You have within your arms one of the most wonderful storytellers in the world.
According to my first big brother, when dis fella tell a story, you can see them chopped up snakes flying in de air. You can feel dat jumbie, dat ghost, brush against your skin, and you will freeze with fright.
He once described to me a shoal of fish feeding and birds flying in the air. I swear, I was not in the kitchen that morning. I was out in the fresh air, hearing the birds call, seeing the water bubbling, I could feel the breeze blow against my skin, warm with the sun, yet cool.
He was the outdoor one who took us children fishing, down-creek, up-creek, he drove us to places that were exotic to little country-side children.
Please take good care of him, America. He is a treasure. He is my father's little brother, my dearest, dearest uncle. He is eighty-one today.
A very happy birthday to your story-telling uncle. I hope America (and the world) does look after him.
ReplyDeleteI shall be 81 soon, and I need someone to look after me. . . .
ReplyDeleteSome people have an ability to make a walk to the shops to buy a pint of milk sound like an epic tale. However, I once had a friend with the opposite ability. He had the most amazing adventures and met the most incredible people, but was the worst storyteller ever. For example, he told me about a party he'd been at where Peter Gabriel had attended, and my friend had accidentally spat mince-pie crumbs over the singer's waistcoat. However, you now know as much about that story as I do!
ReplyDeleteHope your uncle had a fantastic birthday :)
Kim, I almost spat my tea laughing out loud.
DeleteThis reminds me of a guy who, if you meet him, run! Hide! When this man starts talking, you want to sleep. He can stretch one sentence into 10 minutes.
He once worked on a ship and was telling me how the ship almost sank. It was truly the most boring description of an exciting / scary event.
I'm praying for your uncle. I pray that America does right by him and that someone is taking care of him. Please tell him I said happy birthday! I miss my grandfather. You learn alot about history from our elderly. I miss his stories about when my mom and aunts were little girls, and all the crazy things they did. It was like I was there.
ReplyDeleteGeorge, my uncle is a lucky fella...he has his wife, children, grandchildren, people from his old village.
DeleteI was looking at a news story about the lonely elders in London...it broke my heart.
The oldsters have so much to offer. I wish the media would make much of them, instead of pushing them aside then trotting them out when they need them.
If the media did this, young people in the western world might appreciate their value [cos it's the media that influence them, it seems to me].