November 5, 2022 • 31 mins
To the lady who saved my brother and I from an possible assault. I dedicate this episode to my neighbor who recently died. Today is her memorial service. Hear how her life effected mine and my brother’s and I’m forever grateful ♥️
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hey, sibs. It is little sister Chris.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
And today I am posting since it is November and
my last post was the end of August, and I
have recovered from COVID.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
However, there are times during.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Going out and things of that nature that I get
a raspy voice. I am fine, but just bear with
me as I try to recover my voice. This in
this episode. Today, I will be going to a memorial
service for a lady who just passed away, and actually
(00:46):
she passed away in September and she's just having The
family is just having a memorial service today, which is
November the fifth, And I've been meaning to do an
episodisode about those people who helped and I have not
(01:06):
done an.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
Episode like that before.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Although grief is very isolating, no matter how many people
are around you, in your mind, you still feel as
though you are alone, abandoned, isolated in the process, especially
with a sibling. And I'm gonna tell you a story
about this lady. I met her as a kid when
(01:33):
I was eleven years old. My parents built a house
in this newer neighborhood and it was it was quite
rural at the time, but I mean it was still
in a very populated county, but outside of the county
at the time, within the city limits, but just a
(01:54):
little further outside of county.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
And she was older when we met. It was like.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Grandmother age. She was in her early sixties and her
husband was in her in his mid sixties.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
I want to say they were the sweetest couple.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
They had one daughter who was grown and at the time,
I think she lived in Texas. They didn't have any
grandchildren whatsoever. So this couple treated us as if we
were their grandchildren.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
My brother and I we were always if we had
locked out of the house.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
I know we have been at their house if on
a Saturday or something of that nature, just hanging out
with this couple and with my parents and kind of
hanging out and telling stories and choking and learning things
from this couple. And a nice house, nice comfortable house.
And I remember they would always listen to the police scanners,
(02:57):
and the police scanner was in there. Girl almost turned
on twenty four to seven, and I haven't heard a
police scanner like that in a minute. But they would
know what was happening all around Davidson County because of
this police scanner, and so funny is years later, I
just I was working for the police.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
But to continue on with the.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Story, this woman again was very caring, very nurturing, very
spry for a sixty year old, very spry, and throughout
the time that I've known her, and now knowing her
since nineteen ninety three, I know her to have high energy.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Her and her husband.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Her husband passed away in twenty twelve, and that was
a major loss because.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Art was his name.
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Art was a good guy, was retired from American.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Airlines and.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Just in the overall sweet guy that used to tell
dad jokes. And he was sickly for most of his
life apparently, but in later on in the years was
very sickly, having multiple multiple surgeries, but he never lost his.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Sense of humor.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Both of them, knowing what they've been through with each other,
never lost their sense of humor whatsoever. With us kids,
and we just enjoyed them as kids. We just enjoy
older people too. We enjoy all age. My brother enjoyed
from babies all the way up to one hundred years old.
He would hang out with and there were times where
(04:48):
my brother would kind of disappear if we would come
home from church or something and take a nap after
church and then wake up. He gone, he's at a
neighbor's house, either a neighbor across the street, listening to
this man and his pianos. And he was also older
(05:09):
to going to our Jean's house who were also older
and just seeing about them and talking to them, and
along with his other friends too.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
In the neighborhood.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
There was an incident when I was in sixth grade
in nineteen I believe, ninety four, ninety five, I believe,
I can't call it really, but my brother was in
high school, and because the area was so small where
we lived, and so very small and spread out at
the time it's no longer middle school and high school
(05:44):
rode the bus together. So that meant I was able
to ride the bus with my brother, and we were
one of the few black families in the neighborhood, one
of the few.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
It was one, two, three, and then there was a mixed.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
Family by racial family, so I would say four, three
and a half four.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
And the.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
Oh and then one more who didn't live in the
actual subdivision but live next door to the subdivision. So
we all rode the bus together, and the rest of
the kids that rode the bus. Were very much in this.
I mean, they were city kids. But if you back
in the day before they did all the building and
(06:35):
subdivisions and all that stuff, and the malls and all
that stuff, it was very rule back up in the
back close to.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
The lake area of our town, of our city, and
it was racism.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
And I can't tell you the full story of how
this all started with my brother and them calling him
inward on the bus and all of this nonsense that
was happening, but it was happening, and apparently something happened
at school, and it had been a long standing situation
(07:13):
with a group of guys on the bus and.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Telling this story, y'all.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
We one the afternoon, after getting off the bus, were
doing what we normally do, and we cut through the
backyard of my neighbors to get to our house. So
the bus driver, Micherry, let us off at the bus stop.
(07:47):
My brother and I start walking and we get to
my neighbor's backyard and my brother is ahead of me,
and then all of a sudden pops out three or
four boys, all white. I can't tell you where they
(08:09):
came from. We had a tree line in the back
of all of our houses in those backyards that led
up to a street, a main street, and I guess
came from the trees, came from in between the houses
or whatever, and they had us surround it. They had
us around it, and I cannot remember what all was
(08:33):
said at the time. I just remember my brother standing
their steel and I was standing there still, and I
was just trying to.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
Figure out what was going on. But I knew we
were in danger.
Speaker 2 (08:48):
I knew one of us or both of us, was
in danger, and one of them that was closest to
my brother body stands was not. It just gave me
this feeling that he had something behind his back. And
I believe I couldn't tell you one hundred percent, but
(09:09):
I felt like he had a knife, he had a
weapon behind him. And my neighbor bless our heart, rest
in peace. My neighbor came outside and came out on
her deck seeing us and says, hey, guys, you know
(09:31):
seeing my brother and us, and I screamed.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
I was like, Jane, they have a knife.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
And I remember saying that, and I remember they're gonna
hurt my brother.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
I remember saying, They're gonna hurt my brother.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
She immediately took into action and was like, get out
of here, get out of here. And I don't know
if I've told this story before this podcast. I feel
like I've talked and told this story so many times,
and I can't remember if I told this story on
this podcast.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
But she she.
Speaker 2 (10:10):
Demanded them leave her yard because we were in her yard,
and they scattered, scattered, and it scared me so much.
And I don't know because I can't I cannot remember
(10:33):
what happened immediately next. I just remember being scared. I
remember faking God that my neighbor came out at the
time that she came out, and then I think she.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Asked questions like who are those guys? And I think
my brother.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Told her who it was and kind of explained to
her the situation, and then the rest of it was
kind of a blank. I don't even remember walking home
because I can't remember if my dad was.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
Home or not.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
I know my mom was not home because she was
at work, and at the time, I believe Dad worked
second shift, so he either was at home or he
was asleep getting ready for a shift. I do remember
that our neighbors came together and my immediate next door
(11:26):
neighbor was a homicide detective for the local police department,
and then my other neighbor to my other immediate neighbor,
was also a retired sheriff, and then Jean, who was
I don't know what she used to do before she
(11:46):
was retired, but I remember them just kind of telling
my parents. This is just remembering from not from them
watching a conversation, but just remembering the conversations my brother
had and remembering in the conversation my dad had, and
then my neighbor's really telling them the law and if
(12:09):
something were to ever happen like that again, and somebody
is on what Tennessee law is basically, and somebody is
on your property what your rights are. But I can
tell you this, I never saw those kids again, and
I'm not sure if my brother ever saw them again.
Speaker 1 (12:28):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
We never saw those kids again after that. And it
wasn't until later when I found out that my neighbor, Jeane,
the one that yelled and had the kids scattered, went
up to the school and my other neighbor, who was
the detective, went up to the school and reported it.
(12:55):
And I don't know what their exact words were. I
have no clue. And I want to say one of
those kids was a son of an officer.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I can't.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
I'm not one hundred percent sure because we used to
pick him up and his bus stop was in front
of his house, and there used to be a car,
a police car out there, parked out there on a
regular basis, letting me know that somebody in his family
was an officer. But I tell you, I never saw
(13:26):
any of those three or four boys ever.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Again.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
They were no longer on the bus, and I don't
even know if they were still at the same school.
I have no clue because my brother never had another
problem out of that situation. And to fast forward our relationship.
(13:50):
When my brother passed away, I was fourteen and about
to be fit fifteen in August. It was April when
he passed, and I was also very chubby, and the
(14:13):
summertime the first summer after my brother passed, So in
April he passed, and then school was out.
Speaker 1 (14:20):
In May, so May, June, July.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
And then school started in August.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
I didn't have anything to do, and.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
You know, you know, my dad and I we would
go you know, mow grass and with people because my
brother and my dad used to have together.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
They would go mow grass.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
At people's houses and get paid, and neighbor's yards and
things like that, and then I kind of I always
helped out, but my brother loved to mow grass, so
I didn't do it as much. But after my brother passed,
I picked it up after my dad. My dad would
weedied and I would mow, you know, if I could
make it. And we did that for a while until
(15:11):
until after I think after college, when there was no
more yards. But Art and Gene used to pick me
up in the summertime, in the mornings, early mornings, I'd
have to get up. I love to swim, love swimming.
(15:33):
Art and Gene were a part of this group during
the mornings. And I can't remember if it was once
or twice a week, or if it was every day.
I cannot remember, y'all. I just remember I never really
missed a week. And I want to say their group
was called the Aqueducts. I want to really say they
were the Aqueducts. And this group was all over sixty
(15:58):
years old. It was a group of men and women
very much geriatric, but the best ever group to be
around and to learn their vernacular, to just be around
a bunch of women in their sixties and seventies trying
to take care of themselves in swimming. It was aqua
(16:21):
I mean, it was water aerobics, that's what it was.
And I would go with them to their water aerobics
and at times I would participate with them and do
the aerobics with them, and then at times I would
just like freely swim around them or whatever. But I
think we had to be there at seven or eight
in the morning. I remember it was early, and they
(16:42):
would come pick me up. They would come pick this
fourteen year old black girl, lub put them put me
in their Cadillac. They had a white Cadillac. Oh, it's
the best clean riding car. And they were the sweetest people.
And we would go to the YMCA and we would
be there for I know, an hour and a half
(17:04):
or maybe two hours. In the conversations we had, I
don't want to this is.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
An ode to both of them now that they are both.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
Gone, you know, I don't want to ever say that
I never had people around me to help, people who
are supportive factors and protective factors from me and for
my brother when he was here. I never want to
say that. I mean, there's church family that are just
(17:34):
like blood family. There's my best friends and sisters and
people who I don't even know strangers were people. But
I just want to highlight these two for creating an
outlet for me when my parents were not able, especially
(17:57):
it being that early in the morning in the summer days.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
My mom, you know, had to be at work in
the mornings.
Speaker 2 (18:04):
My dad was just getting home from his shifts cause
he worked at night. So it gave my dad some
time to sleep while I was gone with somebody he
can trust. And then you know, my mom be on
her way to work and not have to worry about
what I was doing or all of that. But it
was really one of those moments in life that I
(18:27):
will never forget.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
I will never forget.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
The experience of being with them, being protected by them,
being loved by them, and being like a great kid
because they never had grandchildren, and just to be loved
(18:52):
that much by people who are not.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Related.
Speaker 2 (19:00):
And it makes my heart fool to have known her.
And we didn't get to see each other much. After
twenty twelve, her daughter moved back from New York to
(19:20):
see after her mom, and they end up moving from
the neighborhood and where I grew up on the street
this kodasak. I'm okay, y'all. Everybody took care of each other,
(19:47):
looked after each other. We're in each other's house as kids.
I mean truly looked after each other. When my brother passed,
my family, Uh, there are a couple of family members
(20:08):
that came up that did not wanna go to the funeral,
But there were some neighbors who just kind of took
over while we were gone, took over in the house,
you know, to you know, help out with food and
and guests and you know, all of that stuff. And
(20:38):
even though that was a hard it was a hard time,
I think God for it, and I think that's like, uh,
what I do now, hopefully prefectly, what I do now with.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
People is help and you know what.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
I could edit this out, but I'm not gonna do
it because I love y'all.
Speaker 1 (21:09):
Siblings, and.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
Sometimes in our world, in our society, we don't deal
with feelings at all, and.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
I won't leave that in there. If you're new to
this podcast, it's very informal, very informal.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
I'm not in the studio when I do this it's
me and a mic, and sometimes me and just my phone,
and it is what it is.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
And hopefully.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
You have a story like this, you have a story
about people who have swooped in and loved you, when
your towers have fallen, when your world is shaken up.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
And I see death in so many different ways.
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Of course, you don't want people to go, ever, you
don't ever want people to go.
Speaker 1 (22:31):
But at the same time, there's some beauty and.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
The transition. And I promise, y'all, I am. I am
not talking crazy. But I had a dream a couple
of months ago, and I was talking to someone who
had already passed. And my dr my brother has come
(23:05):
in my dreams recently too, but this person was a
f ash, a f a family friend as well, and uh,
I had a whole conversation and he who he was
trying to fix my car and drive the car at
the same time and fix it, and I was just
having a good old time and the and it was
good to see him in my sleep.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
I was having the greatest time with him.
Speaker 2 (23:28):
And his family was there too, And as if time
stood steal cause they were the same age.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
They were.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
Like tenn ten, well fifteen years ago. They were the
same age and time like at times to just steal
and and then we just started in the dream we
were we were in a car, and then all of
a sudden, we weren't in a car and we were
kind of just floating off in the galaxy and in
(23:58):
in and everybody knew that it was what it was,
and I didn't know what it was, and it felt
like a roller coaster and then it was fun and
then it was scary at the same time. And then
I joketed awake, and I thought, you know, did I?
You know?
Speaker 1 (24:15):
Did I? Is that what death is like?
Speaker 2 (24:21):
Are you just do you just float away like that
into an orb? I don't know, I have no I
have no clue. So after that dream, I am I
have been thinking about that transition again. I don't know
(24:44):
what was going on in my mind for me to
be floating away in the galaxy and we were just
having fun and scary at the same time because it
was the unknown, but it just felt.
Speaker 1 (24:54):
Like it felt safe.
Speaker 2 (24:56):
It felt safe and not not scary scary like oh
my god, it was just like scary like roller coaster.
And I don't know about you, but when I'm on
a roller coaster. I'm scared, but I'm laughing and screaming
at the same time, like I'm having fun. But I'm
you know, but maybe that's like I don't know, maybe
(25:19):
maybe death is like that. I don't know, if you're
in the in the right season and you're you know,
a good person. And for me as a Christian, you
know what we believe, but you know, everybody believes something different.
But not to meaning to get off on a tangent,
but I'm I am. I am happy to have known
(25:39):
my neighbor Jean, and happy for her stories, happy for
the pictures that we have. And she was always oh
she was extroverted and energetics and love people and truly
truly a hippie and not really into social norms although
(26:04):
she they were and I'll say they now because her husband,
even though you know they were they were hard workers
throughout their lives and things of that nature. But they
were good people and definitely in my thoughts and feelings
about just being a child and.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
Being around that energy and praying.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
That when I'm in my sixties and I'm I have
a spouse that you know, I love and we are
both you know, energetic, and we mesh well and in
those type things, cause I really loved that about their relationship.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
They took care of each other.
Speaker 2 (26:48):
And again her husband was very sick and at many
times and throughout his life, and you know, they never
lost their exuberance, never lost their uh since, especially around us.
And it was so funny. It's just so funny how
they would try to feed us and you know, and oh,
(27:09):
take care of us, protect us and watch for us,
and again be over each other's houses. And it was
again a blessing. And again hopefully you have that somebody
or people in your life or crowd in your life,
and will continue to have those people that are angels
(27:29):
Earth angels and taking care of other people's babies and
protecting them and being a light in this world. And
I believe that's one of those shaping moments in my
own life that I will never forget.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
The aqueducts. I will never forget being with.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
Them and swimming and being fourteen years old and wishing
I was with the cool kids kids, but you know,
still really thinking that they.
Speaker 1 (28:04):
Were cool kids too.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
So yeah, that's my episode for today. I will call
this episode.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Jeane, Dear Jeene. I will miss you.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
And I appreciate you for being you always. My family
appreciates you for saving our lives.
Speaker 1 (28:43):
That one day, one afternoon, for being there. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
Alright, sibs, I think, uh, that's all I have to
say for today. I love you guys again, and if
you are able to get in contact with me on
Facebook at Sibling Lost the podcast, although the Facebook has
a different name than Surviving Sibling Lost and Forgotten Mourners Podcast.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
Uh, my oversight.
Speaker 2 (29:27):
I am out there out there and there's a small
group of us. We have some new people coming on
the Facebook page. Thank you for being here again. Thank
you guys whoever reached out on Get Naked Therapists dot
com or dot com. Get Naked Therapists at gmail dot com.
(29:49):
That's my email address. Although I have retired to that podcast.
It's just been a lot. It's been a lot in
twenty twenty two. It's been very busy with my new
job and uh and uh trying to to work with
private private clients on this side, as well as try
(30:13):
to figure out if I'm a by Land to.
Speaker 1 (30:17):
Make a retreat center.
Speaker 2 (30:18):
So I'm really looking at Land and I know I've
said that before, but I'm looking at, you know, trying
to make a decision. It's not hasty and make a
decision sometimes in the winter because we know that right
now the housing market has cooled down significantly.
Speaker 1 (30:41):
I know.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
I was talking to Judy sibling Judy, and over the summer,
early summer it had already cooled down in the northern
part of the United States. But since the end of
August here it took us about four months I think,
to cool down as far as the housing market. So
(31:02):
I'm looking at you know, possibly prices and things being
a little bit lower in the winter time, like around December, January, February.
Speaker 1 (31:13):
So praying on that.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
So we will see, we shall see, and all the
things that else is going on with personal life, y'all.
Oh honey, m h So anyway, love you guys, and
I will talk to you soon.
Speaker 1 (31:34):
Happy.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
I want to say happy Holidays, baby, because this is
already November, and after Halloween. You know, people like to
throw up Christmas lights and stuff. So if you celebrate
Thanksgiving and Christmas, y'all, we are here already. I can't
believe it. All right, I'm gonna start rambling.
Speaker 1 (31:56):
Bye.
Hey, sibs. It is little sister Chris.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
And today I am posting since it is November and
my last post was the end of August, and I
have recovered from COVID.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
However, there are times during.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Going out and things of that nature that I get
a raspy voice. I am fine, but just bear with
me as I try to recover my voice. This in
this episode. Today, I will be going to a memorial
service for a lady who just passed away, and actually
(00:46):
she passed away in September and she's just having The
family is just having a memorial service today, which is
November the fifth, And I've been meaning to do an
episodisode about those people who helped and I have not
(01:06):
done an.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
Episode like that before.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Although grief is very isolating, no matter how many people
are around you, in your mind, you still feel as
though you are alone, abandoned, isolated in the process, especially
with a sibling. And I'm gonna tell you a story
about this lady. I met her as a kid when
(01:33):
I was eleven years old. My parents built a house
in this newer neighborhood and it was it was quite
rural at the time, but I mean it was still
in a very populated county, but outside of the county
at the time, within the city limits, but just a
(01:54):
little further outside of county.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
And she was older when we met. It was like.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Grandmother age. She was in her early sixties and her
husband was in her in his mid sixties.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
I want to say they were the sweetest couple.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
They had one daughter who was grown and at the time,
I think she lived in Texas. They didn't have any
grandchildren whatsoever. So this couple treated us as if we
were their grandchildren.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
My brother and I we were always if we had
locked out of the house.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
I know we have been at their house if on
a Saturday or something of that nature, just hanging out
with this couple and with my parents and kind of
hanging out and telling stories and choking and learning things
from this couple. And a nice house, nice comfortable house.
And I remember they would always listen to the police scanners,
(02:57):
and the police scanner was in there. Girl almost turned
on twenty four to seven, and I haven't heard a
police scanner like that in a minute. But they would
know what was happening all around Davidson County because of
this police scanner, and so funny is years later, I
just I was working for the police.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
But to continue on with the.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Story, this woman again was very caring, very nurturing, very
spry for a sixty year old, very spry, and throughout
the time that I've known her, and now knowing her
since nineteen ninety three, I know her to have high energy.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Her and her husband.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Her husband passed away in twenty twelve, and that was
a major loss because.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Art was his name.
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Art was a good guy, was retired from American.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Airlines and.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Just in the overall sweet guy that used to tell
dad jokes. And he was sickly for most of his
life apparently, but in later on in the years was
very sickly, having multiple multiple surgeries, but he never lost his.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Sense of humor.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Both of them, knowing what they've been through with each other,
never lost their sense of humor whatsoever. With us kids,
and we just enjoyed them as kids. We just enjoy
older people too. We enjoy all age. My brother enjoyed
from babies all the way up to one hundred years old.
He would hang out with and there were times where
(04:48):
my brother would kind of disappear if we would come
home from church or something and take a nap after
church and then wake up. He gone, he's at a
neighbor's house, either a neighbor across the street, listening to
this man and his pianos. And he was also older
(05:09):
to going to our Jean's house who were also older
and just seeing about them and talking to them, and
along with his other friends too.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
In the neighborhood.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
There was an incident when I was in sixth grade
in nineteen I believe, ninety four, ninety five, I believe,
I can't call it really, but my brother was in
high school, and because the area was so small where
we lived, and so very small and spread out at
the time it's no longer middle school and high school
(05:44):
rode the bus together. So that meant I was able
to ride the bus with my brother, and we were
one of the few black families in the neighborhood, one
of the few.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
It was one, two, three, and then there was a mixed.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
Family by racial family, so I would say four, three
and a half four.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
And the.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
Oh and then one more who didn't live in the
actual subdivision but live next door to the subdivision. So
we all rode the bus together, and the rest of
the kids that rode the bus. Were very much in this.
I mean, they were city kids. But if you back
in the day before they did all the building and
(06:35):
subdivisions and all that stuff, and the malls and all
that stuff, it was very rule back up in the
back close to.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
The lake area of our town, of our city, and
it was racism.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
And I can't tell you the full story of how
this all started with my brother and them calling him
inward on the bus and all of this nonsense that
was happening, but it was happening, and apparently something happened
at school, and it had been a long standing situation
(07:13):
with a group of guys on the bus and.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Telling this story, y'all.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
We one the afternoon, after getting off the bus, were
doing what we normally do, and we cut through the
backyard of my neighbors to get to our house. So
the bus driver, Micherry, let us off at the bus stop.
(07:47):
My brother and I start walking and we get to
my neighbor's backyard and my brother is ahead of me,
and then all of a sudden pops out three or
four boys, all white. I can't tell you where they
(08:09):
came from. We had a tree line in the back
of all of our houses in those backyards that led
up to a street, a main street, and I guess
came from the trees, came from in between the houses
or whatever, and they had us surround it. They had
us around it, and I cannot remember what all was
(08:33):
said at the time. I just remember my brother standing
their steel and I was standing there still, and I
was just trying to.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
Figure out what was going on. But I knew we
were in danger.
Speaker 2 (08:48):
I knew one of us or both of us, was
in danger, and one of them that was closest to
my brother body stands was not. It just gave me
this feeling that he had something behind his back. And
I believe I couldn't tell you one hundred percent, but
(09:09):
I felt like he had a knife, he had a
weapon behind him. And my neighbor bless our heart, rest
in peace. My neighbor came outside and came out on
her deck seeing us and says, hey, guys, you know
(09:31):
seeing my brother and us, and I screamed.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
I was like, Jane, they have a knife.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
And I remember saying that, and I remember they're gonna
hurt my brother.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
I remember saying, They're gonna hurt my brother.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
She immediately took into action and was like, get out
of here, get out of here. And I don't know
if I've told this story before this podcast. I feel
like I've talked and told this story so many times,
and I can't remember if I told this story on
this podcast.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
But she she.
Speaker 2 (10:10):
Demanded them leave her yard because we were in her yard,
and they scattered, scattered, and it scared me so much.
And I don't know because I can't I cannot remember
(10:33):
what happened immediately next. I just remember being scared. I
remember faking God that my neighbor came out at the
time that she came out, and then I think she.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Asked questions like who are those guys? And I think
my brother.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Told her who it was and kind of explained to
her the situation, and then the rest of it was
kind of a blank. I don't even remember walking home
because I can't remember if my dad was.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
Home or not.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
I know my mom was not home because she was
at work, and at the time, I believe Dad worked
second shift, so he either was at home or he
was asleep getting ready for a shift. I do remember
that our neighbors came together and my immediate next door
(11:26):
neighbor was a homicide detective for the local police department,
and then my other neighbor to my other immediate neighbor,
was also a retired sheriff, and then Jean, who was
I don't know what she used to do before she
(11:46):
was retired, but I remember them just kind of telling
my parents. This is just remembering from not from them
watching a conversation, but just remembering the conversations my brother
had and remembering in the conversation my dad had, and
then my neighbor's really telling them the law and if
(12:09):
something were to ever happen like that again, and somebody
is on what Tennessee law is basically, and somebody is
on your property what your rights are. But I can
tell you this, I never saw those kids again, and
I'm not sure if my brother ever saw them again.
Speaker 1 (12:28):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
We never saw those kids again after that. And it
wasn't until later when I found out that my neighbor, Jeane,
the one that yelled and had the kids scattered, went
up to the school and my other neighbor, who was
the detective, went up to the school and reported it.
(12:55):
And I don't know what their exact words were. I
have no clue. And I want to say one of
those kids was a son of an officer.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I can't.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
I'm not one hundred percent sure because we used to
pick him up and his bus stop was in front
of his house, and there used to be a car,
a police car out there, parked out there on a
regular basis, letting me know that somebody in his family
was an officer. But I tell you, I never saw
(13:26):
any of those three or four boys ever.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Again.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
They were no longer on the bus, and I don't
even know if they were still at the same school.
I have no clue because my brother never had another
problem out of that situation. And to fast forward our relationship.
(13:50):
When my brother passed away, I was fourteen and about
to be fit fifteen in August. It was April when
he passed, and I was also very chubby, and the
(14:13):
summertime the first summer after my brother passed, So in
April he passed, and then school was out.
Speaker 1 (14:20):
In May, so May, June, July.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
And then school started in August.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
I didn't have anything to do, and.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
You know, you know, my dad and I we would
go you know, mow grass and with people because my
brother and my dad used to have together.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
They would go mow grass.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
At people's houses and get paid, and neighbor's yards and
things like that, and then I kind of I always
helped out, but my brother loved to mow grass, so
I didn't do it as much. But after my brother passed,
I picked it up after my dad. My dad would
weedied and I would mow, you know, if I could
make it. And we did that for a while until
(15:11):
until after I think after college, when there was no
more yards. But Art and Gene used to pick me
up in the summertime, in the mornings, early mornings, I'd
have to get up. I love to swim, love swimming.
(15:33):
Art and Gene were a part of this group during
the mornings. And I can't remember if it was once
or twice a week, or if it was every day.
I cannot remember, y'all. I just remember I never really
missed a week. And I want to say their group
was called the Aqueducts. I want to really say they
were the Aqueducts. And this group was all over sixty
(15:58):
years old. It was a group of men and women
very much geriatric, but the best ever group to be
around and to learn their vernacular, to just be around
a bunch of women in their sixties and seventies trying
to take care of themselves in swimming. It was aqua
(16:21):
I mean, it was water aerobics, that's what it was.
And I would go with them to their water aerobics
and at times I would participate with them and do
the aerobics with them, and then at times I would
just like freely swim around them or whatever. But I
think we had to be there at seven or eight
in the morning. I remember it was early, and they
(16:42):
would come pick me up. They would come pick this
fourteen year old black girl, lub put them put me
in their Cadillac. They had a white Cadillac. Oh, it's
the best clean riding car. And they were the sweetest people.
And we would go to the YMCA and we would
be there for I know, an hour and a half
(17:04):
or maybe two hours. In the conversations we had, I
don't want to this is.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
An ode to both of them now that they are both.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
Gone, you know, I don't want to ever say that
I never had people around me to help, people who
are supportive factors and protective factors from me and for
my brother when he was here. I never want to
say that. I mean, there's church family that are just
(17:34):
like blood family. There's my best friends and sisters and
people who I don't even know strangers were people. But
I just want to highlight these two for creating an
outlet for me when my parents were not able, especially
(17:57):
it being that early in the morning in the summer days.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
My mom, you know, had to be at work in
the mornings.
Speaker 2 (18:04):
My dad was just getting home from his shifts cause
he worked at night. So it gave my dad some
time to sleep while I was gone with somebody he
can trust. And then you know, my mom be on
her way to work and not have to worry about
what I was doing or all of that. But it
was really one of those moments in life that I
(18:27):
will never forget.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
I will never forget.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
The experience of being with them, being protected by them,
being loved by them, and being like a great kid
because they never had grandchildren, and just to be loved
(18:52):
that much by people who are not.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Related.
Speaker 2 (19:00):
And it makes my heart fool to have known her.
And we didn't get to see each other much. After
twenty twelve, her daughter moved back from New York to
(19:20):
see after her mom, and they end up moving from
the neighborhood and where I grew up on the street
this kodasak. I'm okay, y'all. Everybody took care of each other,
(19:47):
looked after each other. We're in each other's house as kids.
I mean truly looked after each other. When my brother passed,
my family, Uh, there are a couple of family members
(20:08):
that came up that did not wanna go to the funeral,
But there were some neighbors who just kind of took
over while we were gone, took over in the house,
you know, to you know, help out with food and
and guests and you know, all of that stuff. And
(20:38):
even though that was a hard it was a hard time,
I think God for it, and I think that's like, uh,
what I do now, hopefully prefectly, what I do now with.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
People is help and you know what.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
I could edit this out, but I'm not gonna do
it because I love y'all.
Speaker 1 (21:09):
Siblings, and.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
Sometimes in our world, in our society, we don't deal
with feelings at all, and.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
I won't leave that in there. If you're new to
this podcast, it's very informal, very informal.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
I'm not in the studio when I do this it's
me and a mic, and sometimes me and just my phone,
and it is what it is.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
And hopefully.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
You have a story like this, you have a story
about people who have swooped in and loved you, when
your towers have fallen, when your world is shaken up.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
And I see death in so many different ways.
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Of course, you don't want people to go, ever, you
don't ever want people to go.
Speaker 1 (22:31):
But at the same time, there's some beauty and.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
The transition. And I promise, y'all, I am. I am
not talking crazy. But I had a dream a couple
of months ago, and I was talking to someone who
had already passed. And my dr my brother has come
(23:05):
in my dreams recently too, but this person was a
f ash, a f a family friend as well, and uh,
I had a whole conversation and he who he was
trying to fix my car and drive the car at
the same time and fix it, and I was just
having a good old time and the and it was
good to see him in my sleep.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
I was having the greatest time with him.
Speaker 2 (23:28):
And his family was there too, And as if time
stood steal cause they were the same age.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
They were.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
Like tenn ten, well fifteen years ago. They were the
same age and time like at times to just steal
and and then we just started in the dream we
were we were in a car, and then all of
a sudden, we weren't in a car and we were
kind of just floating off in the galaxy and in
(23:58):
in and everybody knew that it was what it was,
and I didn't know what it was, and it felt
like a roller coaster and then it was fun and
then it was scary at the same time. And then
I joketed awake, and I thought, you know, did I?
You know?
Speaker 1 (24:15):
Did I? Is that what death is like?
Speaker 2 (24:21):
Are you just do you just float away like that
into an orb? I don't know, I have no I
have no clue. So after that dream, I am I
have been thinking about that transition again. I don't know
(24:44):
what was going on in my mind for me to
be floating away in the galaxy and we were just
having fun and scary at the same time because it
was the unknown, but it just felt.
Speaker 1 (24:54):
Like it felt safe.
Speaker 2 (24:56):
It felt safe and not not scary scary like oh
my god, it was just like scary like roller coaster.
And I don't know about you, but when I'm on
a roller coaster. I'm scared, but I'm laughing and screaming
at the same time, like I'm having fun. But I'm
you know, but maybe that's like I don't know, maybe
(25:19):
maybe death is like that. I don't know, if you're
in the in the right season and you're you know,
a good person. And for me as a Christian, you
know what we believe, but you know, everybody believes something different.
But not to meaning to get off on a tangent,
but I'm I am. I am happy to have known
(25:39):
my neighbor Jean, and happy for her stories, happy for
the pictures that we have. And she was always oh
she was extroverted and energetics and love people and truly
truly a hippie and not really into social norms although
(26:04):
she they were and I'll say they now because her husband,
even though you know they were they were hard workers
throughout their lives and things of that nature. But they
were good people and definitely in my thoughts and feelings
about just being a child and.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
Being around that energy and praying.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
That when I'm in my sixties and I'm I have
a spouse that you know, I love and we are
both you know, energetic, and we mesh well and in
those type things, cause I really loved that about their relationship.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
They took care of each other.
Speaker 2 (26:48):
And again her husband was very sick and at many
times and throughout his life, and you know, they never
lost their exuberance, never lost their uh since, especially around us.
And it was so funny. It's just so funny how
they would try to feed us and you know, and oh,
(27:09):
take care of us, protect us and watch for us,
and again be over each other's houses. And it was
again a blessing. And again hopefully you have that somebody
or people in your life or crowd in your life,
and will continue to have those people that are angels
(27:29):
Earth angels and taking care of other people's babies and
protecting them and being a light in this world. And
I believe that's one of those shaping moments in my
own life that I will never forget.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
The aqueducts. I will never forget being with.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
Them and swimming and being fourteen years old and wishing
I was with the cool kids kids, but you know,
still really thinking that they.
Speaker 1 (28:04):
Were cool kids too.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
So yeah, that's my episode for today. I will call
this episode.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Jeane, Dear Jeene. I will miss you.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
And I appreciate you for being you always. My family
appreciates you for saving our lives.
Speaker 1 (28:43):
That one day, one afternoon, for being there. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
Alright, sibs, I think, uh, that's all I have to
say for today. I love you guys again, and if
you are able to get in contact with me on
Facebook at Sibling Lost the podcast, although the Facebook has
a different name than Surviving Sibling Lost and Forgotten Mourners Podcast.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
Uh, my oversight.
Speaker 2 (29:27):
I am out there out there and there's a small
group of us. We have some new people coming on
the Facebook page. Thank you for being here again. Thank
you guys whoever reached out on Get Naked Therapists dot
com or dot com. Get Naked Therapists at gmail dot com.
(29:49):
That's my email address. Although I have retired to that podcast.
It's just been a lot. It's been a lot in
twenty twenty two. It's been very busy with my new
job and uh and uh trying to to work with
private private clients on this side, as well as try
(30:13):
to figure out if I'm a by Land to.
Speaker 1 (30:17):
Make a retreat center.
Speaker 2 (30:18):
So I'm really looking at Land and I know I've
said that before, but I'm looking at, you know, trying
to make a decision. It's not hasty and make a
decision sometimes in the winter because we know that right
now the housing market has cooled down significantly.
Speaker 1 (30:41):
I know.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
I was talking to Judy sibling Judy, and over the summer,
early summer it had already cooled down in the northern
part of the United States. But since the end of
August here it took us about four months I think,
to cool down as far as the housing market. So
(31:02):
I'm looking at you know, possibly prices and things being
a little bit lower in the winter time, like around December, January, February.
Speaker 1 (31:13):
So praying on that.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
So we will see, we shall see, and all the
things that else is going on with personal life, y'all.
Oh honey, m h So anyway, love you guys, and
I will talk to you soon.
Speaker 1 (31:34):
Happy.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
I want to say happy Holidays, baby, because this is
already November, and after Halloween. You know, people like to
throw up Christmas lights and stuff. So if you celebrate
Thanksgiving and Christmas, y'all, we are here already. I can't
believe it. All right, I'm gonna start rambling.
Speaker 1 (31:56):
Bye.
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