Dreams in the Holler - Nancy

 The wind is blowin hard down the holler like some injured coyote howling in pain. I button up that last button on my shirt, put on my cap and head out the door with my pole. If I don’t get to it none of us will eat tonight. I head down on the well-worn trail that leads to the pond over the ridge. Just then I hear Hatch holler out to me, Hey June Bug hurry up, there are a gob of fish all gaum up here in the cove just right for catchin. My word I say with amazement. It’s like Jesus done did with Peter when he put out his net to fish. The catfish were practically jumping on to the shore for us to catch. I’m not sure why this was happening. But I knew I was going to have a tough time toting these here fish back over yonder.

I opened the front door with my load of fish to find mama still sitting in her chair looking out to nowhere. Since daddy died in the coal mine mama has never been the same. The kids were out back swinging on the vine and chasing around old Hank our mutt of a dog. “If you want to eat youngins you best be gettin some vegetables from the garden and gathering some eggs.” I started skinning the fish to dip in some flour batter when that Peckerwood from the government office comes bouncing up the road in her truck. “Hurry up Dolly and Loretta get in here the law is a coming”. They knew what I meant and what to do as we’d done this before. Fat Fani, that’s we called her cause her britches clean split in two waddling up to our cabin one time.  She thought because mama was out of her head due to too much moonshine and meth that us kids needed to live with a bunch of strangers. They can send me to the gates of hell before me and my sisters are going to live with a bunch of jaspers I yelled out to no one.

 I locked the door and cocked the shotgun. “You best be gettin your sweet ass off our mountain or this 12 gauge will be helping you to it. “Don’t think I won’t be back June” she said with certainty. “If you want to live like the rest of these hillbillies you can. But those youngin girls need a real mama who can school them while there is still hope for them.” “I school them just fine” I shouted through the door. “Now get with you.” 

As she drove off, I knew I had to hunker down with these girls and get them to learning good. I had finished 8th grade with almost all A’s. But that was before mama took a turn for the worst. Now I was the mama taking care of everyone. I wasn’t complaining. I was good at fishing and huntin. The girls loved to garden. And granny Willis taught us how to sew and crochet so we would have clothes on our backs and blankets on our beds. Everyone in the holler took care of one another. If you had too much of something you shared it. And if you were needing something you would most likely end up with a heap of it from folks stoppin by to give it to you.

Once awhile back there was a lady who had come to town. Talk all over the holler was she was from the big city and here to write a story about us mountain folks. I wanted to see what a big city person looked like so I took our old chevy truck missing one of the doors and drove it down into Hazard to take a look. When I saw her, it was like seeing a princess. She had beautiful long yellow hair, shiny like corn silk, ruby red lips and a full mouth of the brightest white teeth I’d ever seen. She smelled like a field of lilacs. She said her name was Diane, Diane Sawyer and that she was from Kentucky too. I always wondered if she was kin to the Tom Sawyer I’d read about in the books at school. 

The people with all the fancy equipment asked me if I wouldn’t mind meeting Ms Diane. And so we sat and talked for a spell.  She talked funny not like the folks around here. But it sounded real nice. She was nice. She asked me all about my life. I told her about mama, the girls and that I could cook fried chicken, collard greens and hot biscuits that would make you cry for more. She asked me what we did for fun when we weren’t working the land. I told her how all the folks gather almost nightly on Mr. Joe Don’s big porch and bring their fiddles, banjos and harmonicas and play knee slappin music we can all dance to. I told her me and my sisters can sing like songbirds in harmony to almost any song. Mama named us all after country singers she would listen to on the radio. I think we were singing in her womb before we were even born. She asked me to sing for her. I said better yet, you need to come tonight to Mr. Joe Don’s porch and hear for yourself how these magic mountains’ sing along with us. 

The word spread like wild fire that this Lady Diane would be coming to our social on the porch that night. Everyone dressed in their best overalls, pies were baked, viddles prepared and a little moonshine poured for inspiration.  Just like she promised she came with a few of those city folks in a fancy truck that looked worse for wear after climbing up those dirt mountain roads. The music started playing and me, Dolly and Loretta started singing our hearts out. After a few rounds of Blue Kentucky Girl and Jolene Ms Diane came up and hugged me hard. She looked me straight in the eye and said, “Sweet June you have the voice of an angel. You need to share this God given talent beyond these mountains.” A big tear welled up in my eye and I couldn’t stop it from running down my cheek. Nobody has ever told me I was special or had talent from God. She said, “Well you do young lady. Your beautiful voice could be the means for you to support your sisters, get your mama help and live in a house with real plumbing.” But how?” I said. Let me see what I can do. She left that night leaving my heart full of dreams. 

Several months later a delivery truck found its way to our little cabin. A man called out, you Ms June Swift? This here box is for you and it’s come all the way from New York City. Well, I’ve never heard tell that such a package bigger than the man himself could come to me from such a faraway place. It must be from Ms Diane.  I hurried and opened it up with my jack knife. It was like a treasure box full of gifts. There were lots of books, novels she had called them. There was a bottle of perfume that smelled like lilacs just like her. There were smelly soaps, fluffy towels and shoes and clothes for the girls. There was also the most beautiful dress I’d ever seen made with flowers in every color spilled all over it. And at the very bottom of the box was a funny black box that had a note on it that said, push this button. So, I pushed it. Out of that black box comes the sound of me singing. It was like I was singing on the radio. There was an envelope with a letter inside. It said, Dear June, I was so glad to meet you. I have met important people from all over the world whom most of them think they are very special and they’re not. But you sweet girl are very special and you don’t know it. The love in your heart for your sisters, mama and neighbors shone through you like a  light beam. That radiant light carried through in that fresh angelic voice of yours. My husband was the best at spotting talent and bringing it to full bloom. Perhaps I learned a thing or two from him, because I believe in you. So put that pretty little dress on and come sing to the real Dolly next week. I’ve arranged everything. A car will come pick you and your sisters up and bring you to Nashville. Pack a bag. You are coming to Dollywood.