mizmollye: They Say A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words

And I reckon I got several thousand pictures so set back an take a load off an I'll talk a little of how it wuz up on James Mountain so many many year ago ...........................

Here we go with me a'swingin agin. Reuben said, "Put on the shiney little frock, MollyeLou an let ole Pa make a purty photo of ya way up in the air". Well course I always pert near did whut Reuben wanted so I did an there you kin see how very much I did like hit. I always favored being up on the swings. My hair would fall back an the breeze would ketch me an I'd go to thankin on all the nice thangs I loved ponderin on. Hit kindly taken me outta myself somehow an Reuben knowed all this.

This here is a photo of my twin sissy, Emmy Lou in the center. Her hair turned white at an early age. She had a bad fright when she wuz pregnant with her first youngin, Matilda Lou an her hair just turned over night. She wuz pickin here with some of the folks from the Holiness Church. The gal on the right hand side is Sis Bertie an you kin see the snakes around her neck. Emmy Lou never payed em any mind. Them slithery thangs made my skin crawl an I stayed fer away from em when they'd go to shoutin an praisin with em.

My lil Georgie Lou a lookin at her ma with them big ole purty brown eyes a'sayin "tote me"

This ole boy wuz wailing til the cows come home. He wuz called "Jerkin Jack". I never figgered that one out but most names back then weren't gave too much thought to.

Heres Bubba Tom. He wuz a wood cutter an if you look real close like you kin sure see that he had some nubs fer fingers. His ole lady shore did like the whiskey. Her name wuz Lucy Clara an we all thought she wuz nuts.

A sweet photo of Suzie Lou a listenin to the shell. Lordy she had an imagination that would keep the frogs a hoppin. Lookit the flowers she put up in her hair.

This heres a photo of Mister Lee Lonzo showin city folks how to cane an weave.

Miz Hawkins the library lady ( I think her first name wuz Sadie Lou) She had latched onto an ole boy that come in lookin fer a book on how to start his own bizness. She had took a real good likin to him an his citified ways.

Mercy sakes this wuz the year our apple crop wuz so good an bountiful. The good Lord really had blessed us with some good apples that year. We had made fritters, butter and stewed the rest.

Right good photo of our kitchen in the cabin up in the Tennessee hills

An this un speaks fer itself here

Reuben shot this in the parlor showin Suzie Lous fiddle. She had grew tired of pickin it an had took up blowin on the flute. That theres the flute you kin see next to the fiddle. She jest had the natural act fer the music. Reuben caned the chair the fiddle is settin on.

Our little holiness church down from the holler. Lord but we did praise yore sweet name down there. This wuz took right after Sis Bertie had took sick from handlin them snakes at the alter an wuz bit right mean like on her breast.

Lookey here at Preacher Jones a marryin Reubens brother up with ole Irma Dell. If you look real close you kin see the shadow of ole Irma Dells Pa's shotgun to the back of Reuben's brother Luther. They wuzn't either one of them a'smilin. Boys ole Irma Dell wuz a right plump in the middle here. But like my own ma always said, "If a body can't say somethin nice, a body hadn't outta say nothin attal". So I'l be a hushin now.

This'n wuz took by somebody unknownst to me. It were Reubens granpap an granny a'settin an enjoyin some dinner on the ground. But I can't rightly recollect who wuz who as fer as the youngins wuz concerned. They shore did look like a right hungry bunch though.

One of the Hackberry Ramblers that Reuben wuz keen to. He wuz knowed as Ernest Alvin. I didn't cotton too much to him but Reuben (bless his heart) wuz always good to all.

Quite an interestin photo here cause the ole feller on the left end is ole Peanut McCoy who wuz a moonshiner an an auctioneer of sorts an he wuz a'tryin to talk Reubens brothers, Sammy Earl an Shelby Oscar into a'lettin him auction off that ole piano. That there piano wuz gave to them boys by their granmammy an them James boys wuz slick an ole Peanut went away wonderin whut had took place cause he wuz jest not able to have his way with them boys.

Mercy ain't this a cute photo of little Luke when he wuz about 8 year old. He wuz peerin thru the screen door at the porch a'wantin to surprise his mammy with a little posey. He wuz plum tickled.

I wuz jest standin waitin on Luke to hand me the posey an Reuben wuz right there with his camera. He wuz always around when a eventful thang wuz a'happenin. He purely nearly captured all the special times on his camera. Lord whut a blessin when his mammy found that thang in the Sears an Roebuck christmas book.

I swear this is a real doozey. Ole cousin Geraldine Louise with Reubens ole lab, Emma Lou. That girl weren't playin with a full load. She had jest pulled her good hat off an tied it on ole E. L. I swear she could jest tickle her own self with all her silliness.

The cutest little red barn my pappy made fer his grans. Boys my pappy wuz handy with the wood an he liked makin them little surprises fer his babies.

Lookit the youngins little goats. The lefthand one on top wuz little Luke's an he called hit "Bushy Tail". Then the one aside hit were Jakey's an it were called "Jumper". The one in front on the left hand side were Suzie Lou's and she caller her "Miss Clever Girl" an there on the right side end in the front wuz Georgie Lou's goat "Old Red Neck" a'wearin a red coller naturally. Boys them youngins shore had a time with them goats.

Heres Reuben James' yeller lab, Emma Lou an her first litter. She had 6 girls an 3 boys. We named all of em. They wuz: Cassie Lou, Evie Lou, Gertie Loe, Nettie Lou, Lacey Lou, Ruthie Lou, Lou Arthur, Lou Arnold, an Lou Alvin. She wuz so proud of her brood. This photo wuz took on the ridge overlookin our place up in Tennessee. The youngins had fun with them pup-pups.

Reuben had took a good photo here of ole Emma Lou an Booger. They had puppy love in their heart fer one another. Poor ole E. L. She shore wuz age'n here.

A good un of Booger Junior. The youngins had saved an saved their pennies to git that purty red collar. Boys ole Booger Junior really had took to that thang. Seemed like he jest held his ole head a little higher after that.