Downhome Reunion

Life has been hard up here in the mountains
Few people know the meaning of it
Young people died old of hardship and sorrow
And learned well the lesson, don’t give up or quit

Tonight we're taking my sweetheart's mother to a concert. We had this planned months in advance. I got word from my cousin last week that our annual family reunion had been moved up to this weekend too. Traditionally, the reunion was held the weekend after Independence Day. I have not been to a reunion in years but the story behind that is long and not too exciting. Anyway, one of my aunts is not doing well healthwise. I was always her favorite niece and so it is very important that I go to this reunion. My sweetheart is going with me and the trip should be quite interesting for him. I'm taking him into the mountains down in far southwestern Virginia. Although a number of cousins live in other cities, a big part of our family is still there, including my dad.


The town I grew up in had a population of one-hundred fifty people. It is a very small town that is in a valley surrounded by beautiful mountains. This is a picture of it taken in early March. Ok, the photo was taken in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corp, what has often been referred to as President Roosevelt's "Tree Army". Not much changed from the photo to when I was growing up there. A few more houses. We had a general store, two churches (Baptist & Methodist), a gas station, a tiny bank and the post office. The town was cut into two sides by a river. When I was growing up, all I had to do for adventure was to look up and pick a mountain to climb, or head to the riverbank. There were always waterfalls, plants, animals, rocks, fossils and arrowheads to discover. Although it seems an idyllic life, I know I am remembering it through the misty mirror of yesterday. What I remember of most of my life there is peace and quiet.

Of course I have tons of stories about growing up there. Stories that I need to write down for my daughters. My grandmother kept an old family bible with all of our ancestors names written it it. I'm going to take a look at it while I'm down there. I'm also going to visit the "old home place." The farm where my father and his father and his father before him grew up. There is still no paved road to this farm. You get to it by walking over the "swinging bridge" which is sometimes more scary than wading across the river. I can't wait to see it, because the earliest memories I have of my grandparents happened on this farm. I believe the house is no longer standing and the land is full of bramble and briar. Perhaps it's because I've been searching for a different surname, I just feel the need to get in touch with my roots, take photos and record things before they are lost. And I have my sweetheart to share it with with makes it all the lovlier.