BENLD

By George M. Papa

After credits, screen shows: In the distance is the small village of Snowflake, Arizona. A wide dry wash with lots of sand and cobble rocks lined with cottonwood trees is the forefront. Camera pans the wash and down a dirt road past a few houses and barns. A wide empty ditch with lots of dry weeds runs next to the road, which is also lined with

• Language: English
• Publisher: Papa Books
• Release date: Mar 4, 2024
• ISBN: 9798890215222

George M. Papa

George M. Papa (1943 - ) was born in Chicago during WWII, being the oldest child of a Catholic, Croatian, sailor father and a devout many-generation Mormon mother from Northern Arizona, who had graduated from Brigham Young University. Two weeks after his birth, George and his Mother moved to Snowflake, Arizona to live with her parents and to wait out the war. However, the month before George was born, his father converted to Mormonism so George would not be born a half breed. After the war, George's parents settled in Northern Arizona where four more sons were born.

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BENLD

By

George M. Papa

BENLD

©2023 by George M. Papa 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.

Published by George M. Papa

ISBN: 979-8-89021-523-9 Paperback

ISBN: 979-8-89021-524-6 Hardback

ISBN: 979-8-89021-522-2 eBook

Printed in United States of America

This book is printed on acid- free paper.

After credits, screen shows: In the distance is the small village of Snowflake, Arizona. A wide dry wash with lots of sand and cobble rocks lined with cottonwood trees is the forefront. Camera pans the wash and down a dirt road past a few houses and barns. A wide empty ditch with lots of dry weeds runs next to the road, which is also lined with huge cottonwoods. There are no cement sidewalks and no people or cars are visible.

Fall is in the air and the many stately and multi-colored broadleaf trees – which are mingled with various evergreen trees, including shaggy-bark cedar trees – now shed flurries of red and golden leaves that flutter to the brown earth.

This book /modified screenplay shall not be reproduced either wholly or in part without express written permission from George M. Papa.

The actual historical events here dramatized took place primarily in the state of Illinois between 1925 and 1943.

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Snowflake, Arizona from a distance

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Cottonwood Wash, West Side of Snowflake, Arizona

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Silver Creek, East side of Snowflake Arizona

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Cottonwood Wash and Silver Creek join into a picturesque canyon just north of Snowflake, Arizona

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A preserved home on main street, Snowflake, Arizona

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Preserved Flake Mansion, Snowflake, Arizona

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Preserved home of Jessie Nathanial Smith

Great grandfather of the author

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The author’s Snowflake home from 1949 at age 7, through high school. This was the original home of Locy Rogers, his great-grandfather. This house burned down in 1988. What is left is the memorial cabin on the next page, which the above frame house was built around, the cabin being the front room of the above house.

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This cabin is the original front room of the frame house on the previous page.

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Academe Street, now Hulet Street, Snowflake, Arizona circa 1890

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Snowflake High School Academy, built 30 years before statehood. For 87 years

students came from over 30 miles in every direction to attend high school here.

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Snowflake Rodeo, July 26, 2021

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Local Sawmill

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Snowflake Cemetery

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One of several Snowflake chapels of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

This was the only one in existence when the author was growing up in Snowflake.

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Snowflake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

One of 265 in the entire world

Scene 1: School Camera frames the imposing two-story yellow brick elementary schoolhouse. The playground is empty. Tall swings and a slide are shown. A gust of wind ruffles the trees and more leaves swirl and sweep across the school ground.

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Screen shows:

SNOWFLAKE, ARIZONA

OCTOBER, 1951

Suddenly a school buzzer sounds and the doors of the school fling open and a hoard of elementary students (ages 6 to 14) flood out into the playground and towards home. Several boys begin to play marbles, firing their taws in turn towards daters in the center of a large circle. Other kids ride off on bicycles. Most of the children wear Denham pants and flannel shirts. A few carry lunch pails in hand.

Through the school door strides Georgie (7) with red hair. His shoes are a scuffed, dark-brown leather ‘high top’ clodhopper kind. Georgie walks resolutely from the school and down the wide dirt road to his nearby home.

Scene 2: Backyard Georgie crosses the wide irrigation ditch on a wooden bridge, passes a row of tall cottonwood trees and enters into his backyard. The house itself is a two-story white frame building with a high pitched roof and three brick chimneys. In the backyard is a pile of shaggy-bark cedar firewood wood cut into 18-inch lengths.

Also featured is a clothes line made of four 8X 8 X 8’ timbers at each corner and a 3x 8 plank nailed across the top to which 5 lines of heavy wire are attached. Next to this clothes line is a granary and an apple tree. To the back of the lot is a frame chicken coop with a corrugated tin roof. Also attached is a chicken run made of chicken wire. There is also a small pasture on this one acre lot with a Guernsey cow eating grass. Two rabbit hutches on wooden legs about two feet long stand next to a shed in the pasture.

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George Sr. (35), is nailing together a simple bench about 3 feet long and 1 foot wide and 1.5 feet high. George Sr. then fits this bench between the back of the front seat, and the front of the back seat of the family car, a 1947 Nash parked nearby. George Sr. then places a small canvas mattress across the top of the bench and the back seat itself, to make an extended bed in the back seat. Other boxes and items are inside the trunk. Two handmade quilts and two pillows are now placed on top of the small mattress.

Georgie What’s going on, Dad? Why are you home early from the saw mill?

George Sr. Go in the house and get some of your clothes. We’re going to Chicago.

Georgie Chicago? Why are we going to Chicago?

Beatrice (Georgie’s Mother) comes out the back door with a cardboard box of homemade bread, bottled fruit, utensils, etc. which she hands to George Sr.

Beatrice Can you find a place for this?

George Sr. I’ll try.

George Sr. adjusts other stuff in the small trunk, and finds a spot for the box.

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The Family cow

The Family Car

Beatrice (Georgie’s mother) comes out the back door carrying a cardboard box of homemade bread, bottled fruit, utensils and other items which she hands to George Sr., who puts it all in the trunk.

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Georgie (me) 7, Beatrice, Andrew (2), George Sr. and Donnie. 4½.

Note – The reason I am scowling is because I was embarrassed about having to have my picture taken with me wearing second-hand air plane pants that had ugly baggy flairs on each side, as plainly advertized on Donnie’s pants, but he had no class, and he did not care, but I had to hold my hand over those dumb bulges to try and hide my vexation.

Beatrice Son, the reason we’re going to Chicago is because we just got a letter from Grandma Papa and she said if we want to see Grandpa alive, we have to hurry quick because he’s already in the hospital…

George Sr. I’ve already milked the cow. It’s time to load up.

Beatrice Come with me, Georgie, we still have things in the house to carry out.

Beatrice and Georgie enter the house while George Sr. continues to arrange the car. Soon Georgie and Beatrice return. Georgie carries another box of stuff and Beatrice is carrying a baby (Drewie) and some of his things. Drewie wears a cloth diaper, a tee shirt, and he holds a baby bottle by the nipple with his teeth. Along with them is another boy, Donnie (4). George Sr. puts the box in the trunk as Beatrice makes herself comfortable in the front seat with the baby. Quickly, Georgie and Donnie climb into the back seat as George Sr. shuts the trunk and gets into the car.

George Sr. steps on the clutch, puts the column shift-lever into gear, then pushes on the start button, but nothing happens.

Somewhat perplexed, George Sr. turns the key off, and sits back to ponder this situation. Soon he gets out of the car, pops the hood, picks up a small hammer stashed under the hood, taps on the battery posts and also the well of the carburetor, gets back in the car, starts it up, gets out of the car, drops the hood, gets back in the car and drives past the wood pile towards the wooden bridge that goes over the ditch and to the vacant street.

At that point, George Sr. sees a lone man standing under a huge cottonwood tree on the ditch bank. George Sr. quickly rolls down the window.

George Sr. Bob, I’m on my way to Chicago to see my dad before he dies. Will you milk my cow while I am gone?

Bob George… damn it! You’ll never make it! This junker you call a car won’t even get to Holbrook, let alone Chicago! Hell, you don’t even have first or reverse gear!

George Sr. (waving and driving off) Thanks, Bob… I should only be gone about two weeks.

Bob (hollering after the car) I guess you want me to feed your chickens too?

The car picks up speed as George Sr. sticks his hand out the window and above the roof of the car to wave agreement to Bob.

Scene 3: Highway (Route 66) Aerial frame shows the car traveling towards the rising sun over a narrow ribbon of highway. Most of the cars are going the other way.

Caption on the screen reads:

SOMEWHERE IN NEW MEXICO

Georgie Dad, how come most cars go the other way?

George Sr. They are going to California, son. People are fed up with living back east so they are moving to California. This is the main highway between Chicago and Los Angeles. It’s called Route 66.

Georgie When was the last time you saw Grandpa and Grandma?

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George Sr. The last time I saw Grandpa and Grandma was when you were born in Chicago. Before that, the last time I saw my parents was when I was a sophomore in high school.

Georgie What’s wrong with Grandpa Papa?

George Sr. He had a heart attack and he’s in the hospital. That’s why we are going to see him.

Georgie Is he going to die?

George Sr. I do not know. But whatever it is, it is serious and he could die.

Georgie Is Grandpa Papa a Mormon?

George Sr. No, he is not a Mormon. None of my brothers or my sister are Mormons and neither is Grandpa or Grandma.

Georgie How did you get to be a Mormon?

George Sr. Well son, that’s a long story, but it all started when I met your mother. I got baptized the month before you were born.

Georgie Mom, how long have you been a Mormon?

Beatrice Son, me and my parents and grandparents and great grandparents, and even some of my great-great grandparents have all been Mormons.

Georgie Wow, I was just wondering.

Suddenly the old car engine starts to sputter and then it stops. The car simply coasts and George Sr. has to maneuver the car off the road to a spot away from the highway. George Sr. gets out, opens the hood, takes the small hammer from its designated spot and taps on the carburetor