Tell of some places you went with your Mother.

Church, grocery store, and to visit friends in Collins.  We went to Vidalia to the dentist.  Grandmama and Moner along with several other ladies went to this place.  I don't remember how we got there.  But there were other children there, and we enjoyed playing together.  The women made cotton mattresses.  I don't think it was anything they got paid to do.  But was made for our own use.  I haven't thought of that in a long time.  I wish I had so I could have asked Moner about it.

What personality traits did you get from your Mother? What physical traits?

I'm quiet, Carolyn's the talker.  I don't want attention drawn to myself.   I don't know if it has anything to do with my education, or the lack of it.
People say I look more like her than the others.  I suppose I'm shaped like her and Grandmother Oliver.

Tell about your Mother's personality.

She was quiet, loved everyone, very compassionate and understanding.  She sang specials in church, made clothes, and quilts.  She crocheted scarves, doilies, collars, and bedspreads.  She was a really good cook.  She kept children while parents worked.  Her role in the home was both Mom and Dad to seven children, and even helped to raise grandchildren.

What did your Mother do during the day?

She worked and took care of seven children.  During World War II  she and Grandaddy ran a restaurant.  Soldiers were stationed around Collins in different places.  She stayed quite busy.  Later this lady in town took in laundry and Moner did the ironing.  She also kept a clean house and took care of us.

Who set a good example for you?

I suppose you mean marriage.  I learned as I lived.  The first one was a mistake. Only two good things came from it, Ronnie and Sylvia.
If you mean as a child.  Grandmama Oliver was a good christian lady who loved the Lord first, her husband, and everyone.  She never met a stranger.  She talked about the Lord every opportunity she had and sometimes took the opportunity.  She was a very precious lady.  She had time to talk to kids, and hug them.

What do you know about your parent's wedding?

The only thing I remember hearing is who performed the ceremony.  A judge at Reidsville courthouse by the name of W.H. Bazemore.  The same Judge married your Dad and me, and Carolyn and Aaron.

How did you learn about God?

My life started off in Church.  There was never a time I wasn't conscious of God.  I was saved at a very young age.  Then things, I suppose after Moner quit going although I went with Grandma, I quit going.  I lost interest.  Other things interested me more to my sorrow.  I gave up on Him for awhile but praise His name He never gave up on me.  I love Him so much.  It seems He's better to me than to anyone else.  He blessed me with a wonderful husband, children, grandchildren, and their companions.  As far as I know all in pretty good health, with good jobs, and able to work.  Two of our family members have already gone home and I'm trusting our family circle will not be broken.  That the others will come to know the Lord also.  And we will all be together again one day soon.

How was it decorated?

I described that earlier.  The green trees had balls, lights, tinsel, with an angel on the top.

When did you put it up? When did you take it down?

We put it up not more than two weeks before Christmas, and took it down soon after Christmas.  Just a few days at the most, was ready to put it away.

Describe getting a christmas tree with your family as a child, and as an adult.

We never had one as a child.  After Moner married Earnest and Phil's dad, he cut a tree and brought it in.  It had no decorations that I recall.  We didn't have electricity eith, probably couldn't afford it if we had.  We lived so far out there was none out there.  The first one I remember was after we moved to Pleasant Drive.  We bought a silver tree and had a color wheel run by electricity with three or four colors that shone on the tree.  Then we bought an artificial green tree.  I liked the artificial trees the best because they don't shed.  I think we had a live one once or twice.

Tell about what you believe happens after death.

The ones that are living a clean and holy life according to God's word will go to heaven for a while.  Then come back with Jesus, clean up this place and make way for a new heaven here and live with Him forever.  We must have our sins covered by Christ's blood.  Everyone has sinned and must ask for forgiveness and change their sinful ways and not go back into sin.  The one's living in sin when they die a devil's hell is waiting for them.  And that's where they will go.  People say God doesn't send anyone to hell.   I agree, he doesn't.  We're given a choice.  God's way or satan's way.  I choose God's way.  It isn't hard living for God.  Within our own selves it would be, but with God's help it's a wonderful life.

How do you feel about death?

I suppose everyone fears the unknown, not many want to die, I suppose.  But the ones that know Jesus as their personal Saviour don't look at it as "dying"  but living.  Before your Daddy passed away, one day I noticed he was just sitting there staring into space.  Not really thinking about anything.  I asked him what and if anything was wrong?  He didn't seem to want to tell me, hesitated to answer then said:  a hole six feet deep.  I knew then what he was referring to and didn't know what to say.  But now I would say; you won't be put in that hole, just the empty shell, the part we can see and feel is in there.  Not the important part, the soul.  It lives forever.  Your Daddy went to sleep sitting in that lift chair and woke up in the arms of Jesus.  What a wonderful awakening, no more pain, sorrow, disappointment, sickness, and worry.  Just peace and happiness.  We can't even imagine how glorious it's going to be.

List each one of your Aunts and Uncles. Tell one thing about each of them.

Uncle Ellis (Moner's brother) he died when John was a baby so I don't remember him.  He was married to Aunt Polly.  He was Edna's Daddy.  They had four girls, and lived here in town in the house that Uncle Ellis built or started.  I don't know if he lived to finish it or someone else ded.  She and the girls had the dairy I mentioned before.

Uncle Clark (Moner's brother) and Aunt Naomi.  I really don't know much about them.   Although they lived here in the country with no way to go but walk so we didn't visit much.  They had two girls and a boy.  I don't remember the boy because he was killed in the war.  The oldest girl is now deceased.  I remember visiting them in the nursing home with Moner when I first moved back here until they passed away.  Your Dad fished some with Uncle Clark.

Uncle T (Moner's brother) and Aunt Jane (your dad's sister).  His name was Lee Tally but most everyone called him LT.  We shortened it to just T.  I was closer to them and knew them better than the others.  We all lived in the same house for a while.  They had three girls and five boys.  He had a small car with a rumble seat.  We would sometimes take turns riding.  That was after the war when the rationing of gas was lifted.  He worked at Fort Stewart during the war.  He would give money to Moner to help us.  Aunt Jane was a really good cook.

Uncle Claude (Moner's brother) and Aunt Melbourne lived in Collins for awhile before moving to Savannah.  He was the one that paid for me to ride on the swings I referred to earlier.  She was a very stout woman.  They had six girls and two boys.  The youngest boy was a cab driver in Savannah until someone killed him.

Uncle Ben and Aunt Hilma (Moner's sister).  They lived here for a while until they moved to Savannah.  They had four girls and one boy.  The boy was killed in a car accident when he was a teen-ager.  She's getting pretty feeble now.  Carolyn and I visited her at her daughter's where she now lives.  She talks about the past alot.

Aunt Lucy (Moner's sister)  I never called her Aunt because she wasn't but a few years older than me.  We walked to school together.  They lived in the same two story house we and Uncle T's family lived in.  She died not long after she graduated from high school.  She was very pretty, had long dark hair, always neat.  I was ten when she passed away.

Uncle Marshall and Aunt Gladys (Moner's sister).  They had five girls and two boys.  Two boys and one of the girls have passed away.  They lived here in Collins a while.  Aunt Gladys worked in a dry cleaners.  Then they moved to Savannah and both worked at Bradley Plywood.  They went to the same church as us until she passed away.  Then he remarried a woman from Collins and moved back here until he passed away.

Tell about birthdays as a child, youth, adult.

I can't remember birthdays being any different than any other day.  We may have had cake and ice cream.  We had an ice cream churn (hand cranked).  After the war was over and things weren't rationed, we would make ice cream often.  As an adult before your Dad and I was married, Moner gave me a watch.  After we were married your Dad would always remember it.  I can't think of anything really special he gave me.  There were alot of things but not just for birthdays.

Tell about family reunions.

We didn't call them family reunions.  Grandmama and Granddaddy's(my great-granparents)  birthdays both were in July.  We would celebrate their birthdays.  As I remember, it would always be at Uncle T's(Moner's brother)  and Aunt Jane's(Your Daddy's sister) .  It was really fun for everyone.

Describe your Sundays as a child.

Sunday school.  Then come home, change clothes, eat and go out to play.  No work on Sundays.  Stores didn't open.  Children played, and adults rested.  When Aunt Hilma's family would come during the summer we went to the river.  But that wasn't often.

Tell one thing about your brothers and sisters.

I don't know how old I was.  Carolyn may have been the baby.  We were at the restaurant that Moner worked at.  Moner, John, and I don't remember anyone else.  A cousin of Moner's came in and he knew John had a temper, and liked to get him mad.  John picked up a butcher knife and threw it at him.  His name was Arthur Cowart.  Well it hit me on the leg and I still carry the scar.

Carolyn was always so small, and delicate.  We were very careful of her.  When I had to take care of her I would carry her on my hip.  I've always said that is why my right hip is higher than my left.

Barbara was small, walking.  It was a very windy day, the adult kept a can of lye on a shelf of sorts outside.  The wind blowed it off.  Barbara got to it before Moner could.  She put some in her mouth (it is very poisonous, I don't think they sell it anymore).  Her mouth swelled really bad, she must not have swallowed any, because she is still here.  They kept it for making soap.  Kids weren't suppose to be able to reach it.  They probably didn't think about the wind blowing hard enough to blow it off.

As you know by now, by things I've said before.  These were really tough times.  When Edward was born Aunt Hilma wanted to adopt him to make it easier on Moner.  She said she didn't have one to give up.

Earnest and Phil was born after I married.

Did you wish you had more (less) brothers and sisters? Why?

I suppose I never thought about it.  The more of us there were the more we had to play with.

Describe a trip to town as a child.

We lived in town .  The first trip I remember going out of town.  We went to Vidalia.  I had a tooth pulled that wasn't any fun.

Tell about a teacher or class that had a great influence on you.

Perhaps I've forgotten, but I can't say there were any.

Describe school as a child.

It was something I had to do and I never liked it.  I liked spelling and was good at it, and reading.  Adding, subtraction, and division I liked in arithmetic.  Couldn't understand fractions and other things.

Tell about home cures or wives tales.

If we had a rash over our bodies they called it "the itch" perfect name for it too.  They made a paste of sulphur and lard and rubbed it all over our bodies.  Don't remember how long, but it didn't work.  Went to the drugstore for a liquid, boy did it burn but it worked.  Made a poultice of mustard and I don't remember what else and put it on our chest for colds.  For an earache if anyone around smoked they would blow smoke in the ear.  I doubt it was the smoke but the warm air if it worked.  For a tummy ache eat burnt cornbread.  A cut, to stop the bleeding.  They would place spider web on the cut.  Nosebleed place scissors down the collar.  Don't sweep trash out the door after sundown, a death in the family would occur.   If a person was sitting in a chair, don't sweep under it or their feet.  Or they would never marry.  If you dropped a dish towel while cooking someone would come by hungry.  If your nose itches someone was talking about you.  When your hand itched, you were going to get some money.  It was bad luck for a black cat to cross in front of you.  Such nonsense and probably many more I can't remember.

What was your favorite fairy tale, or bedtime story?

There wasn't anything like that where we lived.  Things were so different when I was a child.  I don't remember books, except the Bible, song books at church, and school books. Oh yes, there were comic books.
We enjoyed listening to the older ones tell about their younger days.  I wish I had had these questions when Moner was here and could remember to ask her them and wrote them down.

What was your favorite toy, or doll?

The only doll I ever remember, I was maybe eight or nine.  A large doll, I took it to a friend's house to show her off I was so proud of it.  I don't remember what happened to it.  I wore it out playing with it I suppose.  I had a small saucer part of a tea set too.  I suppose there was more if there was it was probably broken.  That's all I remember in the line of toys.

Describe how people dressed when you were a child.

If you saw a woman with shorts on she wasn't thought  very highly of.  Just out looking for a man.  Any man, married or single.  Pants was just about as bad.  Dresses, or blouses and skirts way below the knee was the norm.  The men, pants and shirts or overalls and shirt.  That was in our part of the world.

What did you enjoy in the winter?

We had a movie theater, and would go there Saturday mornings.  I remember seeing westerns:  Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Lash Larue, and The Phantom.  There may have been more, I can't remember.  If the weather was sunny, even if it was cold we wanted to be outside playing.  We had no games for inside that I recall, made up games.

What did you do during the summer?

Played mainly.  There were some chores, but not too many that we didn't have time to play.  We didn't want to go in.  We wanted the days to last longer.  We played hide-n-seek, catch, hopscotch, tag, red rover, and ring-around-the rosie.  We would hide an object the others looked for, telling them if they were hot or cold.  Sounds boring doesn't it, but we enjoyed it.  We would go to the depot sometimes and climb on the coal cars.  Wave at the engineer and the man on the caboose.

Do you remember what an ice cream cost when you were a child?

A nickel a dip in a cone.  A nickel for a cup about four ounces.

What does one cost today?

$1.49 at McDonald's.

What kind of car did your family have?

We didn't.  The first car we owned was after your Dad and I was married.