Page 79 - my-people-abbie-harris-beck

PAPA

I was 3 or 4 when papa left the house before I was awake, he would always leave
me a surprise in my pillow case. It would be a piece of candy, an apple, orange or money.
He was a wonderful papa. He started having strokes when I was about 5. He carried me
to Fargo Ga. on the train to visit with cousin Bell while he went to Valdosta, Ga. to a
navel store meeting. The Suwannee River was up and even with the old wooden bridge.
Some places the river would flow over. It was getting dark and I would not move to go
over the bridge. Papa had to take our suitcases over to the other side, come back and take
me on his shoulders to the other side. It was the first fear I had ever had. Mama told me
later that papa had a stroke on the train coming home.
Papa would bring home a whole bunch of bananas when they were shipped by
train. Bananas were special. He would hang the Banana Bunch so high that Annie Laura
had to jump to get one and I would have to get on a stool to pick one. The bunch was
kept on the windowed porch.., It was much fun.
Papa would take me to the farm with him to the watermelon patch. Papa loved
watermelons. He pulled the large ones and piled them all together so that the over seer
could bring them to town. They were put on the front porch. As papa pulled the water
melons , he would drop the small ones so we could eat them, papa would tell me" Pig",
that's what he called m e," We don't eat any thing but the heart." In a few minutes, he
would drop another one. I went home with watermelons all over me.

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