She opens her mouth
in wisdom, and on her tongue is kindly counsel. Proverbs 31:26 NAB
I paid particular attention to the documentary that played repeatedly
this week on the life and movement led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I was
surprised to learn that such a large number of people, from various
backgrounds, played roles in paving the way to the Civil Rights Movement that
changed so many lives. I began to reminisce about the stories my mother and her
siblings shared about the life of one individual who quietly played a role in
this happening.
She raised her children during
the Great Depression and her life was a difficult one with little money and few
luxuries. She had to wash clothes in a creek, cut wood for the stove and
fireplace. She cooked meat and pork that she often had to slaughter herself. She plowed, planted, and had to cook and can
enough food to last through the winter months. She did all of this with little
help from my grandfather, who for many years had a severe drinking
problem.
Even with her consuming schedule, Grandma Leslie was always willing to
help others outside of her family, such as nearby neighbors. Prior to the Civil
Rights Movement and long before whites and blacks socially interacted, grandma
brought food to a black community near her home. She also made sure that the
families of the small community of Mauvilla were warm in the winter months.
When family members died, she was there to offer her sympathy and home cooked
meats, vegetables and desserts. As a child, my mother recalled attending a
funeral with Grandma and being the only white people in attendance.
I never heard my grandmother comment one way or another about her
appearance or any one else’s. She had a way of looking beyond the
human body into one’s soul. She did what she did, because she genuinely loved
people. Her life had a long-lasting effect on everyone that met her and
while her name does not appear in any of the history books, it is certain to be
found in the book that really matters…The Book of Life.
Michele
