It must have been summer time. Great, big, hot hot hot Texas summertime. We went barefoot from June until September and were clad in cut off pants (home made shorts that have gotten old or wore holes in the knees). Poppa had a problem and had tried to remmedy it for quite a while. His rickety, past its prime, front porch had become a headache. The warped bords rose up in places that caused the front door to no longer function. The porch was unsalvageable and needed replacing. He was weary of having to leave through the back door to go and check the mailbox on the street. Poppa asked his sons and sons in laws for help. They all promised they would but after a long while, nothing was done. Now, Poppa was a skilled farmer, none better. He could plan out dozens of vacant acres at a time, plow them, water and fertilize growing plants, chop the weeds, hoe the furrows as the crops grew taller, shoo the predators, and harvest enough to feed his large family and sell most of it to keep them safe and warm through the fierce Oklahoma winters. Poppa was a decent mechanic too. He had kept ancient farm equipment funtioning since he was a boy. He could fix lawn mowers and sometimes an automobile. Poppa was adept at many carpenter jobs as he had helped build wooden oil well platforms in the early 1900’s. Nanny worked just as hard in the fields and harvesting. She canned, cooked and prepared all the meals. She raised and fed the livestock and chickens, and actively took place in the slaughter of them as well. However, Poppa evidently knew little about the fine art of working with concrete. In the summer. In the hot Texas heat.

to be continued…

“Rememebering Poppa” is now available on Amazon. Click to get your copy!

David and I settled on ten stories that were our most memorable of growing up in Tom Hancock’s shadow. Here is a recap of what’s inside this book called “Remembering Poppa”.

Story One – This is our experience as children helping Poppa construct a concrete porch (David, age 7, was in charge of ordering the concrete). It did not turn out well.

Story Two – Virgie’s Grave is about our trip to eastern Oklahoma to find the grave of a long lost aunt.

Story Three – Poppa tellls us about meeting Geronimo and Frank James.

Story Four – The Doctor’s Office is David’s early memory of how our grandfather handled public racism in the 1960’s.

Story Five – This story is our favorite and is simply titled “The Mule”.

Story Six – James Westbrook was Poppa’s neighbor who rode with the Texas Rangers. Story Four also tells of the year we ate tons of sweet potatoes.

Story Seven – This story weaves our many Oklahoma reunion memories with David’s earliest memory in life- helping Poppa look for a lost dog.

Story Eight – Zephyrinus Salinas was a bandit who rode with Poncho Villa who came to live and work on Poppa’s farm.

Story Nine – This recalls everyday life in the “Cotton Mill District” and Poppa raising honey bees.

Story Ten – Murder in Mayberry contrasts the idyllic youth at 901 West DuBois with real tragedy in our neighborhood.

“Remebering Poppa” is now available on Amazon:

Reading From California Beat Poetry

https://johnbucherblog.com/2015/04/27/reading-from-california-beat-poetry/
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