Sweet Sounds From Heaven

Seems such a shame we must grow up. Our childhood days are memories we will have forever. God placed us in the loving care of parents or sometimes grandparents, but nevertheless, someone always cared for us. Once Karen and I were reflecting on our past and she said, “Sandy, do you think God placed you in the wrong family?” I said, “no, because God doesn’t make any mistakes.” Even if our childhood isn’t what we would have chosen, God chose it and He always knows what He is doing.

Karen was sharing a time when she and Kerry were small. We spent some summers with grandpa and grandma Hensley in Whitetop. Since our mother died when we were young, we may have been living there. At any rate, it is some of our most precious memories.

She and Kerry would get up every day and make bologna sandwiches and head for Pond Mountain on foot. They traveled the road. On one occasion they met up with a big bull. A steep incline on one side and a deep drop off on the other. They were scared silly.

Suddenly a farmer came by with his big red tractor. He correctly evaluated the situation and saved the day. Just in the nick of time too, as the bull was charging in their direction. Don’t tell me we don’t have angels watching over us. They continued this daily all summer long. Playing in the creek, picking berries, and other fruit, and drinking from fresh springs. Being rescued from bulls and maybe even bears. If life could be so simple always. That explains why they are still so full of bologna today.

When I was in the first grade, we attended school in a one room school house. The grades ranged from first through the seventh. I had several girl friends, but I had to sit with a boy. Yuk! And worse, we had to share a book. I thought I might just die. It didn’t get any worse than this. My girlfriends got to sit with each other. Not me, I just knew life was against me early on.

One day, Betty Sue didn’t come to school. At lunch, I went down the hill to check on her. She was sick. I decided I would be sick too. We played all afternoon. We turned the bed into a trampoline. What fun we had. No one home, just us two sick ones. We were smart enough to watch the clock. I knew I needed to leave at 3:00 and go home. When the time came to leave, I simply went up the hill a little and down toward my home as if I had been at school all the time. Only trouble is, my teacher was there inquiring why Sandra Kay didn’t come back to school after lunch. Boy Oh Boy! Mama really loved me because she did not spare the rod that time. I never skipped school again. You know even though something may hurt, like spankings, that does not make it bad.

Another life long lesson was learned when I would follow Ambrose home. We were both given a penny. I lost mine so I stole another one. Before I went home I piled dirt on it and went straight to mama and said, “look what I found in the dirt.” Well, somehow that did not compute with her. The truth came out and I was whipped all the way back to Ambrose’s house to return the penny. They did not like me lying or stealing. Thank You Jesus for discipline. Proverbs 23:13 is still true today.

Preacher Lewis lived up on another hill. His wife took five of us girls in the community, all about the same age and we had Vacation Bible School. We met in an old warehouse across from Carter’s Store. I remember we had a stick and string and made a fishing pole. We cut fish out of colored paper and on the fish we wrote Matt. 4:19. No doubt, our lesson all week was “follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” We enjoyed VBS all week; we especially liked being together, we were all buddies.

You know, we might not think things like that amount to a hill of beans, but The Word of God is very powerful, Heb. 4:12. When I got right with God in 1978, one morning just as I was waking up, I remembered that week, those fishing poles and the scripture we wrote on the fish. I cried like a baby. God knew the time was coming when Mrs. Lewis’s VBS would impact my life. She is in heaven today, but one day I’ll get to thank her. Jesus, If you can make me a fisher of men, do it.

I was always a tomboy growing up. Running and playing was my middle name. I could fight with the best of ‘um. Gender didn’t mean a thing to me. Riding the bus was an adventure, and some kids would make fun of this new little girl because she was heavier. They would not let her sit next to them. When I took note of that, I beat the snot right out of all of ‘um. This little girl was given priority seating with me in the front row. That little girl, as it turned out was Carla Sue. a friend who sticks closer than a sister. Funny huh, God saw that coming too.

Karen, Kerry and I have precious memories of our childhood in Whitetop. Uncle Doyle often bought ice cream for me at the school store. I really liked that because he was very popular and I wasn’t even his girlfriend. He pulled us around on a rug to polish the hardwood floors, and pulled me to school on a sleigh when the snowdrifts were over my head. Karen and Kerry enjoyed rides on his shoulder. I enjoyed watching the older girls, Paige, Gladys, Freda, and others getting dressed for dates. They always looked so pretty when they came downstairs. All that fixin’ fascinated me.

Childhood is just part of growing up and one day I’m going to consider doing just that; not any time soon though, probably. Jesus said to come to Him as a little child, and I’m thankful we can do just that. It’s great when we have good childhood memories. But what really counts is not how we start out, but how we end up. Ending up is a given, growing up is an option. Just make sure you end up going up.

Filed under: True God Stories