Monroe & Hattie

I took this picture Wednesday afternoon on the way to my sister’s house. This is the house that Monroe and Hattie used to live in many years ago. Monroe could holler louder than any man I ever knew. It was a laugh combined with a holler that rolled out of his mouth to amuse anyone who happened to be near by. That was his claim to fame in our area of the country. You could hear him for what seemed like miles around. Monroe worked for farmers in the area as a farm hand. Hattie took in washing and ironing. They never drove a car or had a telephone. There was never a need for these modern conveniences in their lives. I can still picture in my mind Monroe walking home from the little country store carrying his carton of Coca-Colas in one hand and waving with the other.

They raised a garden each year. Hattie canned vegetables for them to eat during the long winter months. I remember the smell of the coal burning in the old pot belly stove. To me, it was a smell of cozy comfort on a cold winter night.

They were simple plain people of yesterday. They were good God fearing people. They were people that helped their neighbors in times of need. They worked hard for everything that they had and were always willing share. They lived the simple life of days gone by. People like that are few and far between now days.

They both passed away many years ago and all that is left is the memory of Monroe’s yell and Hattie’s beautiful smile. I can picture him sitting on the front porch after a long day of work waiting for Hattie to join him to enjoy the cool breeze on the porch.

I thought of these precious people not so long ago when I caught the smell in the cold night air of coal burning.

Lesa