Tales of Calhoun County

By Terry Allen

This book contains five short stories about events that occurred in Calhoun County, Mississippi, during the 1960s. They paint a picture of rural Southern life as I experienced it in that time and place. These events became a part of the personal history of all who lived them. I wrote this book to ensure that this part of our history would not be lost or forgotten. Although some parts of the stories have been embellished and names changed, they are based on actual events. Remembering those simpler times and the good people who lived them brings a smile to my heart. I hope you have the same response as you read Tales of Calhoun County.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: May 18, 2016
• ISBN: 9781514493236

Terry Allen

Terry Allen was born and reared in Calhoun County, Mississippi. He is a retired high school football coach. He and his wife, Pat, live in Ripley, Mississippi. He enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with his family, especially with his four grandchildren. This book contains five short stories about events that occurred in Calhoun County, Mississippi, during the 1960s. They paint a picture of rural Southern life as I experienced it in that time and place. These events became a part of the personal history of all who lived there. I wrote this book to ensure that this part of our history would not be lost or forgotten. Although some parts of the stories have been embellished and names have been changed, they are based on actual events. Remembering those simpler times and the good people who lived then brings a smile to my heart. I hope you have the same response as you read the Tales of Calhoun County.

Book preview

Copyright © 2016 by Terry Allen.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016907697

ISBN:   Hardcover              978-1-5144-9325-0

              Softcover                978-1-5144-9324-3

              eBook                     978-1-5144-9323-6

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Stories in this book are based on actual events. The names of the people who experienced these events have been changed.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 05/18/2016

Xlibris

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This book is dedicated to the memory of my parents, Burton and Ina Allen, whose love and support have sustained me these many years.

CONTENTS

The Greatest Ram to Ever Play

The Fight at the Tree

The Bear Family

Adventures with Aunt Zelda Dye

Episode at the Foxhunt

The Danny Reaves Story

The Greatest Ram to Ever Play

Nestled in the rolling hills of north central Mississippi is a little valley-plain drained by the Yalobusha River. The sandy soil here is perfect for growing the finest sweet potatoes in the world. Many people that live in the nearby town of Vardaman depend on the sweet potato for their income. Folks in Vardaman like to keep the main things, the main things. The main things for these folks are God, family, guns, taters, and football.

After the taters were out of the field, many Saturdays, I enjoyed riding into town with my daddy and sitting around the pot belly stove in Johnson’s service station listening to the men talk about the current events. Usually, the main current event was football. A little pro, a little more college, and a whole lot of high school football was discussed especially, Vardaman High football. The coaches, players, and team records were analyzed, discussed, and cursed. All things Vardaman High football were fair game. Of special interest, always, were the results of the games against the most hated rival, Calhoun City. Only a good sweet potato crop was more important than beating Calhoun City. A favorite topic was, Who was the best? Opinions were plentiful and varied about who was the best quarterback, lineman, team, coach, etc. to ever play for Vardaman. Johnson Service Station is no longer there, so the old pot belly stove is gone too. But if I could sit by that stove one more time, I could tell about the greatest player ever to wear the blue and white.

Vardaman’s greatest player was not the biggest, strongest, or fastest. Danny Reaves stood 5'11 and weighed no more than 160 pounds soaking wet. He does not hold any records for rushing, passing, receiving, or tackling. He won a few local awards but was not well known by those who did not see him in action. Greatness for him did not come because of statistics or publicity. It came because of what is known in the football world as heart." He played with great heart. It’s a quality that can’t be measured with numbers but determines a football player’s true worth. He practiced and played with great intensity and determination. His will to win was second to none and inspired his teammates to have the same will. He was the hardest hitting, most gung ho, and relentless player that ever suited up for the Vardaman Rams.

I’ve often wondered where his football heart came from. By all outward appearances, he seemed to be a normal American teenager. He was normal in size and demeanor, made good grades, had many friends, and was considered a nice young man. My guess is that his high intensity came from a home life that was lacking. Perhaps his intensity was really deep seeded anger that was funneled into something positive. Maybe, he was just born with a gung ho gene. Perhaps, maybe, guess, who knows? I do know that he had it—the heart of the baddest Ram that ever played.

Danny’s first day of eighth-grade football practice was the most satisfying experience of his young life. He loved it all: the equipment, the dirt, the sweat, the coaches, the running, the blocking, the tackling, and the hitting, especially the hitting. Oh, how he loved it all!

Danny’s football future had one big problem. His parents were opposed to him playing football. He begged long and hard but to no avail. They refused his every plea. Danny didn’t let the coaches know that his parents opposed him playing the game that he loved so much. Since practice was during the school day, his parents were unaware that Danny was practicing football. To further hide his participation from his parents, Danny spent game nights at my house. His secret stayed safe until we had to practice after school. My dad picked me up and agreed to take Danny home. Somehow, his dad had heard at work that his son was playing on the eighth-grade football team. This news angered Mr. Reaves. When we pulled up in his driveway, Mr. Reaves came out of his house carrying a broom. As Danny opened the car door, his dad began to hit him with that broom. Mr. Reaves was swinging away, and Danny’s head, back, and legs took several hits as he ran into his house.

The next day, I sat beside Danny on the school bus as it headed to school. He stared blankly out the window as I made small talk. He did not respond to me in any way until I said, I know that you dread having to tell Coach Sanders that you are going to have to quit football. Danny continued to look out the window with an empty stare and without emotion replied, I’m not quitting football. I said, Danny, you know that you are going to have to quit or leave home. I can’t see your dad changing his mind on this thing. Still looking out the window, his cold reply to me was, He’ll have to kill me to make me stop. I was convinced he meant that literally.

Danny didn’t quit, and in a few weeks, the season was over. Coach Pulley, the high school head coach and Mr. Reaves’s boss at the plant, eventually persuaded Mr. Reaves to let Danny play football. Mr. Reaves never went to see Danny play, but he never again attempted to hinder his participation in the sport he loved so much.

His Freshman Season This season proved to be the toughest in school history. Most of the seniors and some of the underclassmen quit the team soon after fall practice began over a dispute with Coach Pulley. He refused to excuse them from practice to attend the fair in Memphis. A small roster got smaller. That year, the football team consisted of a grand total of fifteen players: two seniors, two juniors, five sophomores, and six freshmen. We suffered through a zero and nine season. We scored a total of fourteen points the entire season. We were really bad, but Danny had a good season. He led the team in tackles, graded out the highest in blocking, and led the team in hustle. Danny kept a good attitude