Occupy The Cove

Last night some travelers came through Collinsville, unseasonably cold night. They had been on the road for several days coming from Asheville and Durham. One fellow said he was in occupy San Francisco last fall; and had grown up around Roswell Georgia and wanted to go to culinary school. Was familiar with my niece's friends establishment, The West Cobb Diner. Constable Ada came out from town to check out their credentials and could find no fault with them. Late I understood the Ministerial alliance to give them warm shelter for one night. I made a call To The Shed as it turned out, but no harm came of it; and had good fortune this morning to tell a Will Campbell Story. Got me thinking about the Cove by my friend Ron Rash and how it could inflect this real life incident. One of the fellows, since they had experience around Asheville said he was gonna read it when he got settled. I believe him. They weren't around exit 205 when I came through town this morning. Said they were gonna try to get to California and regroup and rest there for a while. I hope they make it. All this on a day started on NPR with a report on Kris Kobach and the Bama Immigration bill, with Gov Bentley and 3rd grade children from Crossville in Montgomery. Almost brought tears to my eyes when I got to thinkin about it all. I sent the WMU an email

Beaverdam and Walden's Creek

My friend Lee Ramsey of the GHS class of 71 left a facebook post at gaffneyites about Seinnin Beaverdam Creek of 29. 29 Also runs through Winder
Walden's Creek is in the Walland community outside Pigeon Forge, Tn where my great grandfather Fox once owned 1,000 acres in the late 1800's.
My Grandfather's story is below as I desribed it for my nephew Andrew's 13th birthday back in February

Andrew, two stories; one each from from two of your Great Grandfathers.
William Dan, WD Willie Dan, "Shorty Fox" was the father of your Grandfather Billy. He was born in 1894 or 95, he always told me he wasn't sure which.
Papa had a cousin, Seaton, about the same age of his and one of Seaton's brothers was Marshall; that's the way I remember the story. But when Papa was about 14 up on Walden's Creek he and Seaton decided to pool their money and get a Sein to catch fish in the Creek. They ordered it from the Sears and Roebuck catalog.
The deal was most of the time they would use it together, but they would have it a month at a time, take it home after they were seinin or have it to use with another friend or cousin during that month.
One time they got in an argument about whose month it was to take it home and according to Papa, Seaton said I'll fix it and he cut the Sein right down the Middle with his Knife.
So the lesson there is be careful who your business partners are, even if they are in the family; and on Richland Drive I'd Day Ben is about the safest.
Or later Seaton and Papa after about ten years laughed about it the rest of their lives; at which point the lesson becomes the lesson Old Joe Kennedy told Ted: Always do the best you can and then the Hades with it.

Your Grandfather Jordan, My Momma's Dad was born in 1881 about 16 years after Lincoln was assassinated and the Civil War Ended. Like Judge Frank Johnson and one could imagine Atticus Finch; he was a Lincoln Republican. That carried a lot of baggage in the world he was raised and his times, or Glory depending on how you want to calibrate character and legacy. He ran for School board Superintendent in Dekalb County, Alabama about 1914 and was soundly defeated. That was because most of the white men--they were the only people allowed to vote--thought he was a "Nigger Lover" cause that was a Lincoln Republican was to them in those Days, Uncle James said they would pass him on the street and say you can smell it on him, can't you.
Well one of his grandchildren is your Mother, and a great grandchild is on the Board of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of the State of Alabama. And a lot of those folks who called him that or the people they looked up to, you can read about later in Wayne Greenhaw's book Fighting the Devil in Dixie.
And later in 1931 Dietrich Bonhoeffer rode through town.

To paraphrase Karl Childers and your Dad, for this exercise they say I need a Bible Verse and a Prayer. My Hope "prayer" is when the world is absurd you'll have the wisom of Your Uncle Dee on his best days and our mutual friend Steve Martin to laugh it off so when it is over in 60 years or like your Great Grandfathers and Hebrews 11:13 you will been persuaded of the promises and embraced them while a pilgrim on The Earth.
AhMen.

Atticus Finch and Steve Jones

Today I made a facebook post at the Collinsville PTO site about immigration bill under review in the Bama State Legislature.
I hope Nick Saban's wife is called on to testify. Friends are reportedly bringing the Mother Jones piece on Self Deportation and Kris Kobach to her attention.
Gary Furr, a Baptist pastor in Bham has a good blog up on To Kill a Mockingbird and the recent Mary Murphy film shown on PBS American Masters. Sadly I missed the film, but commented on Ms. Murphy's website last year.

Copy and paste this link and see my comment there

http://garyfurr.wordpress.com/2012/04/09/to-kill-a-mockingbird-50-years-later/

Steve Jones, Wayne Flynt and Bishop Willimon should be up for the Atticus Finch award for 2012 for their work standing against the Tea Party, Eunie Smith and Governor Bentley on their ill advised Bill.
R.G. Lyons of Centre, Alabama is to be applauded as well
And Robert Parham and Cliff Vaughn for their good work

Maundy Thursday and Fasting

Here in Collinsville, I have a Muslim Friend; an international who rode with me to Selma first Sunday in March this year.
He texted me this morning wanting to know the Meaning of Easter. I explained the best I could apologizing for the Tea Party not understanding better even though Dietrich Bonhoeffer drove through here in April 1931
I called a Yale Grad, and the Son of Nixon's Barber to see if my explanation to him was adequate.
Still I was chastened a little about his Fasting Question; at same time there was some humor; especially for those who knew my Father.
In 2006 I went to the Maundy Thursday service at the Collinsville, Baptist Church where my Mother was baptized.
I haven't been back since.
Tribalism masquerading as Christianity there; even so there is the legacy of John Jeffers and my Mother; and some others have come through who got enough of the Spirit rightly divided and have blossomed elsewhere.
Pray for those at the service this evening in Collinsville, and their hard hearted hearts.

Jackson Giles, Collinsville Study Clubs and Geneaology

Last Friday I got my hands on a copy of Sam Hodges collection of essays and tribute to Ron Casey and Bailey Thomson, For the Love of Alabama. Had great conversation with Sam last September at Samford. Sam was my guest for a presentation sponsored by the Collinsville Study Club in October 1999 where he did a reading of his and Jeff Lowe's Letters to Amanda.
In the book there is an essay on Jackson Giles, Montgomery Black man whose vote was taken away from him by the Alabama Constitution of 1901. About 14 years later my Grandfather Jordan ran as a Lincoln Republican for School Superintendent.
My Grandfather was a school teacher and his wife Aurie Lula Vansant of Crossville had three brothers who all became medical doctors. So as intelligent folk, I have every reason to believe they were fully aware of the insidiousness of the Cotton Planters Constitution of the Black Belt that later begat George Wallace of the 60's.
Martha Barksdale is a good woman. She is the Mamie Eisenhower, the Martha Washington of Collinsville, Alabama. Her children are smart and she married a sharp fellow who allegedly intimidates all bridge opposition near and far.
She needs to get a copy of this book and in memory of Mary Katherine Reed have a group reading. Invite Amanda Jackson and Annie Lucas Brown for a conversation about it.
Ron Casey, Sam Hodges friend, won a Pulitzer prize for his editorial writing. Like my mother, his Mother is from Collinsville, Alabama.
I hope Martha will find her maiden name for me soon and tell me who she was. And read the book, no excuses.