TMR Podcast: Episode #51 - Mississipi Rose

Back around the turn of the century, there was a young man named Joshua who moved from New Orleans, Louisiana to his Grandpa's farm in rural Mississippi. As a child, Joshua loved to visit his Grandpa's farm. It was so quiet, peaceful and simple - not complicated and noisy, like New Orleans. Joshua told himself that, when he got old enough and became self-reliant, he'd move to Mississippi, find himself a pretty local girl to marry, and settle down in the land he loved so much.

When Joshua moved in with his Grandpa, he immediately started helping him out with the daily farm chores. These chores included helping out in the fields and taking the produce into town Saturday morning. On that day, farm folk would load up their mule-drawn wagons and travel for miles through flat, sun-scorched farmland toward the nearest town. There, they'd set up their wagons on the town square and sell their produce to the town folk.

One hot Saturday morning, Joshua brought some peas, tomatoes and a little okra to sell in town. Later that day, as he headed back on the long dusty road toward Grandpa's farm, he began to get a little tired and thirsty. He then saw a shady spot under a cluster of magnolia trees that he thought he remembered passing on the way in to town. He stopped, sat under the trees and had a drink out of his water jug. By his recollection, he figured that this cluster of trees must be halfway between Grandpa's farm and the center of town.

The sun was setting by the time Joshua finally returned to the farm. Grandpa came out the door to greet him and said, "Son, I know you're tired and you've had a long ride from town. But Obediah sent word that he needs a load of hay come first thing Monday mornin'. But you and I got chores to do 'round here Monday morning. And you can't do it tomorrow 'cause tomorrow's Sunday, and the only work we do on Sunday is church work. So you're gonna have to load that hay now and take it on over to Obediah's house tonight. You're gonna need to take a lantern with you, 'cause it's gonna be late and gettin' dark on the road. When you get to Obediah's place, he'll fix you some supper and let you stay with him for the night. That's just the way we do things 'round here."

Grandpa then handed him a lantern and said, "Now listen, Joshua - be kind to ol' Obediah. He's known 'round these parts as a talker. He'll tell ya' some wild tales, and he's pretty superstitious."

Joshua didn't look forward to getting back on that wagon, but he wanted to help his Grandpa any way he could. "All right, Grandpa," he said, "I'll be okay."

So Joshua headed back down the road toward town with a wagon full of hay, looking for the turnoff that led to Obediah's house. As darkness fell and the night took on a chill, he could barely see the road in front of him in the dim lantern light. The strange, unearthly sounds of insects and wild animals seemed to surround him. Joshua noticed that sounds carried easily over this flat, open land - so much so that he couldn't tell if the creatures were far away or right next to him. At one point, a creature darted across the road in front of the wagon, and Joshua thought he could see its red, catlike eyes flashing angrily at him. Although Joshua came from the wild streets of New Orleans, he found himself getting a little scared out here all alone.

Finally, Joshua spotted a familiar landmark - the cluster of magnolia trees that he had stopped by earlier in the day. Suddenly, as he came by the trees holding up the lantern, he swore he saw a shadowy figure jump down from one of the branches! Joshua nearly jumped out of his seat before regaining his wits and pulling the mule to a halt. To his surprise, he could see that it was a young girl, walking toward his wagon.

"Ma'am, what are you doing out here at night by yourself?" Joshua stammered, still in shock.

"I'm all right," she replied in a sassy voice. "Besides, no harm will come to me."

"But ma'am, it's late" said Joshua. "You never know what's out here this time of night. There's wild animals about. Let me take you home. You do live around these parts, don't you?"

"Yes," said the young girl. "Just up the road - the Simmons property. It's not that far, but I guess you can give me a ride."

Joshua held up the lantern so she could get in the wagon, then snapped the reins and got the mule moving down the road again. Joshua looked over at the young girl sitting beside him. She looked kind of pale, but she was still beautiful, with dark hair pulled back in a ponytail with a pretty bow. What a nice girl this would be to marry, he thought to himself.

"Ma'am, my na