The Simple Life in the Appalachians

The Simple Life in the Appalachians

I recently read this phrase about those who immigrated to the Appalachian Mountains. “They came in with a horse, a cow, a sack of corn, an iron pot and a wife and several children, an ax, a long rifle and a Bible.” (Unknown) We may have more than those who came before us, but we need to take inventory to make sure that life isn’t so complicated that we miss the joy that is supposed to be in our lives.

My childhood life was simple. I would get up and go to school. I was always early to catch the bus. I caught the bus at so many different places. My friend Danny lived out the road and I caught the bus with him until his house burned down. I remember getting there early and his mom was always listening to the Goodman Family sing on their TV. We didn’t have a TV so it was a treat to watch the Happy Goodman’s get so happy… they were actually called the Happy Goodman Family. Cousin Tammy started to school when I was about eight, so I caught the bus with her. My nephew started a year or so later so I walked all the way up to the mountain property to catch the bus with him. This allowed me some more TV time with some cartoons. I usually spent every Saturday morning watching cartoons with him.

Most evenings I would walk to my friend, Ham Bone’s house to watch Bonanza at 5:00. When winter came and it got dark earlier I had to miss it. His family always asked me to stay for supper, but I made excuses although I was really hungry most of the time. My mom never cooked much. Sometimes she would cook beans and cornbread and she fried us a hamburger on Friday nights. She did things in routine. She always washed on Tuesdays. She went to town on Saturday afternoons around 1:00 after my Dad waited an hour for her to come to the vehicle where he was waiting. We went to see my sister every third Saturday. My sister always fixed good food and lots of sweets. Other than a pop and a candy bar at the little store below our house, there were very few sweets enjoyed in childhood unless my sister brought them. She usually came on Wednesdays. She had to park at the bottom of the hill since the road to our house was rocky and had big ridges in it. I always watched for her from the top of the hill. I spent a lot of time watching each car come around the bend. I usually prayed the next one would be her. No matter how much I prayed she only came when her time came. She would turn at the store and come back down the road another tenth a mile and park at the bottom of the hill. If I happened to be at a neighbors house I would still watch her make the turn and be at her car by the time she was ready to walk the hill. The neighbors were amazed at how fast I could run.

There was a worn path that had been worn over the years up the side of the hill. There was another path from the front side that had been worn over the years by my older brothers and sister as they had to go to the spring to get water. We incorporated water and electricity about the time of my birth. A large tin dipper sat on the sink for all to drink out of. A cook stove sat in the middle of the floor. I would often lay behind it and sleep. My dad always went to town on Saturday nights by himself and I stayed there with my mom and laid behind the old cook stove as a child. My dad took my brothers to the movies. I don’t remember seeing a movie until my brother came in from the Marines and took me to the drive-in. I think my sister took me a few times, because I remember some had to lay in the floor of the car and some were in the trunk to keep from paying when we went by the little booth.

Life was simple. Set in routine. Little things meant a lot. A candy bar or a pop. I remember my first Mountain Dew. Drinks back then were only 7cents. I remember the price on the old store cooler told of a day when it was only 5 cents. Wow! Sometimes I would take bottles I collected to the store to trade in for money for a drink. I also took eggs after getting flogged by a chicken that didn’t want to give her eggs up. They probably had little chickens in them. I also collected wool to sell and since it sold by weight, I often threw in a few bones from the dead sheep for extra measure. I helped my brother cut cherry bark from the trees during the summer. Later, I raised my own calves and sold them. I bought my first car at 18 with the money I had saved from my calf sales. It was a brand new ‘75 Camero that costs $3500.00 and I paid cash. I don’t think I have done that since…. But hope to do that again as I continually simplify my life. I’m trying to get back to the original recipe….

Summer life was my favorite. The country store, owned by my uncle, was the center of life. The old farmers would sit there for hours and share conversation. There were usually 20 or more there in the evening and some came earlier in the afternoon. There was a sitting log up against the building and the men would sit there on old pop crates. My dad always offered me the choice of a candy bar or a drink. It was a tough decision because I wanted both. My friends and I would usually engage in different games. Hide and Seek was most popular. Every now and then we played a game called fox and hounds that would involve running all over the hills looking for the one person chosen as the fox.

Life seemed simple. I never left this environment except on Thursdays. Most Thursdays in the summer were spent with my dad at the cattle market in Abingdon, VA. We would get there early in the morning. I would get to eat at the market restaurant. The auction would start after lunch, which went until late at night. One day my dad bought me a pony for $50.00. We took him home. The next morning I got the pony out early and got on his back without a saddle. He threw me off and ran away. We caught him at the top of the hill and although he never became a means of transportation, I loved the pony. I loved him so much that I gave him too much food and foundered him. His hoofs grew out like sled runners. When we finally had to sell him, it was sad to hear the auctioneer make fun of him. He didn’t bring much and I’m sure he was bought for slaughter.

A bicycle was my best means of travel as I grew a little older. My friend Randy taught me how to ride. I remember the straddle pain as I always fell too hard on the big bar between my legs. But, I mastered it and soon was riding miles to other communities. I began to scope out places to begin churches. I talked to my friends about using their garages. They were ready and excited but their parents must not have been. They never materialized. Ham Bone had an old horse and he let me ride behind him. The old horse was the slowest around but it was fun to ride. Summer included lots of creek adventures. It was fun to dam up the creek and make a swimming hole. We caught craw dabs. We worked the fields. Wow, life was simple.

Some summer nights were spent making molasses. We would go about a mile up the road to a neighbors farm where they were making molasses. They cut the cane during the day and put it through a machine that squeezed the juice out of the cane. Then in the evening they would put the juice in a large trough and begin cooking it over an open fire pit. It was a time for the men to gather around and talk while they skimmed the foam off of the molasses on the fire pit. As kids we spent most of our time jumping and playing on the 10 foot high pile of cane stalks that had been discarded. It was fun. When the molasses had been put into containers we were allowed to take little wooden paddles and eat some of the molasses that was still in the big trough. It was simple mountain life.

Then there was Bible School. Bible School was one of my favorite times of the year. I remember the taste of cherry Kool-Aid and cookies each day. On the final day we had a big picnic with plenty of sandwiches. For me this was a banquet. I remember the crafts. In the first years I remember making simple potato men. Later I remember bringing a picture from a magazine and putting it on a piece of wood and brushing a clear liquid over it. The lessons were good. One of my favorite was on the life of Paul and his travels taught by Mrs. Robinson. She was such a sweet teacher and seemed to care so much for the kids. We would sing and say pledges. We lined up and marched into the church. Life was simple. On Sunday mornings we would give a program with our skits and memory verses. I remember I played the part of the Rich Young Ruler. I acted while someone read the story. I always liked acting and took big parts in Christmas Programs. I liked to sing and I especially liked Christmas songs. Our Sunday school teachers would give us little gifts. I remember getting a life savor book with all the candy. I really liked that. I had been sick that Christmas and someone had brought the present to me. A simple life savor book is one of my most vivid memories of gifts I received.

I remember my dad buying me my first suit. We went to the local men’s store and I picked out a navy suit. I chose a light blue shirt and a striped tie. I wore the suit to church and everyone bragged on me. My mom wanted me to wear it every Sunday but I didn’t want to do that. I wore it for my school pictures. My friends were amazed at how good I looked, but some made fun of me. I weighed less than a hundred pounds going into high school so it was common to get picked on. I hated the first years of high school. I was so skinny that my shoulder blades looked like knots on my shoulders and I hated taking my shirt off for basketball. The boys always had to play shirts and skins. They flipped a coin to decide who was skins. I prayed hard to keep my shirt on. Life was getting harder.

In high school I felt a lot of pressure about being a Christian. I had given my life to the Lord in the summer after the 6th grade. By high school time I was already leading youth meetings. I went through a stage of being fanatical about things. I spoke against everything from watching TV to buying things on Sunday. I felt that I had to take my bible to school, which often caused ridicule in those days. I didn’t experience much freedom or joy in living for God. Every time I sinned in a way that was obvious, I felt I had to get saved all over. These were not public confessions but I spent the majority of my time in the woods crying out to God to help me with the sin in my life. In the winter I would drive the old farm truck to the back fields and just stay on my knees in the floor board crying out to God. I made an altar in my room. I remember a neighborhood woman visiting my mother and I heard them talking downstairs of how I probably would loose my mind over religion since I spent so much time alone.

Last fall I had a dream about being up in the mountains near my childhood home. As I came down from the mountain there was a Kentucky Fried Chicken Restaurant there in the mountains. After prayer about the interpretation of the dream I came to the conclusion that God was calling us back to some “Original Recipe“ in ministry. Original Recipe for me is going back to a lot of simple methods and simple vision that have come to me over the years. The more time I spend with the Lord I realize that God is not complicated. He is mysterious, magnificent and awesome but not complicated.

In the early years of ministry here in Bristol some friends were in town that week-end and one of them told me on Sunday morning that there would be woman come into our service with a black dress on. We are really contemporary and seldom does anyone wear a dress much less a nice formal black dress. But, there she was that morning just worshiping the Lord on the back seat. When the service was over she came up and gave me a simple encouragement. It was, “keep it simple”. I have always wondered if she may have been an angel.

In the past, we all may have gone through times when a crisis and controversy seemed to be happening often. These times may be becoming more intense but we must not give in to the pressure. We are part of a Kingdom that cannot be shaken. I believe the word for believers in these times is to simplify. We are called to bring peace to a world with increasing chaos. This can only happen as we increase our conversations and relationship with the Prince of Peace. The times of wastefulness and living our lifestyles on our ability to borrow are slowly coming to an end.
Let’s determine that we are going to enjoy these times! Scripture tells us that the Kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (see Romans 14:17 ) We need to demonstrate righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. We are told in Isaiah 60, that when darkness is covering the earth and deep darkness the people, the glory of the Lord is appearing on His people – and the nations will come to the light. We need to resolve to make some progress in getting our lives simpler and ourselves more free to do what we are called to do.