Walking in the Shadow of My Past

By Arie Gay Vines Artis

Walking in the Shadow of My Past is the story of Arie's life from slavery to Obama's presidency. Her words reflect on the past and bring you to the now. Throughout the book, God is the center of her life, and she stresses that putting God first is a must to overcome challenges. Whatever challenge she faced in her past, she put God first, dealt with it, and moved forward. Her words in this book will inspire you, give you hope, and build your faith. She was positive, and that's what helped her to be successful in her life. She gives you practical and simple ways of survival. At ninety-five, she was still living a successful life, and she gives some truths to help you.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: May 22, 2016
• ISBN: 9781681973005

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Walking in the shadow of my past

Arie Gay Vines Artis

and   Audrey Vines

ISBN 978-1-68197-299-2 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-68197-300-5 (digital)

Copyright © 2016 by Arie Gay Vines Artis and Audrey Vines

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

296 Chestnut Street

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Dedication

Preface

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

Chapter 14

About the Co-Author

About the Author

Dedication

I would like to thank my daughter, Audrey Vines, and John Moore for taking on my project. John has always supported my birthday parties when he could attend. He has always been close to my family. I remember when he was having fund-raisers for the day care center in Greenville named after his little girl, Summer. My girls used to sing and help him. Now he is helping me, and I thank him for that. God will add blessings to his life for helping an old woman like me.

I would like to dedicate my words to all who desire to read them, and I hope that they will give love and hope to you. I want to recognize my two brothers, Bishop Robert Gay and Deacon Dave C. Gay, for all the times we spent together and talked about the old days. They are all the siblings I have left. I want them to carry on the family traditions when I am gone.

Preface

Jeremiah 10:12

It is he who made the earth by his power,

who established the world by his wisdom,

and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.

We were just sittin’ here talking, my girl and me. In times like these, we have a way of looking back, and I found a quiet place to do it. My quiet place is sometimes in my bedroom and sometimes in the den. Then I start looking forward again.

I am not against modern conveniences that time has brought us, like cell phones, computers, and iPads; but I have never used them. I do use cable television, electricity, and a house phone that time brought in my lifetime.

Grandpa and his pa before my pa got us where we are, and Grandma and Ma and my ma were right behind them with support.

In this book, I am reflecting on the past but enjoying the now. In my latter years, I have a good life, although my younger life brought many challenges. In life, we all will have challenges to face, but with God, you can make it like I am making it. In other words, we all have a cross to bear. Each day, my cross is getting lighter and lighter. One day, I will exchange it for a crown.

In times of pressure and distress, we all have a way of looking back, and you need to find a quiet place to do it. I want you to find a quiet place to read my words and look back over your life and reflect on the past. Reflect on your successes and failures. Pray to God and look forward again.

You know that life is moving faster and that we are in a hurry most of the time. Well, when you get to my age, time moves faster; but your steps get slower, your eyesight gets dimmer, and arthritis sets in. So love the life that God has given you and slow down to enjoy your blessings because believe me, one day, life will slow you down.

So let’s not be in so big of a hurry that we can’t stop for a while to look at our past or someone else’s past. I am getting mighty old, and some of my friends and family are right behind me. Get in a quiet place and read my words. I believe that you will appreciate the challenges I went through and, most of all, learn from them.

Maybe some experiences I had will help you understand the world around you a little better. My inspiration chapter will encourage your soul, or just good simple living will help with life’s financial challenges. These are my words and my life experiences from slavery to Obama’s presidency. I am ninety-five years old and a healthy woman. I love you all.

All scriptures come from the King James Version of the Bible.

Chapter 1

Slavery

My family dates back to the time of slavery in the 1800s. This is where it all began. My grandmother was a beautiful little girl born in 1859 on a slave plantation somewhere in North Carolina. This is what was told to me by my parents when I was a child. I was named after my grandmother, Arie. She was born a slave child with a strong spirit.

She was six years old when slavery was abolished, and finally, she was set free; but she chose to live on the plantation and died there. Little is known about Arie Gay and her plantation owners. There wasn’t much information available about her. All I know is that she was a single parent. The father of her children was Jimmy Barrette. To this beautiful relationship, four children were born—Robert (Bob) Gay (my father whom everyone called Pa), Jacob, Jim, and Maude. Pa was thirteen when his mother died. The family survived because of the strong backbone his mother had. They say that my strength comes from Grandma Arie.

slave auction, virginia, 1861, black history, slave trade

This was selling slaves. After my family was sold in slavery, they lived on the same plantation until they died.

Plantation Life

Slavery was a practice in which people own other people. A slave was the property of his or her owner and worked without pay. The owner, who was called the master or mistress, provided the slave with food, clothing, and shelter (World Book Encyclopedia).

My great-grandparents and grandparents were slaves. They were not allowed to legally marry, have a family, testify in court, or own property. The women in my family that were slaves worked in households as cooks, maids, and nannies; and they were called house niggers. They worked fewer hours than field niggers and had more privileges and were treated as well as members of the family. They lived in the house with their masters. They were treated so well that the master did things to them that was inappropriate, but they couldn’t say anything about it. That’s why we have light-skinned people in our family. Some of the children that were born in that day were partly white because their father was the master. It was common back then. My mother-in-law told me the story of her mother’s experience when she was a slave and how the master would meet her on the bridge and do inappropriate things to her and got her pregnant. Her mother had white and black children, but she had to say that the father was her husband.

However, the men who never married the women who worked in the master’s house but who had some children by them were treated harshly by the masters. They were called field niggers. My grandfather and great-grandfather were field niggers. Their clothes were made of tow cloth, and they got a pair of shoes once a year. They lived in log huts with no floors and that had one single room that they were huddled like cattle, ten or twelve people—women, men, and children. There were neither bedsteads nor furniture. Their beds were made of straw and old rags. The wind whistled, and the rain and snow blew in through the cracks of the hut. The damp earth soaked in moisture till the floor was miry as a pigsty.

My great-grandparents and grandparents were not educated because state laws prohibited the education of slaves; but they developed their own language, music, and other means of communication. My family has always been talented. That’s where my girls got some of their talent.

Religion played a key role in helping my family survive the hardships of slavery and life in general. It also gave them hope of a better life in heaven. Songs like Steal Away and I Couldn’t Hear Nobody Pray were popular at this time. They had a message in the words. We’ll Work was my parents’ favorite song.

Slavery broke the spirit of many blacks, but my family resisted the broken spirit. It did not cause fear and hatred between them and their owners. They had feelings of love and respect between them.

In 1865, slavery was abolished. My family was set free, but where could they go. Being a slave was all they knew. No education and discrimination kept them on the farm. They never left the farms. The Kittrell Hill and Gus Forbes farms were the plantations that my family lived and died on. They are located right down the road from me. When I go to church, I often think about my family and how they lived in that day.

Rumor has it that my great-grandparents inherited a land from the slave owners, but because it was by word of mouth, it was taken away from