Bustin' Buttons

The phone rings in my office interrupting responding to an email from a student who was late for a written assignment. I explained to the coed from Cartersville that "my dog ate it" was not really a valid excuse for being tardy with school work. I pick up the telephone and was greeted by "Mr. Jones this is the principal of your daughters' elementary school and I think you need to sit down for the news I am about to give you." Presley and Callie are good girls and surely can't be in trouble I thought to myself as I jumped up from my faux suede chair. "Well, I am not sitting, give me the news," as I braced for what I was about to be told. I got the news and hung up the phone and had to dry my eyes. The tears of joy that ran down my face and a glow was burning in my heart. I was informed that my 3rd grader Presley had won an essay contest sponsored by a jewelry company in metro Atlanta. Out of 10,000 entrants, my daughter was the winner of an essay she did on her mother's upcoming graduation from college. Presley, my little "Pookie" had written something that I was unaware of that was picked as the best of 10,000 elementary school students who had entered the contest. I was there when she was congratulated by the school staff and the sponsor and I've never had a moment in my life where I was as proud. I was thinking when she was in pre-school and back then if kids were the Mandrell sisters, Presley would be Earlene. Presley's first grade teacher Mrs. Hawkins who grew up in Talfair County inspired Presley to use her imagination in her early writing assignments. In an age where it seems to be fashionable to take a slap at people teaching in public schools, I for one am grateful that I grew up in and was educated in public schools and remember this dear readers, people who go into the profession of education surely don't do it for the money. Presley and Callie approached me on Saturday morning about wanting to help the tornado victims and wanted to set up a stand in front of the house and sell pecans at a dollar a bag and water for a buck a bottle. The girls were joined by the neighbor's children Meaghann and Braden and before the day was up they raised close to $25 dollars. The money is going to the American Red Cross this week. Lloyd Mealer who lives in Union City and drives to Tallapoosa on weekends to pastor the First Christian Church sent me the nicest letter suggesting that I put together a book of the columns that we've done each week here on the pages of the Tallapoosa Journal. Pastor Mealer if that ever becomes a reality, I want you to have the first copy. Tallapoosa was quite fortunate on the night of April 27th when the killer storms rolled through taking the lives of hundreds of people in Georgia and Alabama/ One of my colleague's uncle was killed as the storm cut through Rabun County up in Georgia's extreme northeast corner. I've never seen anything like what I witnessed on television that Wednesday night of the monster tornado going through Tuscaloosa causing numerous loss of life and property. Randy Owen of the group Alabama had to cancel his appearance at our golf tournament earlier this week because of the destruction in the vicenity of his farm just outside of Ft. Payne. The people of Alabama are resilient and began putting their lives back together come dawn's early light the on the 28th. It made me think about the axiom that I first said 40 years ago. I have NEVER met a stranger in Alabama. Alabamians are the friendliest people I've ever seen and I've been around this planet a time or two. Alabamians from Mobile to Muscadine to Muscle Shoals and from Dothan to Decatur are hard working and gracious. Folks from Alabama are some of the kindest people on Earth. We know that the rebuilding will take a long time, but something I learned about folks from Alabama is the fact that they never ever give up. They had a football coach over in Tuscaloosa once named Bryant that emphasized that philosophy to his players. God bless the Yellowhammer State. I hope all the moms out there have a wonderful Mother's Day. If you are blessed enough to still have your mother, call her, because I sure wish I could call mine.

Rhubarb Jones is a Tallapoosa native and a member of administrative faculty at Kennesaw State University. Comments are welcome at P.O. Box 1001, Tallapoosa, GA 30176 or via email at rhubarbjones@aol.com or professorrhubarb@gmail.com Previous columns are available online at www.tallapoosa-journal.com and commentaries are heard on "The Legend", 1060 WKNG at 11:05 a.m.