Yesterday after supper we walked down to Austin and Chatter’s to eat a piece of key lime pie and help organize the nursery. Chatter’s due date is almost here.
By the time we finished it was after 9:00 and dusky dark was about gone.
When I was growing up here in Wilson Holler there were less houses than now. My grandparents lived in the first house as you come into the holler. In my earliest memories there was a trailer below them that my uncle Ray and his family lived in until him and Pap built a house between our’s and Papaw and Mamaw’s.
Changes happened over the years. Mamaw died and Papaw gave his house to my other uncle. That meant more cousins to play with in the holler.
Ray went farther up the mountain and built another house leaving his oldest daughter and her family to make a home in his first house.
My older brother Steve and his wife forged into the woods behind the big garden and Pap helped them build a house.
There was well worn foot-paths between all of the houses. Although long gone from the contours of the land they still remain in the maps of my mind.
Winter, summer, fall, and spring found us visiting one with another. Often those visits didn’t end till after dark, but we didn’t need flashlights nor even the light of the moon for our feet knew the way.
As The Deer Hunter, Chitter, Ira, and me walked home in the dark last night I realized Ira is the fourth generation of my family to travel the trail up from Pap’s big garden. Knowing both our grandsons will live in a holler with foot-paths leading from house to house makes my heart full and happy.
Last night’s video: Matt Oversaw the Tomato Planting & Granddaddies Can Help You Find the Cows.
Tipper
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Your story so reminded me of visiting my cousins in WV. We would walk down the dirt road from one Aunts house to another.
And to think that your GRANDsons will one day do that. That’s priceless.
Tipper,
Thank you for praying for Rick. He passed at 8:46 last night peacefully thanks to Jesus. I appreciate you and the girls taking the time to pray for all of us.❤️
Sally Jo
Sally Jo-I’m so sorry. We will pray for God’s peace and comfort to surround you!!
Sally Jo, please accept my sincere sympathy and prayers. May God watch over you.
May God comfort you all.
So beautiful!!! Love & prayers for you all & especially for Corey, Austin & Baby as their special day draws near !!!
What a blessing to have your grandchildren so near and to be able to be such a part of everyone’s life this way!!
There is something so special about your post, Tipper. Strong family bonds, a love for life in the holler – living off the land with your gardening. Living in the country (Indiana) with corn all around me – I’ve learned to really appreciate it while you wait for yours to come to life. Many people only dream to have the life you and your family have. You are indeed a blessing to us all. Thank you for sharing.
This made me recall 2 memories, one from many decades ago and one from fairly recent history. One, i recall as a child seeing the shadows the leaves made in the moonlight on the ground, the way it made to ground look 2 toned. The other is, we met a distant cousin from far away, who had never known her father or any of his family. After acquaintance was made, she used to visit occasionally. Once she said she liked to walk over the homeplace while she was here and wonder if her dad had walked where she was now. That was sad to me, for her.
This was just what my heart needed today. I’m 60 years old. I grew up in “the sticks” in Western New York state. Often, when I was younger, and we were driving through the woods, I’d think about the young folks who grew up in the area. I would think about the young men who would walk those long, dark country roads to court a girl. As a young, romantic thinking, young girl, I’d wonder if a young man would be willing to do that in my current day and age.
My heart would surely be filled to over flowing with such an incredible blessing. Love seeing the warmth from the lights in the house as ya’ll walk up that hill.
Thanks, Tipper. These memories are so close to my own memories of time spent with family. Nearly all of our family is gone ahead of us now. Just my sister and I are left with our little families. It puts my in the mind of lovely days gone by and joyful reunions to come. I am so grateful for the family I grew up in. Walking home after dark with family is an experience I am grateful I had. I loved the safety I felt walking close to my Dad. Thanks for this beautiful post.
Our house, here in south east pennsylvania, is in a situation similar to your property. My father-in-law lives at the bottom of the hill from our house. My two brothers-in-law live at the bottom of the hill and in back of our house. The property was my husband’s family farm. It’s strange how we can walk from house to house in total darkness [not many street lights out here in the country] and not be afraid. All the sounds and smells being so familiar. But to walk, even at dusk, in an unfamiliar area can be unnerving. The picture you included reminds me of us walking up the hill to our house.
So Heartwarming
Thank you Miss Tipper. Memories so close to the heart and my mind, a tear or two also. Family, the way it used to be. Loved your piece today. Please Keep it going for us who can’t say how we feel about things, the way you do. Love, prayers and hugs to all the Wilson and Presley family. God bless y’all today, tomorrow and always.
I can see in the near future Matt building a solar lit trail down to Corie and Austin’s home. Those sweet little boys will be running back and forth for many years to come.
You are so blessed. What wonderful memories and the tradition will continue with the fourth generation.
What a great post today and the photo is worth framing!
As the boys get older can’t you just hear Ira yelling at his cousin “hey come up hear and play.”
Tipper you and your family are so blessed to live within walking distance to each other. I am truly happy for you all! I pray it always stays that way for many generations to come.
My family is now spread out in four different states with extended families in four more different states. Where I grew up my immediate family was in walking distance to two of our uncle’s families. Only one of the cousins was closest to my age, but I’d walk to visit them when I got old enough to go out on my own. Which my youngest member was around 6 visiting one of my uncles just one street over. This past Monday my husband and I was traveling back from visiting one of my sisters in Ohio and stopped by my hometown to visit my oldest sister in WV. Afterwards we decided to drive by the house I grew up in since it was not too far away from my oldest sister’s lovely home and well manicured yard. She still finds a way to keep it up with beautiful plants to highlight the brick ranch style home. She and her husband even at their age take pride in keeping it looking beautiful. Driving just a block over I was shocked at what I saw. The beautiful neighborhood I had grown up in looked like the slums one sees on TV shows. The houses are all falling apart, yards way over grown to the point one could barely see the houses. Then I saw my childhood home. I almost cried. The well groomed little front yard that was loaded with beautiful flowers my mom took pride in growing, now looks like an abandon junk yard. The back yard which was the biggest yard in the neighborhood and we called the field since we grew our big garden there, now looks like an over grown jungle. My heart was broken to see how bad our childhood neighborhood had gown to ruins. We drive by my cousins childhood homes and both of their neighborhoods were just as bad. I told my sister that no one seems to take pride in their homes anymore, much less care about their neighborhoods. It’s sad to see what use to be beautiful, caring and safe neighborhoods destroyed, not be war or natural disasters, but by pure lack of human interest, caring or pride. Sad.
Tipper & Matt – I do not know you all personally, but it makes my heart full, happy and smile too, to be a bystander to the specialness of family love and unity you all have. You bless us all with sharing your lives with us. May these last days of waiting for Corie be easy ones. Looking forward to rejoicing with you all for the new one’s arrival. I uphold you all in prayer.
this post was so full of imagery that I could almost see it all…that made me cry…it made me think of all the places I lived and going back to visit ..it’s just not the same..I’m glad your family has that continuance… praying for your next addition to your family…
Odd you should post today. Your words about feet knowing the path are especially timely, I just reset and leveled a stepping stone path to our door. Our feet do not yet know the change. One stone in particular has more edge than any other. It is just enough that it needs remembered now until our feet know the way. Right now though the path feels unfamiliar still. I can’t get over how I can sense the small difference. We are truly fearfully and wonderfully made!
One of the sweetest things about you, Tipper, is your love for your family. Thank you so much for sharing that with your readers and for sharing the love you have for your “holler” and the memories you have of your life there.
This post brought a flood of memories to me and I’m grateful to you for that, too.
May God continue to bless you and those you love.
There is so much to admire (and envy) with this way of life! Congrats on the upcoming birth.
I will be visiting several hollers for Decoration Day where my parents and their family walked when they were growing up. Most of the kin who walked those dark hollers are buried there now. There’s no reason to walk now as a one-lane road leads to the footpath where Mom, Dad, baby brother, Mammy, and Pap rest among relatives. The cemetery is high on a mountain that is surrounded by trees. I get the most spooked and lonesome feeling in broad daylight and no amount of money could make me walk those hollers after dark. My paternal grandparents are buried in a historical cemetery that is even farther up a holler and harder to get to. It’s not as spooky but sadder with hundreds of rocks marking all but a handful of graves.
“There was well worn foot-paths between all of the houses. Although long gone from the contours of the land they still remain in the maps of my mind.” I love this, Tipper, as it brings back fond sweet memories of my childhood and the path that took me to my grandparent’s house where my aunt and uncle also lived. Although far removed from it now the visions of that beautiful place remain in my memory and my heart. This was an especially sweet post, Tipper. What a joy it is to have our family nearby!
That phrase “in the maps of my mind” is pure poetry. It stopped me and made me read the sentence again. Good writing!
That was beautiful. What a blessing to have your family so close. I can only imagine the joy you must feel, knowing your grandchildren will be living and growing in such a beautiful and loving environment.
What wonderful memories and the promise of new memories to come with your grandsons. Nothing beats a good piece of dirt with roots! And yall’s little piece of dirt is sure gonna’ have deep roots with four generations there! Love it!
Your grandsons couldn’t have a better way to grow up. I’m just curious, but is Ira a family name? It’s one you don’t hear very often anymore.
Continuity and tradition are genuine blessings. God bless y’all.
What brand of popsicle do you eat?
That’s the way it was when I was young, we all lived back in a holler and we all were kin. If we visited one another and time got away with us it would be dark and we would have to walk home in the dark. We got scared a few times going home.
You are so blessed. Take care and God bless ❤️
In my mind I can see your family walking through the holler back to your house. I could walk to my grandma’s house from ours when I was a child, but if it was dark. I ran as fast as I could.
Not so much to do with walking home after dark but more to do with visiting our family members, I lived beside my Mother and Daddy and maternal grandparents and could see them everyday. When I was a child we would go visit my paternal grandparents (23 miles) ever Sunday afternoon after the morning church service. My wife and I lived 5 miles from her parents and grandparents. She called them during the week and ever Sunday between the church services would visit them. Her 4 sisters, brother in laws and nephews, nieces,and grandchildren would also be there and as well as other family members- sometimes 20 or more. We would sometimes go at night during the week, I loved spending time and talking to my father in law. I also remember a time when neighbors would visit one another. I am the 3rd generation of my family to live on my property, last week I deeded my property to my son, he will be the 4th generation. I am blessed to have a son like him and have no worries about him selling it and kicking me out. Being able to live and visit family members everyday was worth more to me than any amount of money, success or career I may have had by moving away.
Tipper, your commentary this morning harkened back memories of years gone by.
60 + years ago the description you gave could have been any hollow around here.
The names of those hollows quite often told you what family lived there ( Green Hollow, Peters Hollow…) seems like now most kids move on leaving there family land to become developed by some out of state group with dreams of profit, giving the area manufactured communities with no connection to the past. Families use to live close to help their aging parents, but that too seems something from the all to distant past
Listen to Tall Weeds and Rust by the Tennessee Bluegrass Band on YouTube. I have to Google it, I don’t know any other way. I think this song goes right along with your comment.
“Although long gone from the contours of the land they still remain in the maps of my mind.”
Tipper, you have such a way with words, it amazes me many times with the gift you have. You can instantly take me back to the “good old days” and good times. You keep us remembering the past and looking to the future. You are a treasure. Love and prayers to Granny and the Little Mamas and all of you too.
Yes, that sentence jumped out at me too. It’s like a line of poetry, evoking memories and creating instant pictures in my mind. Thank you for your blog, Tipper, that blesses so many of us. Ruth from South Carolina
I just loved the whole experience you shared with us! What beautiful and comforting memories and thoughts flood your soul. You’re very fortunate indeed! I can only dream of the family and love that surrounds you because my life has been a struggle with very little joy even in my childhood. I’m glad you have what you have and it’s not materials. Some of us never were that fortunate and never hope to be. All my best to you and yours this day!
The thought of walking on paths that have been there for years between your homes sounds heavenly to me. How sweet for you to know your grandsons will be there with you and able to see you anytime they wish. When my grandchildren come to stay in the summer, we often stay outside after dark running and playing…catching fireflies..roasting hotdogs and marshmallows over a fire…or just listening for owls as Pap (hubby) calls to them. There’s something special about being out after dark…just enjoying the day that you aren’t ready to be over yet. It has to be super special to be able to walk home after dark—no cars needed. I enjoyed your video of planting your tomatoes last evening. We got all of our tomatoes staked; and then a nice rain came yesterday morning, and it looks like they grew overnight. It is just much more enjoyable to plant and take care of our garden now that we are retired. We have always loved gardening, but having plenty of time makes it more fun. I wish you, your family, and everyone a beautiful day!❤️
What a sweet story and legacy.
Tipper, I guess cause we are sisters in Christ, while reading this update my heart welled with happiness for you. I could actually feel your gratitude for the life and family God gave you.
It’s like being happy for a well loved family member when they get a promotion, accomplished a goal etc.
God bless you and thank you for making my day!
Sweet memories!
This is one of best, if not the very best, blog post writings I have seen in the past decade and more. It exudes connection to place, history and sentiment from every word.
It is nice to know your family is in short distance down the path. This is not that way with families today. As I try to keep the tradition of decorating graves, I will travel an hour away.
Oh my…that was such a beautiful entry, Tipper. You evoked so many memories for me. I’m so glad that you did. As long as we live, those times live in our minds and hearts. I’m very glad that another generation will be walking those paths in your holler. My homeplace is vacant now, but it still lives in the memories of sibblings and cousins. All that our offspring have of that time are the assorted stories that are passed down. It’s good that your people have that blessed patch of planet earth to continue living on. That makes your stories more tangible and alive for the next generation.
That truly is something special that not many of us get to experience anymore. You are one blessed lady. Thank you for sharing your gift with us!
What a blessing to have all those memories and the ones to come too. Heaven on earth!
I can totally and absolutely relate to multiple generations living on the same land!!! I live on land that has been in my family since the early 1800’s.
The beauty of the photo with this post brought tears to my eyes. The hill, the mountain, the lights in the windows, and those paths surviving generations; that photo tells how life was meant to be lived. That photo should be blown up, printed, framed, and gifted to every member of your family. If you made it available, I would buy it in a heartbeat. It takes my breath away.
A beautiful post of memories.