Escape From Mississippi

Book excerpt: I wrote this book called “Escape from Mississippi”: The Diary of a Boy Growing up in the South in the 40s and 50s.’I’m going to take you to place’s tell you about people, that’s unique to me. . I will start in Columbus; go to Papa’s house and beyond. Everybody shopped in Columbus the biggest little town that was the closest to most of the country people. The hitch lot’s, where everybody parked their horses, Mules and wagons, for a fee. The proprietors in the little town of Columbus Jews owed. Most of it . There were a couple of black owed store’s. I will tell about the all White girls collage. Tell you about the County Fair. I will take you from up town through Seventh Avenue. The most popular street the most popular places. I will tell you about the schools in Columbus. Talk about the night life. The back door users, making love, through the floor. We’ll go to Steen’s, a little cross Road Town this was my Town. I’ll tell you about the Sand Road a hood within itself. A juke joint, people came from all over to hang out all night. Tell you about the churches the schools. Next to papas, two hundred and eighty five, acres of land. I’ll tell you about my best friend I grew up with. Tell you of the coal tin top house I was born in, only kerosene lamps, one working fireplace, to keep fourteen of us warm in winter. Tell you all about my sisters and brothers, about the hard work, Papa’s womanizing words papa and mama said when they were mad, slang words we used for a laugh. Tell you of the Uncles and Aunt’s Cousins. Tell you about friends of the family, people that worked for papa. Tell about papa’s saw mill. Tell you of Cattle and cops we raised. Tell you about the con men, the con preachers, the fireside ghost stories, the insane people stories. The baby with the man’s head, the poor, uneducated happy people, the biggest party in the country, the good year’s bad years… the crawling deadly creatures, the packs of wild dogs that roomed around in the fall… Moonshine makers, Moonshine runners.. I’ll take you to town Caledonia. I’ll tell you about the people the Schools Ball game’s Bar-b-q.