She was born in 1942...
She has seen many changes...
She started out in a tiny town...
Everybody knew everybody...

There were white people...
There were black people...
The white people lived in town...
Maybe 150 people in town...
More outside of town...

She lived there until she was 8-years-old...
She never knew of anyone fussing...
Never heard of anyone fighting...
Only remember one church...
Baptist Church...
In the country was an Episcopal Church...
She and her Father attended that church...

Baptist Church held Sunday School...
Preaching each Sunday...
Episcopal Church had service every other Sunday...
They shared the preacher...
Shared with another church...
Preacher was addressed as “Father”...

Tiny town had two general stores...
One was more like a gas station...
Gas stations with fishing worms...
One gas station with a car mechanic...
My how things have changed...

The roads were all dirt...
Little girls do not see everything...
Little girl thought everything was fine...
She did not know the problems people had...

In the 40's children were protected...
There were no TVs...
There were no I phones or I pads...
No evening news about killings...
Children had less to worry about...
Children worried but about things...
Things like missing the Lone Ranger Radio show...

Once a year the tent movie show arrived...
Everybody got excited...
Now there were not enough people in the town...
Now enough people to fill the tent...
Well not enough white people...
Not enough black people...
WHAT TO DO...
Well the answer was simple in the 40's...
Set up the tent...
Set up the boards to sit on...
Set up the stage with the screen...
Set up the popcorn popper...
Last set up was the rope...
Rope was straight down the middle...
Down the middle of the isle...
Black people on the left...
White people on the right...

Tickets were sold...
Popcorn was wonderful...
Taffy was old...
Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and Lone Ranger...
Gabby and Tonto caught all the crooks...
Laughter and happy people...
That is what was in that old tent...
Wonderful place to build memories...
Wonderful memories...

Funny but that was the south in that little town...
I am sure there were problems she did not see...
But she did see the smiles...
She did experience the simple life...
Life in the 40's in a tiny South Carolina town...

In 2022 the news never talks about these times...
They just talk about the bad times...
From the beginning of time there have always...
Always been good and evil...
Each of us has a choice...
What do you choose...

More About Judge Rembert: WWII made Judge an only child when her half-brother was killed in the war. She lived in a tiny town in South Carolina until she was eight and her Mother went to work. She was sent to a boarding school in Belmont, N.C. From that time on she has lived back and forth in the two Carolinas. They are both home. She was born dyslexic and did not know what the problem was or that it had a name until she was about 45. She was unable to spell so she never put words on paper until she was 65 and had a computer with spell check. She comes from a long line of story tellers and a Mother that taught her much by telling stories. Stories about people and how they faced life and how they dealt with problems. If you read what she writes you may hear her Mother and her Grandmother talking to her. She is thrilled to know that anyone reads her words and finds them interesting. Oh, she is 75 now and she now makes her home in Aiken, S.C. If you like Judge’s writings or would like to comment on them let her know by emailing [email protected].