Jimmy Reed

Swill O’ Sweet Spirits

Of the mule, William Faulkner once said, “ … he labors six days without reward for one creature, whom he hates, bound with chains to another, whom he despises, and spends the seventh day kicking or being kicked by his fellows.” 



Valentine Story

The young country boy had suffered the privations of the Great Depression, but had never doubted that America would rebound from this dark chapter of her history and come back even stronger than before. Like him, the young city girl never lost faith in her country. These two, Andrew and Alice, would not only participate in the making of the Greatest Generation, but also in the making of one of the greatest love stories.

Jimmy C. And Me

While touring William Faulkner’s Home in Oxford, Mississippi, one of my students, who grew up in California and moved here with her parents, asked, “Does the fact that Mississippi is much-maligned put its youth at a disadvantage when competing with peers from other states? In other words, is there a stigma attached to being raised in Mississippi?” Considering the financial shambles her home state wallows in, I bit my tongue to avoid a vituperative riposte.

Neither Of Us Fished

A tinge of spring touched the March afternoon. The wind was calm, the sun was out, and because I couldn’t wait to wet a hook, I was getting mighty impatient with two guys ahead of me at the boat ramp. Crappie feed toward dusk, and fishing time was wasting.

Not Nary ’Nother Noose

If Jaybird, the old black man who was my boyhood mentor, hadn’t shown me how to tie hangman’s nooses, I wouldn’t have lynched Gloria’s dolls.

Chippie’s Demise

My brother Ronnie and I were nothing alike. He was the good boy; I was mischievous, curious about everything, and constantly getting into trouble, trying to satisfy my curiosity. I got many a switching because of Ronnie’s snitching. Occasionally, though, events worked in my favor. Such was the case with Chippie.

Demon Of Intemperance

The Mississippi Delta is known for its characters. Just as flatlanders nuance miniscule rainfall differences, ranging from “spits” to “frog drowners,” they also categorize characters, from those with benign idiosyncrasies, to those shockingly short of scruples, to raving lunatics roaming unrestrained among their fellow Alluvians.

History Repeating Itself

Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Mindful of that truth, Americans should recall what Adolf Hitler said … and proved: “To conquer a nation, first disarm its citizens.”

I’ll Remember Jaybird

I was raised on a Mississippi Delta cotton plantation, a barefoot boy’s paradise. Looking back, I realize it wasn’t the place so much as the people – mainly one man – who instilled in me the beliefs and values that guide my life.

It’s Awfully Hot Down Here

To college students, I emphasize constantly my conviction that the number one asset they will gain from their studies is the ability to communicate effectively and efficiently.

Be Yourself

Three years ago this month, Olivia, one of my three Southern belle, drop-dead gorgeous daughters, gave birth to her third child, whom she named Finn. She framed a copy of this column, as she did those I wrote to commemorate the births of her first two sons.

Yes!

For me, making New Year’s resolutions is an exercise in futility. At each year’s end, I forget the mistakes made over the last twelve months and give myself a “tabula rasa” — a clean slate — on which I jot down resolutions for the coming twelve months. On average, they are abandoned by the end of January.

Black-Eyed Peas

In my lifetime, eating black-eyed peas at the beginning of each year has been an inviolable Southern tradition. Grandmothers and mothers would no more think of not serving them on New Year’s Day than they would of not praying before meals.

Straw Boss

In wintertime, a strong wind in the Mississippi Delta is painfully cold, partly because it is always full of humidity, but mainly because it howls across ironing-board flatness unchecked. Delta folks call such cold winter winds the “cuttin’ body hawk.”

Mewwy Crimma

Often, a handicapped person is capable of showing love in ways far above the abilities of normal people, and in turn is loved much by those receiving his love.

Chew Boots

Although I still long to be a cowboy, as a kid I would have sold Satan my soul to be one. Often at night, while reading about the Wild West, I heard the Columbus & Greenville train rumble by and fantasized about hopping aboard like a hobo and riding to Texas to meet my Saturday movie matinee heroes — Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, John Wayne.

Well Done, My Good And Faithful Servant

William Faulkner once said that every man’s life can be summed up in eight words: “He was born, he suffered, and he died.” Although I’ve completed two-thirds of that summation, I’ve not lost sight of the fact that it refers to mankind’s mortal existence. When I stand before God on Judgment Day, I hope to hear Him determine my immortal existence with seven words: “Well done, My good and faithful servant.”

The Lord’s Long Johns

Jones, Smith, Brown, Green, and Reed were tillers of the soil. They died about the same time and appeared at the Pearly Gates. Saint Peter told them to be seated and that the Lord would call them one at a time to review their earthly accounts. Soon, a mighty voice thundered, “Pete, bring in Jones.”

12-21-12

Often, misinformed individuals claiming to be well informed predict the end of time. Since the beginning of recorded history, countless prophecies have been made about some sort of world-ending cataclysm. When these catastrophes don’t happen, another end-time soothsayer comes forth with another augury.

Just Us!

A determined, dedicated person can do more with a worn-out monkey wrench than an undetermined, undedicated person can do with a shop full of tools. Two determined, dedicated people working together as a team can build a dream. Just outside the small town of Alamo, in the gently rolling countryside of west Tennessee, such a team built their dream.