Читать книгу Dear Me Sudz: The Life and Times of Addie May - K.W. Attle Jr. - Страница 6

Preface

Tears flowed gently down Addie May’s face as the final notes of Rock of Ages drifted from the room where she had been confined to her bed for the past thirteen years. The voice was her grandson who had asked upon entering her nursing home room if there was anything he could do for her. Silence was the answer, for she could not speak. Another stroke had taken her voice. The boy, knowing how much she had missed the active role she had played in her church, remained silent for a moment before suggesting she might like him to sing for her. Addie May nodded in agreement. There was no hesitation in selecting her favorite song, and he began to sing without accompaniment:

“Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee …”

As he sang, a faint smile crossed the right side of her face, the left side frozen in place by paralysis. Coming to the end of the first verse, he reached in the drawer of her bed stand and pulled out her well-worn Bible. Inside the front cover was glued a copy of the song. Again he began to sing, verse 2, verse 3, and as he sang verse 4;

When my pilgrimage I close, Victor o’re the last of foes

When I soar to worlds unknown, See Thee on Thy judgment throne

Rock of Ages, Cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee.

Tears expressed the innermost thoughts of joy as she lay confined to that little space. It would not be long before her last breath on earth would be the opening of the next life and she welcomed it. It was a full minute before she slowly raised her right hand just a bit and pointed her index finger. “One more?” questioned the boy, and Addie May gave a slight nod. What to choose? What did he know? Then he remembered the hymn Addie May would hum years ago as she went about her daily activities. He could hear that melody as clear as if it was the song he just sung, but the words were lost. He began to hum, and Addie May half smiled in response. That smile brought the words of the chorus to him as if he had been struck by a bolt of lightning; he sang:

Don’t you hear the bells now ringing? Don’t you hear the angels singing?

’Tis the glory Hal-le-lu-juh Ju-bi-lee (Ju-bi-lee)

In that far-off sweet forever, just beyond the shining river.

When they ring those golden bells for you and me.

He hadn’t looked at her while trying to remember the words, but as he finished the chorus, the words of the first verse came to him and he began:

“There’s a land beyond the river, that we call the sweet forever, and we only reach that shore …”

He raised his eyes to see the tearstained face motionless. The melody faded into silence. Addie May had passed into that sweet forever.

For ninety-two years this woman had been the determining force for so many. She quickly learned as a child to overcome adversity, not only from her parents who desperately tried to change her behavior but also from dealing with an obstinate teacher. She became a court deputy when a young woman, married, became a practical nurse and raised three children. She held the family together through the crash of twenty-nine when her husband Will lost all his investments after selling a very successful Electrical Supply Store.

With the depression that followed her maternal role not only to her family, but to many who needed extra care as they lay dying from some terrible disease, most often, tuberculosis, Addie May was there to serve their basic needs and speak encouraging words as she did for others what they could not do for themselves. And she did so even when she herself was in sorrow. She survived the death of her younger sister, who graduated from Potsdam Normal School, her second child Florence, both parents, her husband and two of her grandsons.

What made this woman so unbelievably strong that she could carry on while hiding her own sorrow yet support others around her who were falling apart? Always, she was smiling, practical, level-headed, at times demanding, but most of all, kind. What did she possess that allowed her to suffer in silence at her own pain and sorrow while at the same time carrying the burdens of others? This remarkable lady had the stuff few of us have, much less comprehend, and she had it in great abundance. This is the story of her life as I came to know it. The purpose for this story is twofold. First it’s for those who find themselves overwhelmed with the pitfalls of disaster. No matter how bad things are, there is always hope. Tomorrow will ease the sorrow and disappointment. The following tomorrow will continue to ease your soul. Never, never give up. The second is to inspire the readers to remember your roots. Take the time to learn all you can about your parents, your grandparents, your great-grandparents. All of them made you. Learn all you can about them, good or bad. Even if your family history doesn’t interest you, your children or their children may very well want this information. Create a stack of your memories on three-by-five cards, one or two sentences at a time. You’ll learn where you came from and in this way set a path toward where you’re going. No matter the bitter circumstances of your life, your situation can always be worse. Lastly, when everything in life is said and done, without family, you have nothing.

The Author