Skip to main content

Cotton


Ofactory systems are amazing.  Scientists say it is our oldest sense, and the last one to go before our final breath.  How strong is this sense of smell?  In most people, it is extremely strong. Right now, think about leaves burning in the fall.  Can you smell it? Think about Christmas with its pines and cedars.  I can remember and smell Christmas in the hottest summer months.  Think about waking up to the smell of coffee and bacon; how tomato plants smell when you touch them; riding down a country road when honeysuckles are blooming.  Anybody??



A few days ago, Hub and I were riding near the bend of the river, where hundreds of acres of cotton are grown every year.  The cotton has not been defoliated, and the cotton bolls are just now beginning to open.

It has been about fifty years, a half century, since my family had cotton fields. During that time, we have gone from being children to grandparents. Our party lines have been replaced by little phones that contain the whole world.  Our beloved three-channel televisions have been replaced by a multitude of opportunities to be entertained. My hair has changed colors many times, finally reaching its present state of snowy white.



As soon as we reached the first field, I could smell the cotton.  I'm guessing it is a memory that is too deeply etched in my brain to ever go away.ur ol

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Amish in Stantonville, Tennessee

Last week, my sis and her hub went with us to the Amish community near Stantonville, Tennessee.  It was a beautiful day, and we love driving to new places and finding new treasures.  We enjoy these mini-trips we take together, where we giggle a lot and get caught up on everything.  Also, the squirrels ate all our tomatoes, so we needed to find some to buy. You know the food you are buying is fresh when they bring it from the field while you are standing there waiting for it. Here is part of what we brought home, and it was all delicious. Stantonville is located in McNairy County, Tennessee, northwest of Shiloh National Military Park.

100 miles or less: Rattlesnake Saloon

The Rattlesnake Saloon was opened on Labor Day, 2009.  Dining there is an unique experience. It is way out in the boonies in Colbert County, Alabama.  It is hard to get to, even for locals, but they have had visitors from all over the United States and many countries throughout the world. Sitting comfortably under the huge rock overhang, I couldn't help but think about the people who have sought shelter there from storms or heat.  I can imagine the Native Americans using this place for a meeting area or a dry place to camp for a while.  Not so many years ago, it was used as a pig pen. They have good food and live music and a hitching post if you want to ride your horse there.  Most of us were picked up in a pickup, called the "Saloon Taxi", that runs from the parking lot to the restaurant continuously while they are open. The Rattlesnake Saloon is aptly named.  During construction, workers unearthed a mother rattler with twelve babie...

Out of the Dirt: Bragg-ing

Like every reader, I have my favorite writers. There have been so many that have stirred my emotions and made me a part of their world, and I'm thankful for that. The one is love the best, the one I cherish , is Rick Bragg. Yesterday, Rick was in our area. We were privileged to see a newly released documentary about his life called Out of the Dirt . Afterwards, he talked to us about family and roots. His first book, All over but the Shoutin' , was recommended to me years ago. Very early in the book, I was thinking, "Who is this? He is writing about me, about my family." I have never actually met anyone in the book, but they are all my neighbors and kinfolks. His other books are just as well-written. In his book, Writing for the Soul , Christian author Jerry Jenkins had this to say about Rick Bragg: I read other writers and strive to be like them. I read others, like Rick Bragg, the Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist, and simply surrender, knowing I will ...