Stripping Tobacco

A young man, almost half my age, recently told me he would like to have a “hand” of tobacco. I think he had seen that for which he was looking. I’m not sure he had experienced the making of a “hand.” Let me step back in time to explain.

In bygone days the “making” of a tobacco crop was a source of great pride for farmers who “grew” it. After the tobacco had “cured” in the tiers of a tobacco barn it was “thrown down” when it came “in order” (Some called it “in case.”) Then it found its way to a stripping table. The leaves were then carefully “graded” under skillful eyes. There were different names for the different grades. Leaves near the bottom of the stalk fell under the names of “lugs” or “trash.” The next leaves, long and golden, and higher up the stalk, were called “bright.” Next came shorter, dark leaves which fell under the name of “red,” and then, came “tips.” Some names for the different grades varied from farm to farm and from region to region, but farm “grading” had an overall consistency. The USDA grading system insured it to be so. All that brings me to the “hand.”

In my part of the world the process of removing tobacco leaves from the stalk, by hand, and placing the leaves in various grades was called “stripping tobacco.” In other places the process was called “handing tobacco.”

A right-hander would hold the butt-end of the tobacco stalk in his right hand and strip the leaves from the stalk, collecting them in his left hand. When his hand was “full” to his liking, he would “tie” the hand of tobacco with a carefully selected “tie leaf.” The “hand” of tobacco was created by holding the “stem ends” of each leaf, and an effort was made to keep the “stem ends” even. Skilled tobacco strippers were always on the lookout for desirable “tie leaves” as they put together “hands.” When one was found It was tucked under the strippers left arm for safe keeping. When the “hand” was full, the “tie leaf” would be retrieved and put to good use. The “hand” was finished by wrapping the “tie leaf” around the  ”stem ends” of the collected leaves. The wrapping or “tying” of the hand began with the tip of the “tie leaf“ and resulted in 2-4 inches of the “hand” being under the “tie leaf.” The job was finished when the “hand” of tobacco was divided  under the “tie” and the stem end of the “tie leaf” was pulled through the divided “hand.” This was referred to as “tying the hand.”

“Tie leaves” were selected for their quality and color. The size of “hands” varied considerably. Some tobacco growers preferred the “tied end” be no bigger around than a silver dollar. The size of the tobacco stripper’s hands often determined size. In my time, I observed tobacco “hands” as big as the barrel of a baseball bat.

As the first tobacco stripper at the stripping table removed the first graded leaves, he passed the tobacco stalk down to the next man or woman. When the next grade of leaves was removed, the stalk was passed further down the table. Finally, a tobacco stalk was left with 2-3 “tips.” When the last leaves were removed all that remained was a lowly tobacco stalk. I “hauled” many a tobacco stalk out of a tobacco barn in my time. It seemed to be a thankless job.

I hold many fond memories from my tobacco stripping days. When tobacco stripping time began my late father was relentless. He would stand at the stripping table from early morning until late afternoon, day after day, until the last leaf.

They started my brothers, my sister and me early. I still carry a scar over my right eye. They told me, when I was four years old, I tripped on a rock and hit the wagon tongue. Three stitches and I was as good as new.

To this day, I miss the smell of a tobacco barn.

Copyright 2023 by Jack McCall

Heart

There are so many lagging effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Although everything can’t be blamed on COVID, there are a few results which are undeniable. Many learned they would rather stay at home and “draw” a check than go to work every day and work. Some have said it is not that members of the younger generation don’t want to work, but they don’t want to work much. And let’s face the fact the younger ones among us have been fed a steady diet of conversation that goes something like this: “Our generation will be ok in the face of all the reckless federal government spending and growing national debt, but it’s going to bankrupt our children and grandchildren.” So why, one might ask, should I pour my life into any job or cause when I will end up broke?

Of course, the growing labor shortage was only made worse by COVID. For some, once they got out of the work habit, it was hard to get back into the “flow.”

I don’t know that it can be blamed on COVID, but it seems we came out of the pandemic blaming a variety of problems and delays on the “supply chain.” The supply chain has been given a really bad name these days. But I think the real problem finds its roots in not only a declining workforce, but also in less dedicated workers. You know the old cliché: “You just can’t find good help anymore.”  Of course, you can always find exceptions to the rule.

But you can witness it everywhere. I told a friend recently that we will probably never see great personal, customer service, as we have known in the past, ever again. Personal service must have a special ingredient – let’s call it “heart.”

Have you ever heard someone say, “He doesn’t have his heart in it?” or “She just didn’t have her heart in it?”

A good friend of mine was laid to rest this past weekend. His name was Mark Holder. Mark’s name was synonymous with the Trousdale Livestock Market in Hartsville, TN for many years. In livestock circles he was well known from Hop’town to K’town. Mark was a throwback to his grandfather and the old, crusty livestock operators of that generation. When I considered one word which I would use to describe Mark, I came up with this: “accommodating.” You have to have your heart in it to be accommodating.

Thinking of Mark took me back many years to my livestock marketing days. One memorable occasion found me on a farm in northern Middle Tennessee where I had been called upon to bid on a farmer’s cattle. I found it to be a most unusual situation as the farmer was grazing his cowherd and his last three calf crops in the same pasture. That’s right. He had steers as big as cows, 600-700 lb yearlings, and then, the young ones. And he wanted two price quotes -one for the steers, and one for the heifers. I knew I was well in over my head, so we called in my professional order buyer. He came, made an offer, and the seller accepted.

By the way, I forgot to mention an important bit of information. In my negotiations with the farmer I came to the conclusion he was one the toughest, most ornery individuals I had ever met.

A day was set to gather and sort the cattle. Two tractor trailers would be positioned at the bottom of the hill, and cattle would be shuttled from the feed barn on smaller straight trucks to the waiting transports. On the appointed day, the skies were dark and threatening which caused our pace to be stepped up. A long day lay ahead. It turned out to be grueling. Wide hallways, and narrow, stable doors in the dark hallways of an old, feed barn offer all the ingredients of  a death trap. Sorting turned out to be a nightmare. It was not one of my best days, and the old farmer was quick to point out my every mistake. He was unrelenting in his criticism. I chose to suffer in silence.

At the end of the day, I was physically exhausted and emotionally spent. I have never felt like such a failure.

My situation that day was not helped by the fact I had chosen to wear heavy overshoes. (The kind with metal closures down the front. I don’t think they make them anymore.) When I followed the last truck to the bottom of the hill I could barely pick up my feet.

Suddenly, flashes of lightning drew my attention back to the barn at the top of hill. The old barn looked like a tired, old sentry against the darkened sky. And there beside it was the hulking figure of the old farmer trying to move his loading chute, an almost impossible task for one man. At the same moment the rain arrived. It first came as big drops, making silver dollar- sized craters in the dust. Then, the dust became a sticky mud.

I was presented with a pressing dilemma. Should I race back up the hill and help him? I decided I should. With boots that grew heavier with mud with every step I took, I sprinted up the hill and arrived just in time to throw my shoulder into the loading chute as we easily rolled it into its proper resting place. The farmer took a chain which had a ring in the  end and dropped it over a hook on the side of the barn - job done.

Then he turned to me, and I looked into the eyes of a man I had never seen before. For his eyes were soft and kind, as he said in a quiet voice, “Thank you, boy. You are the only one in this whole outfit that has his heart in this.”

In all my years, it ranks as one of my finest moments.

Copyright 2023 By Jack McCall

Sameness

My wife, Kathy, and I visited friends in North Carolina back over the holidays. We met them near Hickory, NC, and then caravanned across the state. My plan was to let our friend, Geno, lead the way. As soon as we got under way, I realized keeping up with Geno would be a challenge. But I set my sights on his black SUV and decided to give it the old college try. Mid-day traffic was unusually heavy which made my commitment even more challenging. In and out of the interstate lanes my friend drove. Sometimes he sped out of sight as I struggled to keep up. On one occasion I thought I had caught him as I pulled in behind a black SUV only to find it was not him. Over the 200 miles of highway, we traveled I mistakenly tracked down Hondas, Toyotas, Chevrolets, Fords, and Lexus – all black SUVs -none of them him. I finally gave up when we stopped for fuel and said “we’ll see you at the hotel.”

Over 30 years ago there was talk of a “world car” by futurists and car manufacturers. The idea was -- transmissions made in Mexico, computer chips manufactured in China, alternators made in Brazil, starters made in Canada, etc. etc. The parts and the countries named might be different, but you get the idea. Most parts would be inter-changeable, coming together to build a “world car.” So now we have all these cars that look eerily alike.

And the sameness doesn’t stop with automobiles. For generations teenagers have cried out “let me be myself” only to end up dressing like, talking like, and acting like their peers. The pressure to “fit in” is a powerful thing.

In today’s world it appears if you aren’t willing to “go with the flow” you might face serious rejection or even be ostracized. Once upon a time the “rugged individualist” was admired. Not so much these days.

Henry David Thoreau spoke of the man (or woman) “who marched to the beat of a different drummer.” Rocker, Bob Dylan said, (I’m paraphrasing here.) “When you step out and do your own thing some people will be mystified, and it will tick (He didn’t use the word “tick”) some other people off.”

A popular admonishment today goes like this: “Stay in your own lane.” Personally, I’ve always empathized with children who have a tendency to “color outside the lines.”

My late grandfather, who was consider by many to be “an odd bird” was oft to say, “It takes all kinds to make a world.” I am always amused to hear young parents, after their second child is born, say, “They are so different!”  I hope they allow them to stay that way.

I have an old friend who often remarks, “You got to be yourself. You can’t try to be like somebody else. It will never work.” How true!

So, here’s to “being your own dog!”  Not for the sake of being different, but for the sake of being true to your calling. I once heard a brilliant psychologist say we think all brilliant students should become doctors and scientists and engineers. But the world needs brilliant welders and mechanics and farmers.

Our Creator must have loved variety because we came into the world as uniquely different packages, each to let his light shine in special ways.

I wish you well in being true to yourself.

Copyright 2023 by Jack McCall         

Things I’ve Seen in the Brim Hollow

If you know me, or you have followed my writing, you know a place called the Brim Hollow has been a profound influence in my life. Not just memories of my maternal grandfather, Will Herod Brim, or my grandmother, Lena Bradford Brim, but it is also the hollow itself that shaped my personality and my way of thinking. Over the years I have returned there many times – sometimes in person, but often times in my mind.

Not so many years ago I was on one of the many walks I have taken there. Sometimes, when I arrive at the old home place, I turn sharply up the hill through Squirrel Tail Hollow and take an ancient log road to the head of the hollow, then return by the hollow road. On this day I had taken that route and arrived halfway back down the hollow. When I stopped to rest, I drank from a spring which oozed out from under a rocky bluff. I found a place and situated myself beneath a massive oak tree. I carefully surveyed my surroundings before closing my eyes in anticipation of taking a short nap. Before me lay a fallen tree at least 18-inches through. Its tangled roots, having let go of a soggy bank, and the limbs of the tree had caused it to rest almost parallel with ground two feet below. I estimated its trunk to be at least thirty feet in length. When I was satisfied with my surveillance, I pulled the bill of my cap down over my eyes to doze off. Suddenly, I picked up the slightest movement out of my peripheral vision. I turned slowly to see a full-grown bob cat hop up on the fallen tree just beyond its roots. After she had taken a step or two, a kitten bounded up on the tree trunk and followed – then another, and then another. If I could have frozen the frame on a movie camera, it would have captured the mother and her three kittens traversing the log, all in a row. The sight is indelibly printed in my mind. When she reached the first limb of the tree she hopped down to the right and disappeared. Each kitten followed. They never knew I was there. The experience remains a priceless treasure for me.

One spring I was headed up the hollow road beyond what was once the farm working area of barns, chicken houses, smokehouse and outhouse. My grandfather once parked his truck in a small building covered with shake shingles. I passed its remains as I ventured up the hollow on this day. After a few hundred yards the road turned sharply down and to the right and entered a rock, creek bed. Called “the narrow place,” the creek bed passes between craggy bluffs before the road turns sharply up and to the left. I crossed another creek and started up a shaded lane where water seeps in the wet season and green moss grows. Not far ahead I came upon a most unusual sight. In a tall sycamore tree, which I had watched through the years grow from a sapling, was a gathering of robins the likes of which I had never seen before. There were hundreds of them. They seemed undisturbed as I moved in closer to observe this wonder. The

chorus of their chirps and singing was almost mesmerizing. They flitted and flirted among the branches of the sycamore, then back and forth they flew to small cedars. Every move seemed to be strangely orchestrated. Among them were older birds, their red breasts broad, their bodies full. And there were younger ones with youthful heads and slender bodies. All were together, I suppose - exchanging notes – summoning courage to meet the challenges of spring.

All my life I had heard of “a robin’s roost.” I had found one. Priceless.

You might say one of the reasons I love that old hollow is because, within its bounders I have encountered nature at its finest.               

Copyright 2023 by Jack McCall

Resistance

Author and internationally acclaimed speaker, Matthew Keller, has written a number of marvelous books. In those books he consistently refers to one of the greatest enemies of our bettering ourselves as members of the human race. He calls it resistance.

Having lived out the better part of my allotted years, I would tend to agree. Resistance is everywhere. People of all walks of life resist change, children resist the teaching of their parents, lawbreakers resist arrest – the list goes on and on.

The late, great, sales motivator, Zig Ziglar spoke of good and bad this way. Bad habits are easy to start, but hard to quit. On the other hand, good habits are hard to start, but easy to quit. Whenever we seek to improve ourselves, resistance always seems to raise its ugly head.

Of course, resistance has a first cousin. Let’s call him/her procrastination. We have all fallen victim to procrastination. Someone once said  - with tongue in cheek – “Why do today what you can put off until tomorrow?” It was even made into the title of a song. Procrastination, like resistance, is a cunning and silent killer – a thief, no less. It will rob you of time and accomplishment. And to cast it aside, you must meet resistance head on.

Another cousin of resistance is hesitation.

I once read of a race horse that seemed destined to win the Kentucky Derby. Unfortunately, he did not. His jockey, in explaining why his horse failed to win, explained. (I am paraphrasing here.) “As we entered the home stretch, I had my horse in perfect position to win. But when he heard the roar of the crowd, for the slightest fraction of a second, his ears went up as if to say, ‘What’s that?’ By the time I got his head back in the race it was too late.” That, ever so slight, hesitation cost him the race.

Here’s a great quote. “On the beach of hesitation, bleach the bones of countless millions, who sat down to wait; and waiting, died.” A great Tennessean, David Crockett, said, “Make sure you are right, then go ahead.” Someone else was heard to say, “The world is filled with people who can make decisions, but very few of them will.”

So, may I recommend an antidote for resistance, procrastination, and hesitation? Sometimes you just have to “take the bull by the horns.” Or as, W.C. Fields once quipped, “Sometimes you have to take the bull by the tail and face the situation!”

And we all would do well to remember as the ancients wrote:

Four things return not:

1)      The spoken word

2)      The sped arrow

3)      Time past

4)      Opportunity lost

 I came across a poem that has stuck with me throughout the years. It goes like this:

If, with pleasure, you are viewing,

Anything a man is doing.

If you love him, if you prize him, tell him now.

Do not withhold your approbation,

Until the parson makes oration,

And he lies with many lilies on his brow.

For no matter how you shout it,

He won’t really hear about it,                                                              

He’ll not count the many teardrops that you shed.

So, if you feel some praise is due him,

Now’s the time to pass it to him,

For he cannot read his tombstone when he’s dead.

Don’t put important things off.

Copyright 2023 by Jack McCall

Post-Holiday Thoughts

Well, another Holiday Season has passed us by. For me, Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Year’s Day come too soon and pass too quickly. Each year, especially at Christmas, I look for an experience, or a special feeling, or singular event which makes that particular Christmas especially special. This year, I found two.

Once again, I re-read Charles Dickens’ classic, A Christmas Carol. The story behind how this timeless work came to be is quite unusual. As another Christmas approached, Dickens found himself deeply in debt while kinfolks were pressing him for loans. He desperately needed to create a work which could be published quickly in time to take advantage of the Holiday market. As he walked the cold and dingy streets of London at night the ideas and characters which made A Christmas Carol the timely classic began to come to life. It could well be his best work, and certainly became his most memorable. Who in all the world has never heard the phrase, “Bah, Humbug!” or known of a “Scrooge” or whispered the prayer of Tiny Tim, “God bless us every one!”

A Christmas Carol is filled with so many memorable lines. A friend, Michael, reminded me of one of my favorites. In a conversation with the Ghost of Christmas Present, Ebenezer Scrooge is warned:

“Scrooge, there is never enough time to do all the things that we would wish. The thing is to do as much as you can in the time you have left. For, suddenly, one day you wake up and you aren’t there anymore!”

That’s a great thought to take into the new year. Each of us, young and old, should take the challenge to make the most of the time we have left.

Our family celebrated Christmas back at the old home place this year. Three generations were present. 14 of the 16 (ages 12 and younger) who make up the third generation were there. We were blessed with a beautiful day - clear skies and mild temperature – helped with a rolling bonfire in the front yard. (A week before the winter storm arrived.)

All the young ones were outside running and ripping and having a glorious time. I was seated at a window as I watched them in their play. And I found myself offering a Christmas blessing for each one. And I smiled as I considered each one’s uniqueness. And I wondered how each one’s life would be lived out.

I found out later that, as I was watching them, someone was watching me.

“Uncle Jack,” a niece confessed, “I saw you watching us as you sat at the window. With the Christmas tree glowing in the background, it would have made a great picture for a Hallmark Card!”

I thought, “Maybe a Norman Rockwell, titled the Old Man in the Window.”

The celebration of Christmas has the potential of being a glorious time. It can be described in many ways.

“For God loved us and sent His Son.”

“He shall be called Emmanuel, meaning God with us.”

To the shepherds the message came, “For is born to you this day in the City of David, a Savior which is Christ, the Lord.”

So what does that mean to you and me as we move into the Year of Our Lord 2023?

I propose that sometimes situations arise which are beyond us. Like when a strong and talented football player goes into cardiac arrest and grown men who have been taught that crying is a sign of weakness find themselves on their knees as tears run down their faces – and millions pause to pray.

On occasion we must be reminded to “look unto the hills…” Psalm 121

Copyright 2023 by Jack McCall        

Things My Mother Said

My late mother, Mary Helen Brim McCall, was a phenomenal person. I suppose every boy who had a nurturing mother felt her to be phenomenal. Mine was not only very intelligent, but she also had loads of “common sense.” You know what they say about common sense – “common sense is not so common.”

In today’s world there seems to be less and less application of sound thinking. In some quarters I almost detect a disdain for those who insist on relying on the wisdom of the ages.

Mary Helen Brim was a child of the Great Depression. It had a lasting impact on her thinking. I often think of things she said. Most of her most memorable sayings were rooted in the Holy scriptures. Others were her own.

If I heard it once, I heard it a thousand times. “Son, every situation can make you, or it can break you.” I have seen it played out so many times through the years. I have witnessed prosperity being the ruination of some, and I have observed what appeared to be a disaster resulting in an individual becoming stronger and wiser. I have watched some grow bitter from disappointment, and others take financial success and do grand things for the betterment of humanity. “Every situation can make you, or it can break you.”

I hear these words ringing in my ears from time to time. “Moderation in all things.” It’s the extremes that get us in trouble – overeating, over drinking, over- spending, eating too little, under spending, over exercising, under exercising, over doing it, overcleaning -the list goes on and on. “Moderation in all things.”

“It’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good.” There seems to be an abundance of ill winds blowing these days. Best we recognize them. There’s another old saying that goes like this. “He who will not stand for something will fall for anything.” Best we be aware of the ill winds.

“Bread cast on the water will return after many days.” My mother often said the only reason she would ever desire to have a lot of money was so she could give it away. She still managed to give a lot away – whatever she had.

“You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.” The late, great, sales motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar used to say there are three things that are hard to do. “To climb a fence that is leaning to you, to kiss a girl who is leaning from you, and to help people who don’t want to be helped.” I came across a great line a few years ago which goes like this, “He is most easily convinced who discovers the answer for himself.” “You can lead a horse…”

“The answer to every situation can be found somewhere in the Bible.” That was one of her favorites. She believed it and she lived it. Her favorite verses? Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.”

And her take on eternal life? She would simply say, “If you miss that, you’ve missed it all.”

Copyright 2022 by Jack McCall  

The Sears Christmas Wish Book

 I’m not really sure when the commercialization of Christmas began to impact modern America in dramatic fashion. Maybe it was in the 1960’s. If not that early, it certainly was underway by the 1970’s.

 The first signs, I think, were when Christmas displays began to appear in retail stores as early as August. I was a young man when I first remember the subject being discussed among churchgoing people with no small amount of consternation. “The very idea of pushing Christmas merchandise before summer was over!”

 Well, that hasn’t changed much in the succeeding 30 or 40 years. Christmas merchandise still makes it appearance in August each year. I have noticed that Halloween has made a big push in recent years. Early Christmas displays are somewhat overshadowed in August, September, and October by all the Halloween stuff. (If you care to look deeply enough, you might find that a bit unsettling, too.)

 When Halloween passes and all the candy and costumes are gone, the Christmas push is fully underway. Strangely, the loser seems to be Thanksgiving Day. It’s hard to imagine…. Thanksgiving lost between the “marketing” of Halloween and Christmas. I, personally, find that unsettling, too. It is, unfortunately, a sign of the times.

 In the days of my youth, it seemed Christmas was not given much thought until Thanksgiving Day was past. It was about that time, (by design, I’m sure) that the Sears Roebuck and Company Christmas Wish Book arrived in the mail at Route 2, Carthage, Tn. That’s when my brothers, my sister and I got really serious about Christmas, especially Santa Claus. For the next four weeks, we gave that Wish Book a going over.

 At the McCall household, Santa Claus relied heavily on Sears Roebuck and Company. So, the McCall children took shopping the Wish Book very seriously. That wish book got very little rest. With four boys and a girl actively “shopping,” it meant the catalog was in use during most waking hours. This led to many a heated fuss.

 When the issue of time with the catalog became hotly contested, my mother served as referee. I distinctly remember many conversations relating to the Wish Book.

 “Mama, make him give me the Christmas catalog! He’s been looking at it for an hour!” a brother would say.

 Sometimes, to keep the peace, my mother would impose a 30-minute limit. The next one in line for the catalog would watch the clock. Invariably, that yielded this announcement: “Mama, his 30 minutes are up. Make him give it to me!”

  “Give your brother the catalog!” she would declare.

 The one giving up the Wish Book would hand it over to the one waiting for it and snarl, “You big baby!”

 For over a month it was passed round, day and night. What to choose? How to decide?

 I’ve spent many an hour studying the pages of a Sears Wish Book. Back and forth, page by page. And I changed my mind a thousand times. I would go to bed thinking about my possible choices. Then, the next morning I would need to see the catalog again.

 Sometimes it became miss-placed which created a household crisis. Years later, looking back, I suspected my mother hid the darn thing just to cut down on the racket.  

 By the time Christmas arrived, that Wish Book was missing its front and back covers, was dog-eared and as limp as a dish rag.

 Sometimes we changed our minds at the last minute and put in our order to Santa Claus too late and didn’t get exactly what we asked for. But no one was ever unhappy on Christmas morning.

 As I recall, the Sears Wish Book was delivered to our mailbox at no cost back in those days. But price or no price, we surely got our money’s worth.

 Copyright 2017 by Jack McCall