Ears To Hear # 99

TRAIL  OF  TEARS

 

          What sweet memories I have of my childhood in Norwood, Louisiana.  The tall Magnolia trees with their fragrant, yet delicate flowers, so easily bruised by the hands of man.  And the damp, pungent scent of brown fallen leaves when crunched in our small hands to inhale their unique aroma.
          Today I received a letter from my past, showing me a trail of tears  I had not been aware of as a child playing under the Magnolia trees.
          I was placed in Aunt Catherine’s care while my mother was going through a time of illness in Beaumont.  That’s all I knew.  Although I missed my parents, I wouldn’t trade for my time in Norwood and the experiences I had there in and around the old plantation home of Aunt Catherine and Uncle Tom.

THAT SPECIAL TRAIL

          As my cousin shared the history of my family, I saw a consistent trail running through that history.  Aware of both the dark and light sides of my ancestors, for me it was the women who rose to the Light.
          Men have their own stories of valor and love of God, but it was the persistent love of the mothers that held their families together.  Oh, the heart ache many of these women endured.  The pushing on when their physical bodies were overworked.  They were once young and I enjoy picturing them at that stage in their life, but as I read the end of their stories I know they never gave up.  How could they, when there were always more children and grandchildren to love, pray for, and often raise?
          I only know them through the eyes of a child about six years old.  These women are in Heaven now and have received their rewards.  I don’t think Aunt Catherine knew then, how much God was working with her to give me such dear memories.  She simply worked from a heart of love for God and people.  She did what her hands found to do…whether making butter, gathering eggs, washing clothes and babies, waiting on her husband…and looking forward to reading her Bible and taking her children to church.
          Children require a lot of work and she had a hand full; two boys and three girls.  I know for sure it was her relationship with our Lord that gave her the strength, power, and joy, to complete her race on earth.  Surely, it was God’s Love in her that made room for one more child (me) when I needed a safe place to go.  “Thank you, Aunt Catherine.”
          And, as some of the gaps were being filled in for me on my family history, I understood more the love my earthly father had for his sister, Catherine.  They, and their brother Emmett all loved the Lord.  There were many brothers, but these three were the closest.
          So, Daddy sent me to live with the one person he could count on to care for me in her special Christian environment.  “It worked, Dad.  Thanks.”
          I’m certain Daddy was praying for Aunt Catherine and me, when I was too young to know how to pray for myself.

GOD’S  WORD

          God’s Word was Aunt Catherine’s source of strength.  She was a small woman, but empowered by the Love of God.   I see a little of myself in her now because I too, love God’s Word so much.  We both have that same unquenchable desire to share His Word.
          One of my last memories of Aunt Catherine is her sitting before Uncle Tom, who had become blind, and reading  God’s Word to him.  In a way, we had to smile because at last, Uncle Tom couldn’t get away from the Word.  I think he was receiving comfort from the scriptures, but I don’t know. 
          I don’t remember much about Uncle Tom except that he was a builder and always at work.  Except the time, he climbed up in the fig tree and peeled figs with his pocket knife, then passed them down to my younger brother and me.  Aunt Catherine was the heart of the home and I experienced the fruit of the Spirit in her gentle, kindness.

SEEDS  PLANTED

          Even to the end, Aunt Catherine endured to share her love of God and His Word with Uncle Tom.  I know our Father counted her faithful.
          The seeds of God’s Word that she planted in her children have produced more than we can know.  Now that some of them have gone on to glory and others are aging, we look at the big picture and see the result of her endurance of Love.
          “Train up a child in the way he/she should go and when they are old, they will not depart from it.” [paraphrased].  Proverbs 22:6.  This must have been her motto.  From what I see, the seeds she planted took root.  Some may have not looked like it at times, but in the end, we knew they had.
            Yes, it took work.  But it was a labor of Love.  And Love planted, produces more seeds of Love to pass on to the next generation.

                                  DARK  AND  LIGHT

          By looking at the dark and light seeds of my history, I was made aware of how Aunt Catherine protected me from the dark.  She kept me close at home.  Between her and God in partnership, I was not exposed to the dark, only the Light.  Praise God.  My parents did the same.

A  SPECIAL  JOY   

          Another small lady I never met in person, is my dad’s mother, my Grandmother Garig, Mary Sophia Boatner Garig, born in 1856.  Information passed on to me is that she took all her children (seven) to camp meetings in a wooded area across the creek.  We think she was Amish. 
          “Grandmother Garig used to take all her children  down the Thompson Road  across Thompson Creek  to a week long Camp meeting.  She was Amish .  Grandpaw did not go along  but Daddy used to tell the story of the Bible Horse Rider  who came around about once a year and stayed a long time.”, one of my cousins said.
          When I looked up “Amish” on the internet I was amazed at how much of what they believed remains with me today.  AMISH RELIGION. BELIEFS – “Amish people are a private people who believe that God has called them to ... obedience to Gods will. Amish people interpret the Bible literally and directly.”
          So, some seed fell on good ground; took root and sprang up.  Others fell by the wayside.  But, all had the same opportunity.  I’m so glad that the seed of God’s Word was received in my earthly father’s heart and was passed on to me.

My Dad
Gustavus Adolphus Garig
PICTURE

          I wish I had a picture of my dear Aunt Catherine.  I do have one in my heart.  But through the divine provision of our Lord, I do have this one of her mother:  my Grandmother.

Grandparents
Henry Harrison Garig  (1856-1930)
 Mary Sophia Boatner Garig
OTHER  WOMEN

          Other women who prospered in spite of hardships in that small community of my experiences in Norwood, were Aunt Gertrude and Aunt Sylvia, who are now in Heaven.
          The two cousins I remain close to are Little Sister (Aunt Catherine’s daughter) and Dorothy June (Aunt Gertrude’s daughter).  I don’t remember Aunt Sylvia very well, but she had to be a hard working, dedicated, woman of God to raise as many children as she did.  I’ve heard that she was a very kind woman and also raised some of her grandchildren.
          I haven’t kept up with my many other cousins, but these two have also produced seed after their kind.  They follow in the steps of their pioneer mothers and grandmother.

FAMILY  IS  IMPORTANT

          Yes, I see the “trail of tears” running through the history of my life as I am sure you can see in your own history.  Yet, I admire these women more than I can say.  They literally gave their lives to protect their families.
          God said His Word would not return void, and for me…my History Proves It. 
          Isaiah 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it.

Aunt Catherine’s Front Porch

At least the way I saw it from under the Magnolia Tree.