Not a Mumblin' Word

By Hannah McCarty

Lori Singer was eight
years old when she watched in horror as her mother was raped and murdered.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> The picture of that event was etched in her
mind. She couldnt escape the memories
no matter how hard she tried. Her
father, Grant, found it impossible to cope after the death of his wife.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> After months of toiling with his wifes
death and Loris condition, he got drunk and drove his car into a train.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> He was killed instantly.

Lori was adopted by
her Uncle Monty, her mothers twin brother, and his wife, Celia.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Just as Lori was about to adapt and make the
necessary transition in her life something brought back the horrifying event
and sent her tail spinning out of control as the head and heart fought separate
battles and neither would give an inch because her heart remembered what her
mind couldnt forget and she couldnt say a mumblin word.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: May 9, 2003
• ISBN: 9781410740960

Hannah McCarty

The fifth of seven children, born to the late Millard and Ethel Brim of Jonesville, LA, Hannah never dreamed of being a published author. With encouragement from Curtis A. Baham, Hannah wrote her first book, “Shadow of Secrets” followed by “Not a Mumblin’ Word.” Hannah, known locally for her poetry, has combined her condensed autobiography (Thy Will Be Done), with her book of poetry (Emotions in Poetry). Hannah has one older sister, Cecile Barnes, one younger sister, JoAnn Curry and an older brother, Henry Brim still living in Jonesville. She has one son, Marvin, living in Haltom City, Texas. Three of her siblings are deceased. Hannah retired from Grambling State University and is currently employed as Secretary at St. Benedict Catholic Church in Grambling, LA.

Book preview

Not a Mumblin’ Word

By

Hannah (Olevia’) McCarty

© 2003 by Hannah (Olevia’) McCarty.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a

retrieval system, or transmitted by any means,

electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or

otherwise, without written permission from the author.

ISBN: 1-4107-4096-X (e-book)

ISBN: 1-4107-4097-8 (Paperback)

ISBN: 978-1-4107-4096-0 (eBook)

IstBooks-rev. 04/25/03

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

In loving memory of my mother, Ethel Brim (died, September, 1969) and my father, Millard Brim, Sr. (died, June, 1991). Thank God you were my parents. You were the greatest. I’ll always love you.

Acknowledgements

I couldn’t have done it without you. Many thanks to my family and friends for their support and encouragement as I stumble along this writing path. Words cannot express how much I appreciate and love all of you.

Special thanks to colleagues and friends for their assistance, support and encouragement: Ms. Vickie Rogers, Mrs. Fannie Belton, Mrs. Connie Drake, Mrs. Sandi Adams, Dr. Tamara Roberts, Mrs. Carolyn Wilson, Mrs. Marietta Holloway, Mrs. Everlean Holland, Ms. Beverly Hill, Mrs. Viola Wiley and her daughter, ConSuella, Ms. Elaine Foster, Ms. Selena McLaughin and Mrs. Deidre Gardner. Mrs. Barbara Fowler thanks so much for your support. You are always there when I need you. I want to also thank Mrs. Shirley Henderson, Mrs. Jean Brown and Dr. Vicki Brown who have always been supportive and encouraging. Thanks to GSU students, Miss Jasmine Lee and Miss Tiarhonda Rogers (my Godchild). Special thanks to GSU’s Upward Bound Students (summer 2002), especially Miss Natasha Carr, the Upward Bound teachers and Mrs. Shirley Jackson, Director of Upward Bound. All of you are friends that I will always love and cherish. Please know that your encouragement and support are priceless jewels that I hold dear to my heart.

A special thanks to my son, Marvin and my sisters (Cecile Barnes and JoAnn Curry) and my brother (Henry Brim), and the rest of my family, love you much.

I want to give very special thanks to Mr. Karl Norman, Mr. Dennis Williams and Miss Francheska Jones for their support and assistance.

So many people have encouraged and supported me until I can not name all of you. You know who you are and thanks so very very much.

May God bless all of you—my family and my family of friends.

Hannah Olevia Brim McCarty

Foreword

Lori Singer was eight years old when she watched in horror as her mother was raped and murdered. The picture of that event was etched in her mind. She couldn’t escape the memories no matter how hard she tried. Her father, Grant, found it impossible to cope after the death of his wife. After months of toiling with his wife’s death and Lori’s condition, he got drunk and drove his car into a train. He was killed instantly.

Lori was adopted by her Uncle Monty, her mother’s twin brother, and his wife, Celia. Just as Lori was about to adapt and make the necessary transition in her life something brought back the horrifying event and sent her tail spinning out of control as the head and heart fought separate battles and neither would give an inch because her heart remembered what her mind couldn’t forget and she couldn’t say a mumblin’ word.

Introduction

Lori slowly opened her eyes. Her Uncle Monty and Aunt Celia Carson were hovering over her bed. She didn’t know where she was. She felt numb.

Hi, Monty said softly. You’ve given us quite a scare.

You’re going to be all right, Celia said patting Lori’s arm gently.

Lori’s head was pounding. In spite of the numbness in her body, her head felt like it was going to burst open. She tried to put her hands to her head, but she couldn’t move. She tried to speak, but no words came. "I know who did it Uncle Monty. I know who did it." She was trying her best to tell them. But it was the same as it had been years earlier. She thought she was speaking, but she wasn’t saying a word. She could tell from their expressions that they hadn’t heard her. She closed her eyes trying to block out the pain and hurt as memories of that horrible day came rushing back to her.

Lori was eight years old when she watched as her mother, Myra Singer, was raped and murdered. For ten years she had refused to remember that horrible ordeal. Now it was all coming back, every horrifying minute, and she was trapped within herself just as she was then.

Lori loved to wear her mother’s high heel shoes. When Myra told her to stay out of her shoes because she was messing up the heels, Lori and her father, Grant, concocted a plan where Lori would go in Myra’s walk-in closet and put on the shoes and walk around in the large spacious closet. She’d pretend she was a beauty queen walking down the long run way. Lori always rushed to the closet to get ready for her father when he came home from work and he would always look for her in the closet when he got home. He’d tell her how pretty she looked and she loved that. Grant and Lori thought Myra didn’t know about their little secret, but she knew. Many times she’d smile to herself as she went in her closet and saw that things weren’t as she’d left them.

That’s where Lori was—in her mother’s closet when her father found her. She was in total shock. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t speak. She was scared speechless.

As Lori got ready for her father, she heard her mother scream. The first scream Lori heard froze her. Then another horrifying scream and she looked through the cracked door and saw her mother run into the room. A big man was behind her. Her mother screamed again as the man grabbed her mother and threw her across the bed. Lori felt her body go numb. She couldn’t move. The man hit her mother several times and then grasp his big hand around her throat. Relax baby, just relax and enjoy it. I won’t be long. It’ll only take a minute. Just relax. Lori heard the man say. Her mother was trying to get his hands from around her throat. Then she lay still, very still. The man tore her mother’s clothes off. He fumbled with his pants. From where Lori was in the closet, she could see his face, his eyes. Eyes that would haunt her for the rest of her life. She stood frozen, unable to move. She thought she heard herself scream, Stop it!! Stop it!!! Leave my Mommy alone, but there was no sound. There was nothing but quietness and the heavy breathing that came from this man. Then a blackness engulfed her, a blackness that would forever haunt Lori’s soul and hold her a prisoner of her own fears.

Chapter 1

Myra and Grant Singer were high school sweethearts. Even though he was three years older, and not at all like the man she had dreamed of marrying, their love was heavenly. When her parents were killed in an airplane crash, he was her tower of strength. Her twin brother, Monty was glad that she had someone to lean on and help her through their parents’ death.

Even though Grant had no desire to go to college, he did go to trade school and became a certified electrician. He got a job working with