Central Standard Time resumes this weekend. I have one other story that comes to mind when thinking about “changing the clock” and, like last week, it involves my mother also. She would tell me this story often, from my earliest childhood memories up until shortly before her death in 1997.
Back in 1944, “Poppy” (my mother’s father) traveled from Paragould, Arkansas, to St. Louis, Missouri, to bring my older brother Dub home from summer vacation and to pick up “Grandma” (his wife). My brother Dub was ten at the time, I had not yet been born.
“Poppy” (who was sixty-five) took ill the next morning. My mother took him to the city hospital. A short time later, “Poppy” had a stroke that impaired his speech.
Two days later, “Poppy” began to wave his left hand in the air and call for my mother over and over with the only words that he could utter: “Two, four, Ruby! Two, four, Ruby!” My grandmother called for my mom to come to the hospital to try and make sense of what “Poppy” wanted.
Not knowing what “Poppy” could possible mean, she realized what he wanted as soon as she entered the hospital room and saw him gesturing as if drinking while saying, “Two, four, Ruby! Two, four, Ruby!” My mother simply said, “Poppy, do you want a Dr. Pepper?” “Poppy” shook his head “yes” as tears came to his eyes. He drank two bottles of Dr. Pepper ... the soft drink first marketed as “Good for Life” at ten o’clock, TWO o’clock, and FOUR o’clock.” My mother, when she was a young girl, would bring “Poppy” a Dr. Pepper at those times of day. He couldn’t say “I’m thirsty” or “I need a drink of water,” but somehow he could form the words to ask my mother to quench his thirst like she did when she was a little girl. (The top picture at right is a picture of my mother and her "Poppy" at about the time she would take him Dr. Peppers out in the fields ... about 1920. The bottom picture is a picture of "Poppy" and "Grandma" Turpin and my mom shortly after his stroke.)
Later, when “Poppy” recovered somewhat, he told people: “I think that I would have choked to death if I hadn’t gotten a Dr. Pepper. It saved my life!”
“Poppy” died in 1955 at the age of seventy-seven. Even though I have no memories of him, I think of him every time I see a Dr. Pepper and especially every time I look at my Dr. Pepper clock (pictured with me at right) with the big red ten-TWO-FOUR numbers. (The clock is the first of my soda pop clock collection ... in fact, it started my soda pop collection.) I found it in a little country store in Hollywood, Arkansas. I told the owner this story, tried to buy it, but he gave it to me instead!
I guess I could draw comparisons to “the living water” of which Jesus spoke that quenches spiritual thirst (John 4:10-14), but I intended no sermon in this story ... just warm feelings for a mother that I miss and a grandfather that I never knew. If you have a mom and a grandpa around, hug them for me. Maybe there is a sermon in this story after all: “Honor thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise” (Ephesians 6:2).
This is just one pastor’s (and son’s and grandson’s) perspective.
Rick Hyde - England, Arkansas
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even though all of the above things come with a price tag, there is one that is priceless - time with family.
have to mean separation. Cars, cell phones, e-mail. We correspond and talk with our children often and travel to visit with them when we can.
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