Grandaddy
Some people have grandfathers….some people have Papa’s….
…..he was always Grandaddy to me.
He was born on this day in 1901 in Currituck, North Carolina.
He was a farmer. He married Nellie and they had 7 children.
My mother was their youngest.
When we would visit when I was a little girl,
I would get up with him each morning to help him let the chickens out of their houses.
When it was time for us to go home,
the day before he would carry me around with him as he cried.
I’m the cute blond standing next to him. 🙂
He drove an old John Deere tractor to the store.
I can still hear the sound it use to make when he would start it.
He would take the grand-kids to the store with him and buy us some candy….
….we rode in the back of a large wooden trailer he pulled down the road with his tractor.
We would hop in and out of the trailer as we went down the road….
I think he knew we did even though we thought we were being clever.
He loved….loved….to watch baseball and wrestling on television.
He chewed tobacco, smoked a pipe and wore bib overalls.
He kept his wallet in the top front pocket of his overalls.
You knew you were going to get a dollar when he would take it out in front of you. 🙂
I can still smell the scent of his tobacco….hear his laughter….
….and the way he would say my name.
Happy Birthday Grandaddy!
I love you…..and I miss you.
4 Comments
wanda
There is so much love and so many memories on that old farm. I still love to ride by there. I would love to have a picture of the barn.
Magikal Folk
Got a couple of those Wanda….will send some your way in the next couple of days. 🙂
Vicky Sanderlin-McLoughlin
Hi Debbie,
I thought that this was a very moving tribute to our beloved grandfather. You have some remarkable photographs here – all of which evoke very fond memories. Weren’t we lucky to be loved and cherished by our grandparents for so many years? Thanks for sharing these memories.
One abiding memory I have go grandaddy is that of his chewing tobacco and the requiste spitoon. I doubt many children today would know what this was and emptying out the spitoon was no fun.
In loving gratitude,
Vicky
Magikal Folk
Oh yes….I remember the spitoon! Agreed….that task was one I didn’t particularly enjoy. Funny how the house could clear out as soon as he asked if someone would come empty it. 🙂