I'm Blessed: Moody Chronicles

By Ted Moody

The author is currently living in Northern Michigan. He is a graduate of North Central Bible college in Mpls. He is retired and heavily involved in woodworking. Has held electrical contractors license in California and Michigan. He has a long life of experiences from difficult to exciting.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: May 19, 2012
• ISBN: 9781477205655

Ted Moody

The author, currently living in Northern Michigan, is a graduate of North Central Bible College in Mpls, has a long lifetime of a variety of experiences as well as some information handed down to him. He has held Electrical Contractor licenses in the states of both California and Michigan. Having served four years in the USAF during the Korean War he understands military life. He has personally built two houses. The information given herein spans a period of 100 years. Currently he is heavily involved in wood working. WARNING: 1. If you dislike humor be careful, some things in this book could bring a smile to your face. It will not be fatal and may soon disappear, just be cautious. 2. If too much information will overload you just read slow so it will have a chance to sink in. 3. If truth is a problem for you, handle it as best you can, truth never hurt anyone with the exception maybe of politicians; really it is sometimes a very good thing to have.

Book preview

I’m Blessed

moody chronicles

Ted Moody

BA Theology

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AuthorHouse™

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.authorhouse.com

Phone: [phone]

© 2012 Ted Moody. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 5/16/2012

ISBN: 978-1-4772-0567-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4772-0566-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4772-0565-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012908278

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

INTRODUCTION

I am 83 years old and am very sure that I will not see another 83 years in this life. I want to leave a few short stories and perhaps some not so short stories based on things I have heard, things I have witnessed, and things I have experienced. These will be actual and factual to the best of my recollection. While reading these stories you will find some of my opinions, if you do not agree with them, so be it, they are mine. You are entitled to yours. Also you may begin to think I am egotistical. I challenge you to read this in its entirety; you may have a different opinion. I’m Blessed. If you are over 60 years old and feel nostalgic you may really enjoy this book. If you are under 60 and wonder how people lived without cell phones, television or computers, you may be able, if you are so inclined to learn some things.

WARNING: Dear reader; 1. If you dislike humor be careful, some things in this book could bring a smile to your face. It will not be fatal and may soon disappear, just be cautious. 2. If too much information will overload you just read slow so it will have a chance to sink in. 3. If truth is a problem for you, handle it as best you can, truth never hurt anyone with the exception maybe of politicians; really it is sometimes a very good thing to have.

I was born, Theodore Howard Moody at a very young age on March 24, 1929 (and I have a valid Birth Certificate to prove it) to the best parents in the world. My mother, Eunice Lavern, was born on Aug. 13, 1905. My father, Howard Lincoln was born on Oct. 25, 1908. Mother passed away on Oct 12, 1984. At the age of 79 she was the youngest member of her family to pass away. Her parents were in the late 80’s and her 3 sisters and brother were well past 79. My father passed away April 9, 2002. I have one sister, Fern Mae born Oct. 17, 1931. Also one brother Donald Lyman born Oct. 15, 1933 and unfortunately was taken from us by brain cancer on Dec 4, 2001. (In case you did not catch it my brother was D.L. Moody. I guess my only claim to fame then is, I am the brother of D.L. Moody) I was born on my grandfather Moody’s farm in Skanawan Township, Lincoln County Wisc. My grandfather had built a house on the farm, for my dad and his new bride, which came to be known as the Little Brown House. Perhaps because it was brown and small. It had a bedroom and one other room for everything else. It was located in a 2 acre fenced in area where they kept sheep. On the east side of the area was the road, highway H. On the west side was the barnyard. When I told people I was born in the sheep pen across the fence from the barnyard it seemed to get my mothers goat. Later on the Little Brown House was moved up to the farm house and attached to it with an enclosed breeze way and painted white to match the farmhouse in which my grandparents lived. That will be another story.

My mother’s parents were Zona and Harvey Inman. I recall my grandfather as far back as when I was a preteen. He did not have any teeth then and had never been to a dentist. He pulled his own teeth. He cut a hole in the ice to be baptized in water. I had some tough ancestors, I’m Blessed. My family members who are old enough to remember recall of them getting in the Model T Ford to go to town for whatever reason. It was so very memorable. Grandma was part Indian with high cheekbones. She always wore her hair in a bun on top of her head. She dressed in long dresses and wore a hat. In the car, which of course did not have reclining seats or headrest she sat very erect. Grandpa wore a wide brimmed felt hat and to see them sitting in the car is something we will never forget. But before he got into the car there was always a job to do. The car had to be started. For those of you who know about internal combustion engines, you know that in a 4-stroke cycle engine, they are intake, compression, power and exhaust. Also that the spark must be injected into the cylinder just prior to TDC (top dead center) on the compression stroke. His car had to be cranked by hand. Many arms were broken cranking cars wrongly. With the spark set at the run position, or all the way down on the lever on the right just below the wooden steering wheel it would kick the crank back and severely injure a person. The lever on the left of the steering wheel was the throttle; it is the only way to speed up or slows the engine down, no floor pedal. There also was a lever that had to be squeezed and moved to put the car in neutral. So he had to push the spark lever up and pull the throttle lever down to give it a little gas. There was a wire sticking out by the front of the radiator with a loop on it to pull the choke to start the car. It was not automatic like on our cars today, we do not have to think about it unless it doesn’t work then we possibly will have to seek professional help. Anyway grandpa Inman would crank the car and when it started he would run to advance the spark lever and perhaps slow or advance the throttle. Then it was time to climb up in the car. This was such a quaint sight to behold, the two of them sitting there. Now it is time to drive off. There are three pedals on the floor. The left pedal all the way down is low gear, half way down is neutral all the way up is high gear. The middle pedal is reverse; the right pedal is the brake. So to go forward you have to release the squeeze lever while pressing the left pedal to the floor. After you get moving you take your foot off of the left pedal and it will be in high gear then adjust the throttle according to how fast you want to go. To go in reverse you have to hold the left pedal half way down, which is neutral and press the middle pedal all the way down. I am currently driving a Ford product, a Mercury Milan, many changes have been made since the Model T. I’m Blessed. Grandpa Inman was a carpenter by trade and like the proverbial shoemaker whose kids were barefoot Grandpa never finished his house. They both lived into the high eighties. He also kept a cow for milk and meat. Besides my mother, there was an older brother, Lee. Two older sisters Harriet and Beulah, one younger sister Francis. One more thing, grandpa was a red head, that is where it started in the Moody family.

My father’s parents were Ida and Lincoln. The story of my grandfather begins long before I did. This story takes place around 1910-1912. I hope I am in the ballpark but as you will see the exact date is immaterial. My grandfather was leasing a farm from a Dr. in N. Dakota. He was disking a field using 5 horses, 3 of which were young, when some pigs got out and scared the horses and they began to run, of course dragging the disk behind them. My grandfather was throne off in front of the disc and dragged and only got free when they came to a dead furrow. (That is a kind of ditch that is formed when a plow throws the dirt in opposite directions as perhaps in the start of plowing a field.) This accident tore his right leg off at the knee so it would fold up against his side. The Dr. who owned the farm had a brother who was also a Dr. When my grandfather got to the hospital the brother said it looks like we will have to take the leg off. The Dr., owner of the farm said no, this is Mr. Moody we will save that leg. Now of course there were no antibiotics and little pain medication as we have now, 100 years later. After repairing the leg he was told that he would always have to wear a leg brace and probably have to use crutches all of his life. His knee would bend about 30 degrees and as a preteen I played on a rock pile on his Wisc. Farm that had his leg brace in with other junk and I never saw him use crutches from that incident. He also had Malaria at some time in his life, which is very serious and causes a lot of death. A tough old gentleman I would say. We are blessed. My grandmother wore a bun on the back of her head. She would get out and work on the farm driving horses and milking cows. When they first got married they had a hired man. They butchered a pig and my grandmother was not familiar with this type of thing but she was going to make headcheese. She asked the hired man how to take the eyes out. He replied, Well, Mrs. Moody we do not take the eyes out, every part helps a part. As a young boy I ate some of her headcheese, it is kind‘a greasy. I also ate some cow tongue. I assure you I did not develop an appetite for either. My father had one older brother named Harry who passed away with a massive heart attack many years ago. My grandfather had also been a school teacher and he taught Sunday school classes. He was the Township Supervisor in Skanawan for some time. He was a great hay stacker and oat bundle stacker. Both are lost arts now, many of you reading this perhaps do not even know what an oat bundle is. He would deny that he was a good stacker; he said his dad was the best. His dad was Jack Moody. They both lived into the high eighties and nineties in a time when 65 was a good old age. I saw a picture of my great grandmother Rude when she was 100. I do not know how old she was when she died. She was my Grandma Moody’s mother. We are blessed.

The previous stories tell a little bit of my ancestry; from here on I will attempt to follow a time line though I may digress occasionally. When I was very young before I can remember we moved to Mpls. MN. It was for the purpose of my dad attending a Baptist Bible College. While studying the Bible he came across places about speaking in tongues, having a curiosity he went to one of the instructors and asked about it. He was promptly told, We do not believe in that. Of course this did not satisfy my dad, as he had thought that everything in the Bible is true, so he went looking for someone who could explain it. He found someone in the Four Square Church. They explained it to him to his satisfaction and he wanted everything God had for him. It was only 3 weeks until he received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues as is taught in the Book of Acts. When it was time to leave Mpls he was advised to join the Assemblies of God, because there would be more fellowship and the Doctrines were very similar. While in Mpls. Attending School, he had to work to support the family. He got a job driving truck for the "Mpls Star