Big Kids and Booger Bears

Hello folks, it’s a pleasure to have y’all back on the porch. Make yourselves at home and let’s chat…~smile~

I was hosting All Things Southern live last Monday evening when Uncle Rod called in with a story. This story-stacker was delighted, especially since it was a family tale that had somehow gotten by me. I think it’s too good not to share with everybody, so allow me.

My Uncle Rod was a late in life child; late meaning Grandmaw thought her fourth girl was the caboose for a good fourteen years before Rodney came tearing down the tracks! Papaw, AKA Rev. Marvin Stone, couldn’t have been more thrilled. Now, one of my extended family’s stranger idiosyncrasies is our fondness for playing practical jokes on our kids. We don’t mean any harm. I can think of a dozen examples right offhand, but we’ll go with the one on the table.

Back when Rod was in grade school he liked to take his shotgun into the woods behind the parsonage there in Natchez, MS to hunt Booger Bears, (a southern phenomenon, if ever there was one!) One afternoon after school, Papaw met Rod at the door with an exciting announcement. He had spotted the elusive Booger Bear! Papaw instructed Rod to grab his shotgun and ammunition and meet him outside. Unknown to Rod, Papaw had rigged up a Booger Bear out of old clothes and hid it on the woody hill in their back yard. Once outside, Papaw yelled to the Booger Bear that he was coming up after him. As he climbed the hill, he motioned to Grandmaw, stationed behind the pump shed, to pull the string. Leaves rustled eerily as that old Booger Bear rose into view! Wham! Papaw tackled him. There, in the fading light of dusk, Rod watched them wrestle. And then he heard his daddy holler, “Booger Bear, I’m throwing you down this hill!” There it came, sailing towards Rod!

Rod’s honest enough to admit that he never got a shot off! He tossed gun and ammo towards his daddy and lit out for the house. I reckon some things are best left to the grownups—or at least those who are pretending to be!

Hugs,
Shellie

P.S. Did you know that I would love to Skype with your book club? Hit a contact button and let me hear from you. And have you subscribed to my blog to keep up with the porch in between issues? I hope so! You can find it here:
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