On Sunday, The plan was to go to the church I grow up in then spend the rest of the day with my dad and his side of the family. While as they say “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry”, so was the case with my plans.
I am not sure if it is the same way with most southern churches but every southern church that I have been apart of is this way. Long services, as I have stated before the plan was to go to my childhood church Amazing Church of God in Christ, Well there was a little detour. We left the hotel our way to church and what should appear but a sign “Natchez Parkway” and fond memories flood over me from my childhood. I then think to my self that I would just show Merriann the reservoir that I fished a lot as a child then on to Church. Let just say that we didn’t make it to church.
This is the Natchez Trace Parkway, was a little Native American trail that starts in the center on Mississippi and stretches all the way to Tennessee. But now is a highway that follows the same route.
This is a Ross Barnett Reservoir. Where I spent many wonderful days as a child and young man. Some of our friends have often asked what life like without the Puget Sound, or the ocean. The Ross Barnett Reservoir aka “The Reservoir” fills that same place in the lives of those who live without a bay or ocean. We fish here, play here, we watch the sunset here, and camp here. This is beautiful country. I got to add some additional memories to this very special place with Zoe.
Hiding from Mom’s camera.
Anyway after playing here for a little bit it was too late to make it to church so we decided to go visit with my Dad’s side of the family. Onward to Thames central, Sunny Hill, Deateur Mississippi. I am not hundred percent sure of the story but here it goes. My great, great grandfather was a slave during the Civil War. The south lost (yeah), and slaves were set free in the Confederate States but not the border states. And since Mississippi was a Confeterate State (the capital of the Confederate States of America, mind you) my great, great grandfather was set free. But with nowhere to go the land owner made a deal with his former slaves that if they stayed and worked the land with him, upon his death they would get a share of the land. When he died his promise was kept and my family got a portion of his land on which they still live today. I am not sure if anyone knows the correct amount of land, but Sunny Hill is at the center of it. And here is where my family’s home base is.
There is Big Daddy’s (my Granddad) house.
It is run down, and no one lives there now. But one of my Aunts who lives in Denver is talking about moving back to Sunny Hill and knocking it down and building her house on the same spot. As we walked around the old center piece of my family’s history, Matthew 6:19-20 (“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.) came to mind. My Great Grandfather built this place, and poured his time, energy, some of his treasures into this place to raise his family in. And now we (his family) have let it go to rust and the moth has come and destroyed it.
We then visited my uncles and aunts in Decatur in which I didn’t get any pictures of them. Which is par for the course, of this trip. Oh well.
Then we headed to visit with my Aunt Lynn and Uncle Eddie.
The End of day 3. Are you tired yet? We were.
~ Greg
The Bellingham Thames 
