A WAY OF LIFE: Poor and Living to Excess

By Reginald Wilson

I hope the readers of my story will benefit from seeing a glimpse of how growing up poor can mold a person, as well as facing challenges in life. Working hard may be new to the current generation, at least not most had it the way I did growing up. It takes hard work to succeed in life. Hard work is honorable and builds character. The Bible says in Colossians 3:23, "Whatsoever you do, do it heartily as unto the Lord." In 2 Thessalonians 3:10, it says, "If any man will not work, neither should he be allowed to eat."

I also hope that when people have problems and hardships, they will have a positive attitude, that they will persevere and work through it and not give up. I believe that after reading this book, they will be more appreciative of what they have when seeing what life is like for the poor and that you don't have to stay poor. There are so many opportunities to be prosperous in this country if you set your mind to it and work for it. Also, pay as you go and stay out of debt as much as possible. Be honest when dealing with people. Also, try to pay your bills on time and do unto others as you'd have them do to you. Treat others as you would like them to treat you--with love and kindness. There is an old tale worth mentioning and pondering further that goes like this:

Tale of Two Wolves

A wise elder Cherokee told his grandson, "My son, there is a battle between two wolves inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, jealousy, greed, resentment, inferiority, lies, and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, empathy, and truth."

The boy thought about it and asked, "Grandfather, which wolf wins?"

The old man quietly replied, "The one you feed."

We all have this dichotomous struggle that occurs daily. Which wolf do you choose to feed? Can you open your heart and your personal belief system to practice the good? These are the things I learned along the way. I'm still learning, so keep me in your prayers, and I hope, with the Lord by your side, you will also learn to fly.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 26, 2023
• ISBN: 9798888322116

Book preview

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A WAY OF LIFE

Poor and Living to Excess

Reginald Wilson

ISBN 979-8-88832-210-9 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88832-211-6 (digital)

Copyright © 2023 by Reginald Wilson

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Back Then

Introduction

Prologue

Sweet Hollow

Invisible

Class Poem

The Country General Store

Entrepreneur

Boyhood Antics

Discovery

Turning Point

Siblings

Parents

The Bus Ministry

Mead

Collector

Retired Life

Best Buds

A New Lease on Life

About the Author

Back Then

Shooting stars fill and move the sky

There's electricity in the air, in the night

Dampness, cool breezes kiss the skin

We both want it, but that was

Back then.

Another path is trodden

Worries are forgotten

There are outdoor voices

Along the wind of sails

There's not a care, no ties

Free to use all senses

Free to fail, but that was

Back then.

Back then, there were friends, more than

Back then, there were adventures, with no plan

Back then, life was carefree and full

Back then, sunsets burned and were beautiful

But that was

Back then.

Then dreams are dreamt, but on rocky ground

New lives are begun, so many

What changes is the perception of reality

No trust is ever earned, all are lies

Can't stand it, end it, what is learned

But that was

Back then.

Things were done that can't be undone

Too many memories to fight

Now things are back to black-and-white

Passions are packed away

For another day, another season

I'm in homebody heaven, or is it prison

Walls are not built strong, firm

Keep them out, I'll never learn

Love, trust, friendships, life comes with a cost

For when too broken, with no light

All can be lost

Will this now ever be

Back then.

Back then, there were friends, more than

Back then, there were adventures, with no plan

Back then, life was carefree and full

Back then, sunsets burned and were beautiful

But that was

Back then.

—Renee Wilson

Introduction

Remind me, Lord, of who I am and what I am capable of. By God's grace, I will find my worth. Living life to excess had proved to be costly to me, costly to my personal life and that of my family. I still, at age eighty-four, don't know how to relax, how to slow down, or how not to be anxious. I am still on that journey from Sweet Hollow, working myself to death to prove my worth, when my worth comes from the Lord. I am continually reminding myself of this grace-filled truth. I just need to trust in God, for when we make reckless decisions, we suffer the consequences, and these consequences can be life eternal. In Proverbs 19:3, it is written, The foolishness of man perverteth his way: and his heart fretteth against the Lord.

In A Way of Life: Poor and Living to Excess, I transport you from the '50s to the present day, how life in poverty on a farm was challenging to the spirit but shows how one can still make a life, even if behaviors are to excess. God is good at tempering the spirit. It is a funny journey about many characters that have entered my life to bring humor and joy to what could have been drudgery.

Life is a learning experience that never ceases. The key is not to give in to regrets or guilt and to forge ahead in faith that God will give you wings to fly when you come to the edge of that cliff. It is my pleasure to share with you my journey.

Prologue

Bloody gauze gathered about my feet as the nurse applied pressure on my facial wound. A metal band had broken under pressure and made contact with my cheek, severing an artery only moments earlier. I kept waiting to hear the sirens of an ambulance while the blood continued to flow. My vision was now coming and going, and with every passing minute, I became more and more fatigued. It was growing cold in the small factory clinic as I waited and waited for the nurse to call for help, but she never did. Eventually, the pressure worked, and my cheek ceased to be a flowing waterfall, but the layered gauze was still engorged with blood, having only slowed. I know I must have lost several pints of blood the way the concrete floor appeared below me. As I sat there waiting for the nausea to subside and my vision to clear, my life passed before me.

Sweet Hollow

At the foothills of Squirrel Mountain is an area of farmland affectionately known as Sweet Hollow (pronounced sweet holler by the locals) in Bedford County, Virginia. In Sweet Hollow, you can find farmhouses, log buildings and outhouses, milk sheds, broken fences, barbed wire, and land infiltrated with rock and rolling hills. Most of the people along Charlemont Road were friendly, looked out for each other, and were poor.

One such family was the Goffs, who had fifteen children and fifteen dogs. One night, one of the children told his father that he was too cold to sleep. The father replied, Just pull another one of those dogs in the bed with you, and you'll be all right. The Goffs were truly good neighbors, willing to help out in times of need. Like most of us, they did not have much but would give their shirts off their backs if need be.

My family, the Wilsons, included nine children and a dog. In the middle of this roost was me and Maynie. We lived on a farm of 108 acres, approximately half of which was wooded and the other half pastures and meadows. This was during the late 1940s through the '60s. We as children helped our father farm that hard land the old-fashioned way, using two mules, a mare horse, two horse-drawn plows, a hay mower, and a rake, with a hand hoe and pitchfork. Wood was utilized for heat and cooking and was cut with a crosscut saw by hand. There was no electricity or telephone, and oil lamps were used for lighting.

Our farmhouse consisted of six rooms with an outdoor toilet. Water was toted from two springs, approximately forty yards from the house. Mondays were dreaded, for the toted water had to be enough to do the household laundry, in addition to the amount gathered for regular use. Eventually, we laid pipe for 125 feet from a spring on Squirrel Mountain to a spigot in the yard by the farmhouse. Later, we laid pipe from our grandparents' spring to the house. We did not get indoor plumbing until 1951 or electricity until 1949. At bedtime during the