Friends are family in the mountains; To their kin, they're always true. Mountain folks have staying power; All their life, they'll stand by you. They would share their only morsel, Proving they are friends indeed. Never would a mountain person Fail to help a friend in need. Ties go deep here in the mountains; One… Continue reading Mountain Friendship
Author: Moleta McCarter
Momma’s Quilt
Momma cut the choicest pieces Of the clothes that we'd outgrow. Each shred to her was precious; Every fragment she would sew. She would stitch each scrap together Making quilts to keep us warm. We have snuggled under the covers Through many a winter storm. Every quilt she made held memories, Pieces of each "Sunday… Continue reading Momma’s Quilt
My Home in Tennessee
I wish that I could tell you Of my home in Tennessee, And describe in perfect detail The place I love to be. I wish that I could show you The thundering waterfalls That rush down from the mountains With a glory that enthralls. I wish that you could walk with me On a trail… Continue reading My Home in Tennessee
Muscadines
Purple black, they hang above me, Vines wound tightly 'round tall trees. Sweet grape smell makes my mouth water Floating on late summer breeze. My heart catches in fond memory, Drifting back to childhood days When I stood here, staring upward: My first sight of sweet wild grapes. Skin so tough, I had to bite… Continue reading Muscadines
Outhouses
I remember winter evenings, Bitter winds that cut to the bone . . . I still shudder when I think of That outhouse, several yards from home. I remember sticky summers; What a smell floating on the breeze! How I hated that old outhouse; Hated the stench, the flies, the bees! But now I'm RICH;… Continue reading Outhouses
Pretty Is As Pretty Does
"Disposition is what it takes," My Daddy said to me. "It makes a woman beautiful When she's as nice as she can be." When my parents described someone, Only virtues they'd recite, And all their friends were "beautiful" When pressured to describe. "Is she pretty?" Dad would ask When a new friend I would meet,… Continue reading Pretty Is As Pretty Does
Perfect Autumn Day
Every year, the feelings haunt me My heart pleasures to recall; My first memory is vivid Of the Smokies in the Fall. "Winter's comin'," Daddy told me While I marveled at the sight; To this day, I've not seen colors That were ever quite as bright. Wispy clouds went snaking upwards From the mountaintops in… Continue reading Perfect Autumn Day
Quiet Days and Simple Pleasures
I don't long for fame or glory, Riches, sparkling city lights, Diamonds, pearls or fancy jewelry; Somewhere else, I've set my sights. Give me mountain streams and valleys, Honeysuckle in the air; Give me a porch right in the country And a homemade rocking chair. Give me mockingbirds and June bugs, Fireflies lighting up the… Continue reading Quiet Days and Simple Pleasures
Red Lights
"Daddy, what does that girl see in him?" I asked my Dad one day. "Red lights, I reckon," he replied; That's all that he would say. I sat there, pondering life's odd twists As I gazed upon the pair. "You know she'd have to," Daddy said, "Or she'd have not stopped there!" copyright © 1998… Continue reading Red Lights
The Old Man
Close to our house a graveyard lay With our garden in between. An old man came each week to rake And to keep the graveyard clean. I'd hear his rake strike on the stones And run through the garden to see, Pretending to pick tomatoes Knowing he would talk to me. I'd hang across the… Continue reading The Old Man