“Let it Off Sister and Let the Lord Shine In.”

Nila Grace Niner my best friend lived across the road from the church. I haven’t seen her since we had stopped going to school together. Nila belonged to my church but she seldom went because everyone said her mother was a witch. Nila’s mother and father didn’t live together, and often Mrs. Niner would have a man living there with her. I was never told not to go to Mrs Niner’s, but I knew Mother didn’t like it when I did.

I usually went to visit the Seese family that lived down the road from the church. Charlie Seese was married to my sister Ruth so they were almost like family. Nila was standing on the porch as I walked across the road, I waved to her, she motioned to me to come talk. I knew aunt Stella and aunt Suzie were watching, so I stopped to talk. Nila was happy to see me and invited me to sit on the porch. We talked all afternoon. Mrs Niner made us a tray of egg sandwiches and some hot cocoa. Nila had a pet coon that was very playful, we were busy eating and talking and not paying any attention to the coon when all of a sudden he jumped on my lap spilling my cocoa all over my dress. I took my dress off and Mrs Niner washed the cocoa out but the stain was still there. When it came time to go to church Mrs Niner gave me one of Nila’s dresses to wear. The dress was red and since I was taller than Nila the dress was shorter than I usually wore. Nila was going to go church with me that night. After Mrs Niner curled Nila’s hair she curled mine. Nila was allowed to wear lipstick so I put some on too. 

The usual crowd was at church that night except one, my Father. He very seldom went to church on Sunday night unless it was a special occasion. It didn’t take long for me to find out why Father was at church that night. As soon as the first hymn was sung, Father got up and went up front. I listened as he spoke. “Children, Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight our subject is going to be how our church was created in the wilderness of this country, and the Indians that were here. My daughter is going to come up front and demonstrate how the Indians looked. Ada will you come up here?”  As I made my way up front I had no idea of what he was talking about. As I turned around to face everybody, my Father took a hold of my arm as he said, “The red dress simulates the Indians red skin, the paint on the face signifies the Indian is preparing for war. On the other hand the Indian woman didn’t paint their face because they didn’t do battle. I will now have Ada read a passage from Jerimiah chapter four, verse thirty.” I took the Bible he handed me and started to read, “And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vein shalt thou make thyself fair, thy loves will despise thee, they will seek thy life.” I stopped reading and looked at my Father. I knew what he was doing, because I had painted my face, he was embarrassing me in front of everyone. Without a word I handed him the Bible, and with my head bowed, I ran back to my seat. I had never been so humiliated in my life. Nila began to cry, she got up and went home, for she knew what he had done and felt responsible for it. On the way home I didn’t say one word. Father chattered as if nothing happened.

The next day mother washed and ironed the “RED .. DRESS.” After folding it up she handed it to me saying, “Take it back and tell that woman we don’t accept charity.” As I stood looking at my Mother, I knew Aunt Suzie or Aunt Stella, or maybe both had called my Father and told him that I went to Mrs Niner’s after church. And that’s why he was at church that evening. I had to tell my Mother the truth, because I didn’t know what else Aunt Suzie or Aunt Stella had told him. I went and got my dress, holding it up so Mother could see it, I said, “Mrs Niner didn’t give me the red dress, she only loaned it to me cause I spilled cocoa on my dress!” Mother said, “Did she loan you the paint also?” I ran from the house crying. I couldn’t understand what I had done wrong. Other girls wore red dresses and lipstick. I went to the shed and got the axe. Then I went back up the hill and cutting the brush from the fence, fiercely I swung that axe. I was so mad and hurt I couldn’t stop crying. If Dora was here, I could talk to her, she would understand. But she wasn’t here. I worked along the fence until I heard mother blow the Conch shell, signaling everyone that lunch was ready. I wasn’t hungry, but I went to eat, because I knew I was already to skinny.

Mother cooked three meals everyday. Breakfast was at six A.M, lunch at twelve, and supper at six P.M. If we weren’t there at meal time, we had to wait till the next. There was no snacking in between meals. My brother’s sister-in-law Hazel Sisler came to visit. She was three years older than I, and kinda plump. We had heard about the revival going on at the Church of God at Markleysburg Pa, twenty miles away. A neighbor of ours went every night, he was always encouraging everyone to go along. Hazel and I decided we would go to this church with him and his family. Mother said it was alright.

I filled the carbide light with carbide and put it in my pocket. A carbide light is a small can type light. It’s about four inches long and two inches in diameter, it’s in two parts, the bottom part for carbide, the top part for water. On the side it had a valve and a reflector. On the reflector was a flint. On the top was a lever for turning the water off and on. Lighting the light was very easy, I would turn the lever up three notches to let the right amount of water down into the carbide, I would count to ten, then spin the flint, and I had a bright light. This light was very handy for walking at night. The flames on the light for walking was on the third notch on the lever, but it could be turned up to shoot out about one foot. I was never afraid to walk at night, I knew wild animals were afraid of fire, if I would have encountered one all I would have to do is turn the lever on the light up, and I had a torch.

Getting back to Hazel and I going to church. Mother said she would do the milking so we could have an early start. It was a four mile walk, but the weather was warm and we were used to walking, our neighbor and his family were happy to have Hazel and I go to church with them. He had a brand new Chrysler with velvet seats, riding in that car I felt like a princess, riding in a golden coach. The church was crowded but our neighbor found Hazel and I seats, then he and his family went up front to what looked like reserved seats. The church music constituted a pipe organ, a piano, three violins, two guitars, a banjo, an accordion, and tambourines. They started the services with a hymn, the music was played real fast and everyone clapped their hands and stomped their feet. The second hymn, people were shouting and dancing in the aisle. The preacher started to preach, he screamed and pounded his fist on the pulpit. After an hour of this preaching the music started playing and the preacher said “ If you wish to be saved tonight, come kneel at the altar.” Over half the church got up and tried to get to the altar. They were climbing over each other, some were screaming others were crying. One was on the floor by the window he was crying and pounding the floor. Someone pulled on a woman’s skirt and it came off, she tried to get it back on, the preacher said, “let it off sister and let the Lord shine in.” The music started playing real fast and loud everyone got up and joined hands then circling the church they danced up one aisle and down the next, around and around they went. Singing as loud as they could. When the song ended everyone but Hazel and I dropped to their knees and prayed, then the service was over. I couldn’t wait to get out of that church and breathe some fresh air. Our neighbor acted just like everyone else, he came out of the church singing and sang the whole way home.

The neighbor thought Hazel and I would stay all night, but I assured him we would be alright walking home. The moon was shining that night, but going down the path through the woods it was dark. I took the carbide light out of my pocket and tried to light it, but it wouldn’t light. I kept trying it, but it wouldn’t light, then I had remembered I had forgotten to fill it with water. We had a long way to go and no place to get water. The path was hard to follow with no light. We heard the brush cracking, I didn’t know what it was, I knew a squirrel could make a lot of noise, but this didn’t sound like a squirrel. Quickly I opened the water lid on the carbide light, and then took off my pants, then squatting down, I urinated into the carbide light, quickly I snapped the lid shut and spun the flint. The flame shot way out burning my finger, I dropped the light in dry leaves catching them on fire. I stomped the fire out and picked the light up and turned the lever back to the third notch. With the light we were soon home. We had had enough excitement, but it didn’t last long.  

Hazel Virginia Sisler 1918-1990, Nila Grace Niner 1922-2010, Nora Ethel Thomas Niner 1889-1976, George W. Niner 1885-1963, Stella Guthrie Moyers 1889-1960, Suzan “Suzie” Guthrie Faulkner 1880-1961, Charlie Seese 1905-1988, Ruth Guthrie Seese 1912-2007, Clara Bell “Carie” Maust Guthrie 1889-1965, James Guthrie 1879-1965