Terry Peal

"Blackie" Grandaddy Peal's "katty kat" as he would call him is now with Grandi. Grandaddy raised Blackie ever since he was a little kitten, or runt lol. No one knows where Blackie went but we all assume he went to be with his dad. Grandi loved Blackie and his two brothers that he found up under the trailor. They were so small Meem had to feed them by bottle. Grandi gave one of Blackie's brothers away when they started to get bigger and the guy he gave him to neglected him so he ended up going home to be with Jesus too. The other katty kat had an accident in the road one day down the street from their house and Grandaddy got him and he his buried back in their back yard. After this Blackie really seemed sad. Then, Grandi left him so he was really sad. He always stayed stuck up in a tree somewhere and got in fights. But then there were times when he would sit for hours and hours in Grandaddys windowsill in his bedroom. No one would know where he was at until he came strutting out of his bedroom, even though Grandi's room door always stayed shut. I think Blackie knew he was going to go find his dad because he left a litter of kittens behind. And one looks and acts just like Blackie....white patch on his neck and all.

  See a pic of Blackie on the main page

I remember in the summer when it's hot like it is now, Dad would wear his favorite white t-shirt to work. It was my favorite t-shirt too. He would work outside all day in the heat, then come home and work some more in the yard, or the river, or with the boys. He is the best!!  From your son

 I wrote this for a project in class I had to do! It was called my favorite childhood memory!

The Legendary Plum Tree

 

 

 

     In the summer the sun was born again, where it rose high into the sky to stay until it the winter put it out like a candle. When the sun beamed down on us during those summers, it seemed to come from somewhere unknown, like a martian from outer space zapping our senses. It was hot enough in those days to fry and egg on a sidewalk, yet none of us seemed to mind the heat. In fact we thrived for the heat.

    In the midst of the sticky, hot summer afternoons, after Grandpa had finished his work for the day, he headed straight home for whatever Grandma had on the table. Usually supper consisted of roast or chicken and macaroni for me. But for Grandpa and Grandma, a handpicked, juicy red tomato or spicy pepper from the garden and a salad. After our bellies were poked out and full enough to burst, we would lie down for a short nap or kick back in a chair to watch our favorite baseball team, the Atlanta Braves, play baseball on television.

     “Want to have a plum fight”? I would exclaim after the game would finally go off. After a few minutes of pleading with my Grandfather, he got up put his belt and cap back on, and out the door we went. You may be thinking, a plum fight? Well, over the years and maybe even before our family claimed that land, their stood a plum tree. On that plum tree, you could find the biggest; round violet plums you had ever or would ever see!

 

    They didn’t grow there for eating or making jams though. They produced for one thing and one thing only. And that was to be thrown. Around the yard we would run and hide, only to be caught and hit with a plum from whoever was lurking nearby. My grandfather got around like a young boy and I got around a whole lot better then too. But, I guess when a plum is being tossed towards you at 10-20 miles per hour, you would run and try to dodge someone too!

    The best part about our plums was the fun they bore. The laughter, the memories, and the legend that will be told for generations to come all grew right there on that tree.  Now, the plum tree stands no more. It was elderly and so, from the ground it was born and to the ground it returned. Yet, my favorite childhood memory, maybe the only memory of sheer contentment, will live forever in my heart and somewhere in the south a plum tree will grow and become a delight to a child and a grandparent the way ours was to us. 

                

I had another dream about Grandi the other night. That vision is staying with me, as well. In my dream, he had come back. We were all so happy to see him. He was laughing and sitting in the chair he always sat in to eat. i touched his hair and remember saying "Its so soft !" Just like I did the last time time I touched his hair, the last time I saw him.

Grandi is always and always has taken care of the ones he loves the most. He still is and I know for a fact. Grandi was always worried about me getting around. My old truck wasn't much. It barley got me by, yet it did. He was always saying how we were going to get me something else. He wanted me to have a Nissan Sentra. He in fact drove a Nissan truck himmself. (One of the nicest trucks in the world) And December 27, 6 months and 1 day after he left us, I finally got a brand new 2007 Nissan Sentra. The very car he had wanted me to have all along. Now you may say that thats not a coincidence. Well, I can prove it is. I DO love my car. But before I could never ever imagine buying a brand new car. That was beyond my wilddest dreams. I thought I would always drive pre-owned lot financed vehicles. Not that that is a bad thing. It's just that I never could imagine driving or owning something in my name that was so nice and didnt cost under $3000. And not only do I believe Grandi helped me get that new car but also is watching out for me in other troubled areas.  I believe Grandi is watching out for everyone he loves. He is by far the sweetest person I ever knew. And I'm not just saying that because he was my grandfather. If I had only met him on the street I wouldv'e thought the same thing