Train Up A Child... A Dollar and a Prayer

That's me, the spoiled one, in the picture holdin' my mom Anna right there in the center! She was my world up there, and Jesus was her world! His love came out of her like a lightning bolt from a thunder storm! We look like the Beverly Hillbillies. Dad was always "shootin' up some food", except there was no 'bubblin' crude", no"black gold", no "Texas tea"!

We grew up dirt poor but I didn't really know it until I got in school. Neither of our parents ever had a drivers license in their lifetime! My dad Vurl was a very hard workin' Laborer but he was drinkin' then, so times were, well they were just different.

My oldest brother Tom, on the left, the prodigal, was much older, and he left home early in my childhood. I only heard of the troubles at home from him later in our lives. The rest of us were all two years apart. My sister Carol, "the worrier", looked after us while mom toiled at the Brown Shoe Company a block away from our home. My brother Carl, the natural athlete on the far right, went to be with Jesus in 1983. Maybe he knew and that's why he had such a smile on his face. My brother Harry was the thinker of the family. Strong mind and probably as "strong willed" as my dad, and he was determined to be successful in life!

Train up a child in the way he should go, And even when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 Children learn what they live. I was no exception. I was a hard learner, but I finally got it. Unfortunately the shrapnel left behind has tragically impacted so many lives has been a lot to bear. Sorry mom! I wish I had listened and understood sooner! As a kid growing up, I didn't see the struggles that our parents went through. They were proud, yet not prideful. Never accepted anything for free, especially a government handout! I never heard the words I Love You come out of my dad's mouth, but it was understood by the way he provided for us. Never wanted for anything. Always plenty of food in the house. Mom was probably most disappointed and embarrassed by the appearance of the house, but she kept it clean! She said "God promised her a mansion in heaven", and down here didn't matter. John 14, by the way. This is just a glimpse of how I grew up and my perspective on life. Walking With Jesus Daily, comes as a result of trying to turn my life around and actually walking the walk. Talk is cheap and when the rubber meets the road, where you stand with Jesus is all that really matters!