Amanuensis Monday - The Stories That Should Be Told, Part 65

The following transcription is from a series of recordings my father made in the early 1990s:

Riding down bitter pecan trees…

One of the things I remember doing was going to the swamp with the Juneau boys and riding down the bitter pecan trees.  J. E. was a year older than me and Mickum was a year younger than me.  We spent many a day playing together in the swamps.

Pecan Trees

The bitter pecan saplings were about thirty or thirty-five feet tall and about three or four inches in diameter.   We would wrap our arms and legs around those saplings and climb as far up as we could. 

The saplings were very limber and bent real easy.  We would try our best to make it to the top without them bending. 

Once we got to the top we would bend our bodies forward until the saplings would start tilting then we would ride them to the ground.  Man, what a ride!

The only time I saw one break was when Mickum had climbed to the top of one.  He was about thirty-five feet off the ground and calling out to me and J. E. because he wanted us to watch him ride it to the ground. 

We were busy running around and climbing other saplings.  He held it steady until he got our attention then he hollered, “Watch this!”

Just as he bent forward, the sapling snapped off right even with the ground and there he came.  It was a wonder it didn’t kill him. 

When he hit the ground, his body actually bounced!  We thought he was dead.  After a second or two he let out a wail and we knew he was still alive.

Rubber Band Guns…

Back in the 1930s we had to find ways to entertain ourselves.  We made toys such as bow and arrows and sling shots.  R. G. Price was always good at making bow and arrows. 

R. G. Price - early 1960s

One of the toys I remember was rubber band guns.  We’d take a board and cut out a pistol.  A clothespin would be placed on the backside of the handle.  Rubber bands were made by cutting an old inner tube.  One end of the rubber band would be stretched out over the barrel and the other end would be placed under the clothespin on the handle. 

When we were ready to shoot, we’d mash the clothespin to release the rubber band.  Those rubber bands would knock a dang blister on you if they hit you.  

Note:  Parts 1-64 of 'The Stories That Should Be Told' can be found in the Tags List on the right-hand side of the blog.