The Lawyer and the Farmer

My maternal grandfather was not as warm and affectionate as my Mississippi “Grandpaw.” Whereas the latter always had a hug for us and cried when we left, Granddad seemed to just tolerate us. Of course, we saw him a lot more since we lived in the same town – if my grandparents in Mississippi saw us more than once a year, they may have reacted in a another way.

But the differences were many between the two men. I never saw Granddad dressed in anything but a 3 piece suit with that ever present watch chain on his vest. It seemed to me that he was forever taking out his pocket watch and looking at it. (He even cut the grass in this get-up.) Grandpaw, on the other hand, wore old work pants with suspenders and a white shirt and often no shoes in the summer. He was content to sit on the front porch in a rocking chair watching us and being always available to us.

Granddad liked to tell stories about his railroad days or other old times that he had and he repeated them – a lot! We would sit down to a big dinner and after he said the blessing at the head of the table, he would begin, “I remember 34 years ago when . . . .” My sisters and I would look at each other and try not to giggle (or worse, roll our eyes).

I can’t help but admire this man, going from a Kentucky small town to railroad conductor to lawyer – and at one time – a judge. But he was not easy to know – compared to Grandpaw, he seemed cold and austere. He never joked or teased, but he did give us a nickel or dime to walk to the drugstore and buy ice cream. Looking back, it was probably to get three little girls out of his hair so he could hold forth in peace.

Perhaps I’ve been too hard on him, but I can only go by my feelings (which are surely colored by his past actions). But one thing I am sure of – I always enjoyed seeing my step-grandmother. She was the bright spot of the visits.