Witch
They called her "old Lady P___" and she lived a couple of miles from us on the county road. The original house was a large Elizabethan style farm house. I don't know anything about a husband or how long they had been living on the farm. Or how she made a living for that matter. The big farm house was so dilapidated that it was unlivable. They never made any effort to fix it up. By the time we were aware of them, Mrs. P and her retarded son had moved across the road into what had been a chicken coop. We were warned to stay away. The adults knew she was "different" and whispered that she was crazy. And, no one knew what to expect from her very large retarded son. I also have no idea of their ages. She looked like an old witch with gray hair in an untidy bun piled on top of her head. And any time anyone saw her, she had a shotgun nearby. which she would point at you if you even drove past the property.
The first I knew of the son was on a walk that took me further from home than usual. I was walking in the woods behind the Monnett farm when he surprised me. I'm sure I must have surprised him too. We became aware of each other while still about 30 yards or so apart when Stormy gave a low growl. I thought I knew the locals and here was a very large boy/man I'd never seen before. He had the features of retardation and he scared me. I realized I was further from home than I'd realized and no one knew where I was. Then I realized that Stormy scared him. My dog was between us and none of us had moved, though Stormy was still rumbling down in her throat. I called to her and when she came to me, I put my hand on her head and turned to leave. Stormy was never the guard dog that Treasure would be, (though I couldn't know that then) but having her with me made me feel better that day. I looked back several times, but he was walking away from us too. He must have been less someone to fear than feel sorry for, but there are always stories when people feared what they didn't understand.
S and some friends had the first experience that led to calling Mrs. P a witch, and that group of boys, all roughly the same age, in our area giving her a rough time. The boys had pulled into her driveway to sell something for one of those school projects. It was winter and had gotten dark early. Mrs. P came out of her chicken coop "house" with a shotgun and a lantern before the boys had gotten a few feet from the car. She had the lantern raised high and just let go of it to raise her gun. There was nothing there to hang the lantern on! It floated right there in the air. Shocked at the sight, the boys froze. The shotgun was almost as long as she was and she had it pointed at them. When she ordered them to get off her land......they got.
During daylight, they kept driving past for days, trying to see anything she could have hung the lantern on. There just wasn't anything near by to explain what they had seen. They decided she was a witch and word spread quickly. The boys wouldn't leave her alone and she got wilder with her shotgun. It's a wonder the only thing ever hit was the back of the car when those brats threw the cherry bomb.
Brother J and one of his friends had just one story that I ever got wind of. They had actually gotten inside the big dilapidated house. They were sneaking around exploring when she came looking for them. They didn't know if she had heard something or seen the flashlight, but they hid. I heard they had to hide for over two hours before she gave up. They were lucky that she didn't find them. I'm sure they told all the other boys all about it, but I was just the sister. I heard bits and pieces of other expeditions into Mrs. P territory, but it was a "guy thing" and not shared with me. If any of their parents had any knowledge of what they were up to, it would have stopped. I sure never knew it had gone that far.
I only know of one other real bit of mischief that could be called criminal. It was mild enough that I just thought it was funny. The same railroad track that ran through our property, crossed the county road several miles southwest of us at the property of our bus driver. That railroad track was raised higher than the road, like most of the crossings in our county. We crossed the tracks one morning on the bus, when the driver noticed the old building that stood on the corner of his land there had fallen down. It had been propped up with boards, but had always leaned since we'd lived there. The driver commented that he hadn't realized there had been that much wind the night before. One look at the neighborhood boys faces would have given him his clue. And, they did admit to me later that they had been out that night and pulled away the props. The whole thing collapsed in one big heap.
It's a wonder we lived to grow up.
The first I knew of the son was on a walk that took me further from home than usual. I was walking in the woods behind the Monnett farm when he surprised me. I'm sure I must have surprised him too. We became aware of each other while still about 30 yards or so apart when Stormy gave a low growl. I thought I knew the locals and here was a very large boy/man I'd never seen before. He had the features of retardation and he scared me. I realized I was further from home than I'd realized and no one knew where I was. Then I realized that Stormy scared him. My dog was between us and none of us had moved, though Stormy was still rumbling down in her throat. I called to her and when she came to me, I put my hand on her head and turned to leave. Stormy was never the guard dog that Treasure would be, (though I couldn't know that then) but having her with me made me feel better that day. I looked back several times, but he was walking away from us too. He must have been less someone to fear than feel sorry for, but there are always stories when people feared what they didn't understand.
S and some friends had the first experience that led to calling Mrs. P a witch, and that group of boys, all roughly the same age, in our area giving her a rough time. The boys had pulled into her driveway to sell something for one of those school projects. It was winter and had gotten dark early. Mrs. P came out of her chicken coop "house" with a shotgun and a lantern before the boys had gotten a few feet from the car. She had the lantern raised high and just let go of it to raise her gun. There was nothing there to hang the lantern on! It floated right there in the air. Shocked at the sight, the boys froze. The shotgun was almost as long as she was and she had it pointed at them. When she ordered them to get off her land......they got.
During daylight, they kept driving past for days, trying to see anything she could have hung the lantern on. There just wasn't anything near by to explain what they had seen. They decided she was a witch and word spread quickly. The boys wouldn't leave her alone and she got wilder with her shotgun. It's a wonder the only thing ever hit was the back of the car when those brats threw the cherry bomb.
Brother J and one of his friends had just one story that I ever got wind of. They had actually gotten inside the big dilapidated house. They were sneaking around exploring when she came looking for them. They didn't know if she had heard something or seen the flashlight, but they hid. I heard they had to hide for over two hours before she gave up. They were lucky that she didn't find them. I'm sure they told all the other boys all about it, but I was just the sister. I heard bits and pieces of other expeditions into Mrs. P territory, but it was a "guy thing" and not shared with me. If any of their parents had any knowledge of what they were up to, it would have stopped. I sure never knew it had gone that far.
I only know of one other real bit of mischief that could be called criminal. It was mild enough that I just thought it was funny. The same railroad track that ran through our property, crossed the county road several miles southwest of us at the property of our bus driver. That railroad track was raised higher than the road, like most of the crossings in our county. We crossed the tracks one morning on the bus, when the driver noticed the old building that stood on the corner of his land there had fallen down. It had been propped up with boards, but had always leaned since we'd lived there. The driver commented that he hadn't realized there had been that much wind the night before. One look at the neighborhood boys faces would have given him his clue. And, they did admit to me later that they had been out that night and pulled away the props. The whole thing collapsed in one big heap.
It's a wonder we lived to grow up.
posted by LeeAnn | 6:36 PM
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