My Thoughts Reaching out to the Hollows and Hills

By Jo Ann Hicks Jackson

This book displays the authors thoughts and reflections beginning with her childhood in the hills and hollows of Kentucky and throughout her life. Her poetry will take you over roads she traveled, up the steepest hills she climbed and through deepest, darkest valleys, with only her faith to cling to.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Nov 10, 2021
• ISBN: 9781665543019

Jo Ann Hicks Jackson

Jo Ann Hicks Jackson was born in Morehead, Kentucky on April 11, 1931 and grew up in the small community of Haldeman. Raised by her maternal grandmother after losing her parents at a young age, she moved to Indiana at the age of 16, where she would spend the majority of her life. While raising 8 children, Jo Ann enjoyed spending time with her family, friends, and loved ones, and loved reading mysteries and talking about her time growing up in Kentucky. Jo Ann passed away on July 14, 2012.

Book preview

MY THOUGHTS

REACHING OUT

TO THE

HOLLOWS

AND HILLS

JO ANN HICKS JACKSON

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AuthorHouse™

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Bloomington, IN 47403

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© 2021 Joseph Michael Wilson. 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 11/05/2021

ISBN: 978-1-6655-4302-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6655-4301-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021922341

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

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.

CONTENTS

Childhood Memories

All That I’ve Been

A Little Girl’s Prayer

At My Grandmothers Feet

Growing Old

Memories

New Year’s Eve: In Retrospect

The Sweetest Moments

The Old Grapevine

Adult Realities

A Little Bit of Heaven

A Place in My Mind

But Not Away

Come Spring

Dalena

For A Moment

I Couldn’t Stay

Just Sisters

Let Us Go

Little One

Mom and Little Joe

Mother’s Day

My Daughter

My First Love - And My Last

My Jenny Jen

My Mother

My Name Is Faith

My Winter Storm

Scattered Ashes

The Lady in White

Together We’ll Be Fine

What Will She Leave Behind?

Bittersweet Blues

A Boy’s Christmas Prayer

All Day Blue

At Our Place

Bitter Sweet

Cry Of Despair

Everything Will Be Alright

I So Remember Her

If I Had to Choose

Is There a God?

It’s Over

Little Bits of Heaven

Loneliness

Lost Love

Maybe Next Time

Morning Prayer

My Boy

My Loss

New Year’s Eve: Looking Back

One Last Sweet Hour

Only Fair to Let You Know

Sam

So Rare

Talk to Me

The Pain of Loneliness

This Life

This Man

Two Souls Entwined

Who Will?

Winter’s Song

You Were Always Standing By

All That I’ve Been

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CHILDHOOD MEMORIES

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ALL THAT I’VE BEEN

Life and death, laughter and tears

Dreams gone astray, over the years

Surrounded by loved ones, family and friends

And a love so great, that it knows no end!

First love (unrequited) lost and untold

Dreams, re-occurring, as memories unfold

Of laughter and hope, of the will to survive

And the wonderful feeling, of just being alive!

Happiness, ever, where good times were spent,

Lovers, and mates, once believed, Heaven sent

The times in my life, when the sun shone the brightest

The times in my life, when my burdens seemed lightest.

Times from the darkness enveloped my soul

With the fear of growing old, alone.

Always feeling God’s love within

But never living my life … just for Him.

The echoes of silence, when the nights are still

My thoughts reaching out, to the hollows and hills

My soul lies bare, on these pages within

For it’s all that I am … and all that I’ve been!

A LITTLE GIRL’S PRAYER

When she was just a little girl of seven,

She always felt like she was all alone.

Every night she knelt beside her bed and prayed

Jesus, when’s my mommy coming home?

"Jesus, when’s my mommy coming home?

Can’t you see I need her here with me?

Jesus, did I do something wrong,

To make my mommy go away from me?"

Her grandma and her grandpa did their best for her

And though they loved her they just couldn’t tell

The ache inside she always carried with her,

As the burden on her little shoulders swelled.

One day she sat alone, behind the schoolhouse

To get away from all the jeers and boos,

But she knew that the reason they made fun of her

Was her feed sack dress, and the cardboard in her shoes.

That night she told her granny how they laughed at her

With trembling lips, she tried so hard to be brave

But later when she knelt down by her bedside

She prayed a different prayer from yesterday.

"Jesus, please don’t let my mommy know

That all the kids were laughing at my shoes,

cause Jesus it would only make her sad

And I guess there’s just nothing she could do."

Morning came, and she awoke (that little girl)

And her eyes grew wide, with utter disbelief

For there beside her bed, all bright and shiny new

Were the prettiest shoes that she’d ever seen.

"Oh, granny, look! My mama sent those shoes to me!

Jesus must have told her, after all."

As she danced around, and held them oh, so close to her

She missed the tears that fell on Granny’s shawl.

She wouldn’t know for many years …and not in time

To thank her granny for the love