The Man Who Built His House Upon a Rock Ch 4 pt2

“And when they rush at him barkin’ their fool heads off, what does he do?”

“Not a thing Momma.”

“That’s right. See, Buford knows that those dogs are just barkin’ to hear themselves. If ever they got close enough to do anything, Buford would just kick ‘em away or toss ‘em with his horns. He ain’t gonna let a bunch of yappin’ mutts get him all riled up. A real man knows how strong he is, how good he is and how respectable he is. He don’t let anyone else tell him that he’s not good enough. It’s just you and me now and I need you to be a real strong man. Can you do that for me?”

“Yes Momma. I’ll try real hard.”

“Good son, you promise me to do your best and I’ll promise you to do mine. We do ours and God’ll do His and we’ll be fine. We gotta stick together cause there are gonna be a lot of changes round here real soon.”

Simon wasn’t fooled. He could see tears in his Momma’s eyes and hear the quaver in her voice. She wasn’t as strong as she pretended to be. He made a vow then and there: He was never going to give his momma a reason to cry.

Life wasn’t too bad over the next few months. He missed his dad something terrible but life has a way of making the hurts begin to fade after a while. Simon began to play again, to laugh and to work hard. He did all the chores he could, like chopping sticks for the fireplace and keeping his room clean. Since they sold the farm he no longer had to feed the livestock, horses or chickens. This didn’t bother Simon in the least as he had always had an enemy in their rooster who would chase him around the yard squawking up a storm.

With summer came a wonderful surprise. Grandma Gertrude Callaway was coming to live with them. Simon would have to sleep on the couch but he didn’t care. She was Momma’s mother and probably Simon’s second favorite person in the whole world, behind Momma of course. She and Grandpa Callaway had moved to a retirement home in Roanoke when Mom and Dad got married.

“I don’t want to hear any back talk young lady!” Gramma had said. “Daddy’s too old to work the farm now and young couples need a place of their own. I want some grandkids right quick so I can spoil them before I die. That ain’t gonna happen with a couple old folks puttering around the house.”

Grace and Henry were in their late 30’s when they met and the Callaways had begun to despair of ever getting some heirs from their only daughter. Perhaps that was why they accepted Henry without much fuss despite his shady family background. His good looks, willingness to work hard and gallant manners didn’t hurt either.

“Granny Trudy!” Simon had yelled excitedly when his mother told him the news. “She’s coming here?! To live with us?! Yeeeaaaaaahhhhhhhh!”

His fist pumps and victory dance gave Grace the impression of a chimpanzee that had discovered wine while riding a merry-go-round…jumping, spinning and flailing, Simon was a miniature tornado.

“WhenIsSheComingAndCanSheMakeMeSomeFlapJacksWithMapleSyrupAndPralinesAndThenYouCanGoToMrsFlandersHouseBecauseGrannyTrudyAndIAreGoingToGoFishingUpAtTheResevoirAndThenBuildATreehouseAndI’llInviteDannyToASleepOverAndGrannyCanTellUsSomeGhostStoresAnd…”

The rest of his plans were cut short after Grace had to yell and stamp her foot to get his attention.

“Your Grandmother Gertrude will only be staying for a couple of weeks. Just until I can get a permanent sitter for you.”

“Awww Maaaaa”, he whined. “I don’t need no sitter. What kinda trouble d’yah think I’m gonna get into?”

“What kind haven’t you gotten into recently? I still don’t know how you managed to put itching powder into your teacher’s talcum. That poor woman was scratched raw from head to foot.”

“Yea,” he said with a dreamy glint in his eye, “She couldn’t sit still in class for a week and looked like she had skinny-dipped in the stinging nettle.”

“Simon! You know better than that.” Her mouth was pursed into a tiny circle, whether from anger or trying not to laugh he couldn’t tell.

“Don’t you want your Granny Trudy to stay with us?”

 “Mama, you know I do. But…”

“No buts! She’s coming to watch you for a little while. You be good and don’t wear her out. She’s not as young as she used to be.”

He dug his big toe into the carpet and put on his most unfairly-treated look. “Oh alright! I want Granny to live here but I still don’t need a sitter.”

Smiling, his mom took a swing at his backside as he ran out the front door.