The Old Curmudgeon

By William B. Caudle II and Vicki Garner

“. . .Miss Emma, he doesn’t have to be worthy to listen and accept the gospel of Jesus Christ. All he has to do is be willing. If we could only get him to listen and let us talk to him.”

 

 

“There were only three noticeable and important differences he could immediately observe about north Florida. First, the lush-green countryside was filled with trees, such as would never grow in the arid climate of Colorado. The second was the lilting, often difficult-to-understand, sometimes heavily-accented, language spoken by the true native in the area. It was perceptible as English, but was laced with colloquialisms never heard before by the farm-boy-turned-missionary. The third was the impossible humidity which left a man sweating and drained of energy before 10:00 a.m. each day during the six-month-long summer. But, Elder Butters thought, he would be able to adjust, and he had begun to come out of his shell after a month or two. That is, until he was transferred as his second assignment to the newly-formed Dixie Ward and met “that old curmudgeon.”

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Dec 16, 2009
• ISBN: 9781449043612

William B. Caudle II

The Old Curmudgeon is Bill’s second book, but not his last. He has in the works a book about life with Cheri; another about the Civil War, and a fifth which will be a sequel to The Canal. Bill and Cheri Caudle live in Summertown, Tennessee. Bill is retired from the United States Air Force and is a lawyer and mediator in the local courts.  Cheri puts up with Bill.

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The Old Curmudgeon

By William B. Caudle II

AuthorHouse™

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© 2009 William B. Caudle II. 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 01/24/2024

ISBN: 978-1-4490-4360-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4490-4359-9 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4490-4361-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2009911501

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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.

To all of those who were afraid

to ask and have remained silent.

To those who asked and were rejected.

To those who were not afraid and persevered, and were successful.

Preface

W e are often afraid to share our religion with those who are not like us. We are afraid of rejection. We are embarrassed that we will not find an accepting mind and be criticized by others.

This is a story about Mormons in the deep south in the Great Depression and later. It is a story about accepting those about us who have different knowledge – even those whom we love but can’t accept what they believe. It takes a connection some-times to break a barrier and a realization that our fear of what might be does not mean we will betray our past. Transitions occur all the time – and sometimes for the good.

I have found that Mormons, or members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are made up of good people who were Baptists, Methodists, Catholics, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Pentacostals, Jews, Muslims, et al. Mormons are a peculiar people – but while we are different, we are the same.

There is no way I could have finished this story without Cheri, my wife, and she deserves acknowledgement for what she has done. Any errors or mistakes of any kind I am responsible for as the author. Try as I might to avoid them, I am sure there are a few.

And, I take full responsibility for any doctrinal message herein. If there is error, don’t blame The Church – write if these errata are troublesome for you and I will respond.

List of Illustrations

Mr. Charlie in the Piney Woods

Ker ta dance?

Doc Andrews’ General Store

All gussied up

Wedding Day

Path Through Live Oaks

Elder Butters at the M.T.C.

Mr. Charlie Hoeing in the Garden

At the Ward Social

Mr. Charlie’s Baptism

M r. Charlie never did