A scary morning and a bear on the trail Our view down the cut, from the crest of the mountain, was straight from a postcard. Where we were, at the tree-line, there weren’t any tall trees – well, they were twenty or thirty feet tall, but not tall tall, as […]
Pop Cliff Series
A week-long bear hunting trip The dirt road leading up Pott’s Mountain was so crooked that if you spit out the front window it would come right back in the rear window. At least that’s what Pop Cliff said. Even worse, if you stepped out the passenger side of the […]
My First Bear Hunt
A 5-gal can and a million bees I was screaming for Mom-mom at the top of my lungs as I ran for the front door. Flailing at the swarming horde as I tried to outrun them to reach the safety of the house, my little seven year-old legs pumping for […]
One Me and a Million Bees
Big Hammer and little fingers “Just hold it still, I’m not going to hit you,” Pop said. Sure, my heart says I can trust him, but my head is saying, “No way, that’s a 16-pound sledge he’s swinging at my fingers.” I just couldn’t keep from flinching, so we had […]
Hold Still, I Won’t Hit You
Pulling crabs and fooling gulls “Pop! Twenty-eight Dollars! Look, I got twenty-eight dollars for them!” I was breathless, I never had this much money in my life. I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe somebody would pay that much for them. I could get some more tomorrow. I could be […]
The Seagulls and The Crabs
The dog and Mom-mom’s heart pills “Is he dead Pop?” I asked, tears in my eyes. There was a wetness to Pop’s eyes too, as he gently laid him on the back seat. He didn’t look hurt. There wasn’t any blood or stuff like that. But he wasn’t moving either. […]
Is He Dead Pop?
The Chicken and the match! “The chicken did it,” I sobbed. Over and over, as my little six year-old body was wracked with burning pain, that’s all I could say, “The chicken did it.” Mom Grace tried to calm me down so she could examine my leg, but I didn’t […]
The Chicken Did it!
My first rifle and Pop’s Redman’s “No Pop! Stop!,” I pleaded, and he did, until the next time. There was always a next time. For the next eight years I lived on guard for the “next time.” But I could usually count on a little “serves you right” satisfaction most […]
The Rifle and Redman’s
My first summer with Pop Cliff Dad dropped me off on the very first day of summer vacation. I had just finished the First Grade, I was six years-old, and I was going to spend the whole summer with Pop Cliff and Mom Grace. They lived in a two-story country-style […]
The First Summer with Pop Cliff
The Tree Line We were working our way back to camp along what was left of an old logging road, which wasn’t much more than a couple of ruts overgrown with knee-high underbrush. Cutting along a natural shelf, close to the tree-line, just at the top of the mountain. Dusk […]