bean, cucumbers, watermelons, hoed the garden, pulled weeds and if we wanted any kind of allowance we had to go work in somebody's tobacco field.

In the process of working that tobacco job, I cropped, strung, hung and topped. I got so good at what I did, the boss man let me drove the tractor.

My daddy was high minded in providing for his family the hard way until he stop taking the pigs to the slaughter house and started killing his food himself.  He even made his two sons point the gun at the pig head and pull the trigger `bam` Pig Dead! We hung em by two feet, gut em and clean em. Even got down to ringing the chicken neck for Sunday Dinner. "The best gravy in the world"

Mom on the other hand gave us chores. We had to sweep the floor, clean the bathrooms, wash the dishes, make our beds and what ever you do, `Don't Go In The Living room, It Was For Company`. More over I learn how to cook at the age of 10. I mean full course meals. By the time mom and dad came home from work, dinner had better be done are you was winding it up to a finish mood! Again, I was so good at what I did, when it was time to go to the fields to pick beans, I was left home to do the cooking!

Not considering the task that I was put through was making me a better woman, I just dreaded being made to work so hard and hardly having no time to go out like the rest of my friends in what I called to have fun.  In my highs school years, mom and dad moved us out into the country. We lived 6 miles from town. So we rode the bus to school and back Monday - Friday, mom and dad took us to town on Saturday and mom took us to church on Sundays which was also in town. That moved to the country was the best move for me and my sisters and brothers. We didn't get into much trouble with the town crowd.

We use to get angry because we 'thought' we was not being treated fair and had to work so hard. I remember walking down the road (in the country) grumbling "I'll be glad when I grow up and get my own house".  I can even remember saying "I wish my daddy was dead". Harsh Right?  He was a tough man but one thing I can say, daddy did not shame us in front of people. If we where bad in front of people, he would look at us, point his figure and say under his breath; `I'm gone cut your ass when we get home`  And when he said it, he meant it!  Of course if he had one to many to drink, mom would not let him whip on us because he would not realize how hard he would be hitting us. My dads famous way of whipping us was to put our head between his legs with buttock in the air and he had one of his homemade thick leather belts.  Whoooooooo, what pain.... Mom did no spanking. All she had to say is; "I'm gone tell you daddy". And we would straighten right up!

Lord looking back on those days, we did not know we had it so good! The toughness of passion my daddy had for us was to make us strong men and woman. Men and Woman that can get out in the world and do for ourselves. His children that he could one day be proud of.  My dad died in the year 2000 of a heart attack.  If I knew back then what I know today, I would do and say things a whole lot different. 

I'm a business owner, a fighter, strong minded and don't mind working to get what I want and love to travel.

We live and we learn.  I appreciate my parents and all they have done for me. My mom still lives and I love her dearly. I will give her her flowers while she lives. Dorothy M. Kennedy is a great and godly mom.

It's amazing how we look at life!