The Sittin' Up (13 page)

Ralph walked ahead of his father without even asking for the lantern.

There was something about Ralph that made me respect him even more that night. Some of the kids at school used to call him slow, but the truth was he had heart! In that heart, there was no fear. He had learned what it meant to be a man long before his time.

Reverend Hornbuckle stood on the table as the men started to push him up the ladder. He had almost made it when I heard a sound like a piece of paper tearing. Poor fellow. The reverend almost fell off the ladder grabbing his pants as they split right down the middle. Lord knows I tried not to laugh, but no one could hold it in. Even Ma lost her kind spirit for a minute and laughed too. Reverend Hornbuckle kept on going as his white drawers peeped down at us. When they finally got the big preacher man on the roof, Papa helped me through the hole.

“You all right, Reverend Hornbuckle?” I asked.

“Just praying, son!” I looked towards the barn. The chickens were all the way on the top of the hen house. Not one was trying to fly away. Reckon even a chicken got enough sense to be scared.

“P
apa, hand me a lantern,” I said as I reached down into the kitchen.

“Here, put this saucer over the lantern so the fire will not go out,” Ma said as she passed a piece of Depression glass to me.

The light shined on Mama's face. She looked proud of me. Right then I knew what it was to be a Low Meadows man. I was helping take care of my people.

With the lantern in hand, I could see Reverend Hornbuckle's face. I saw fear in his eyes that I ain't never seen in no man. The sounds we could hear from up on the roof scared us all. We could hear the small waves of water coming for us both. The tree branches were snapping and the cows got louder. I listened for Mule Bennett, but he never made a sound. I feared he had gone on to hev'n with Mr. Bro. Wiley.

“Great God Almighty! The water coming! Save us, Lord,” Reverend Hornbuckle shouted.

“Papa, Papa, we got to hurry. Ole River mad as hell. We got to get the womenfolk up here right now.”

“Bean, is you cursing?” Ma yelled through the hole.

“Sorry, Ma.” I reached down for Pole as she climbed up the ladder. Sara was right behind her, crying to beat the band. Since Ma was carrying the next Low Meadows baby, she came up after the children. Miss Lottie Pearl came on the roof next. Then poor Miss Moszella, who was out of breath, climbed up. I kept praying the roof wouldn't fall in.

“What you see now, Bean?” Papa asked. I stuck my head down in the kitchen. Papa was standing on a chair with water around his ankles. The menfolk had moved Mr. Bro. Wiley's casket to the kitchen table. Ralph never left his papa's side.

“Water, Papa, water. I see water everywhere. The Ole River getting higher.” I looked out into the Low Meadows and the water was touching the bottom leaves on the willow trees. That's when I heard a loud bang near the barn.

“What was that, Bean?” Mr. Jabo asked.

“Reverend Hornbuckle's car slamming against the barn.” I held the lantern up high. I could see the coupe much better. Mr. Taylor's truck was floating towards the barn too.

“Bean, move everybody back. We got to make room for Mr. Bro. Wiley just in case the men have to swim up to Stony Hill. The roof can't hold us all. If we have to go to Stony Hill, you in charge. You hear me, Son?”

“Yes, Papa, I hear you.” Seem like all my fear went away when Papa said I was in charge.

“Fear and God can't stay in the same house,” Mr. Bro. Wiley said to me time and time again.

“Okay, I'm gonna count to three and I need everybody to push,” Papa said.

“Move back,” Mr. Jabo yelled.

Me and Reverend Hornbuckle pulled the casket as hard as we could while the menfolk pushed it from the other side. Ain't no “
man
” in Reverend Hornbuckle. He was breathing like it was the end of his life.

“Easy now, easy,” Papa said.

“Come on, Mr. Bro. Wiley. Come on,” I said as I pulled the casket up on the rooftop.

It seemed as if Mr. Bro. Wiley wasn't even inside anymore. Like he'd already floated to heaven. Light and free!

When we got the casket on the roof, we pushed him near the womenfolk. Ma laid her head on the casket like it was a pillow while the rain came down on her face. Miss Lottie Pearl laid her head on the other side.

It wasn't long before the Lord sent a blessing and the rain stopped. Other than the lanterns, which I covered with dead folk fabric, the Low Meadows was dark and you could hear a pin drop. We just sat there with Mr. Bro. Wiley's casket. We prayed. Every now and then one of the womenfolk would start singing.

“
I want to be at the meeting. I want to be at the meeting,
” I heard coming from the back of the roof.

I turned around and couldn't believe my eyes.

“It's Miss Florenza,” I told Pole.

“
I want to be at the meeting,
” she sang louder. Then I heard voices coming from the kitchen. I peeked in the big hole. I could barely see the menfolk standing on the table and in the chairs holding hands like little children at the schoolhouse. They were doing some singing too.

“
When I get to hev'n, I'll meet my mother there. Great God Almighty, here comes my child.
”

I soon fell asleep listening to their voices.

I
woke up first. Then Pole.

“Mornin', Pole. We're still alive,” I said as she rubbed her eyes. We looked out at the Low Meadows. The place Ma and Papa said would always be home was under muddy water. So high that you could hardly see the small barn in the backyard that Papa built with his own hands.

“I can't see no land,” Pole said.

“It ain't gone, Pole. Everything just covered up. Ole River can't stay mad forever. It'll go back down and we will live here again.”

“The hen house! The chickens! The chickens,” Pole screamed. I stood up and looked out at the Low Meadows.

“They dead,” I whispered as Ma woke up and Sara screamed real loud.

“Don't look, child,” Miss Florenza told her. She pulled Sara closer to her. Ma and Miss Lottie Pearl needed to leave Miss Florenza be. She loved her child same as they loved us.

Ma looked over at Stony Hill.

We could see Mule Bennett and four cows that survived. All of Mr. Thomas's cows but four had drowned.

“What's going on up there?” Papa said. I put my head down in the hole to give Papa a report. I thanked God that our house was on a small hill too because the trees outside were almost underwater, but the men were fine on the tables.

“Most of the animals are dead, Papa.”

“Figured as-as much,” he said as he looked up at me to assure me that everything would be all right. He and the other men were so wet and coughing from the chill the night before.

“Y'all get back. We can't open the door. We coming up on the roof to get to the boats,” Papa said. He climbed on the roof, but never stopped. He jumped right in the water.

Papa and Mr. Jabo swam towards the boats.

“Hurry out of the water. Dead chickens in there and most of the cows dead. I reckon disease in that water by now,” Ma shouted.

My uncle might be a liar, but he had good in him just like Mr. Bro. Wiley said every man had. He forgot all about his greasy head of hair and jumped in the water too. One by one the other menfolk jumped in and got their small boats. Next thing I knew Ralph was right beside Deacon Ward swimming like a fish. Ma looked away for one minute and it was my chance to join them.

I jumped in the water with my arms up high like the great sprinter Mr. Jesse Owens. Ralph pumped his fist up in the air when he saw me swimming towards him. We smiled at each other.

“Come back here, Bean,” Ma yelled.

I had never disobeyed Ma in my whole life but I had to help. We gathered the boats and headed back to get everyone.

“Women and-and children first,” Papa said as they got closer to the house with the boats.

“Jump, child. We got to hurry,” Mr. Jabo said as he reached out for Pole.

“Close your eyes real tight, Pole. Don't look,” I told her.

Pole did like I said and jumped into her papa's arms.

Ma forgot all about being mad at me and she smiled something big at me holding the boat steady while folk climbed in.

Mr. Jabo reached out for Sara. “Come on, child. Everything gonna be all right.” Then she jumped in his arms.

“Sit down, Sara. Let the women get in now,” Mr. Jabo said. One by one, the women got into the boats with help from the menfolk. Uncle Goat pulled his boat up last.

My uncle got a nice boat, and they were saving it for Mr. Bro. Wiley's casket.

“God knew what he was doing when he sent that rain early last night. If the weather was good we would have had a house full of folk,” Reverend Hornbuckle said to us.

“Ain't-ain't that the truth,” Papa said. “Now let's get Mr. Bro. Wiley on the boat and get out of these Meadows.”

“Push one time. Push hard,” Papa told Uncle Goat, who was back on the roof to get the casket.

Ma was crying harder than Pole when the casket hit the bottom of the boat.

“Oh, Wife, don't cry.” Papa said.

“I know but I wanted Mr. Bro. Wiley's sittin' up to be nice. Look how things done turned out.”

“Stop your crying now, and get in the boat with Mr. Bro. Wiley if you want to,” Uncle Goat told his sister, motioning for her to get in the boat with him. Then he swapped places with Papa.

“Bean, you look out for the folks in our boat,” Papa said.

Ma wrapped her funeral fabric around her shoulders and stood up. When she got ready to get in the boat with Mr. Bro. Wiley, she held her belly and let out a scream.

“Husband, baby's coming!”

“Not now, Wife, not now!” Papa took Ma's hand and helped her get in the boat with him and Mr. Bro. Wiley.

What in the world was Papa talking about! He knew good and well he couldn't stop a baby from coming.

“Lord, Sister, you done got too excited. This baby ain't due for another three weeks. Slide that casket over and make room for me and Moszella,” Miss Lottie Pearl told Papa.

“Ain't enough room in here for Moszella and the casket,” Papa said.

Miss Moszella rolled her eyes at my papa.

“Ain't nobody studyin' you, Stanbury Jones.”

“Get in this boat, Florenza. You don't weigh even one hundred pounds, so you got to help me bring this baby into the world,” Miss Lottie Pearl said.

“Me? No way,” she shouted. “I would rather die.”

“Don't push your luck, gal. Now, get your hind parts in this boat,” Miss Lottie Pearl ordered the sinner.

“Stanbury, you best move us behind the barn, out of the sight of the children and the menfolk, 'cause we ain't gonna make it to town. You remember how quick Bean came into the world,” Ma said as she struggled for each breath, sweating like she was in the 'bacco field.

Miss Lottie Pearl was busy taking all our dead folk fabric from us like she was taking up collection in church. She stuffed the fabric around the boat so that Ma could lie down.

“Jabo, don't know how long we gonna be, you all best go on without us,” Papa said.

“Stanbury Jones, we have seen the worst of times together. I ain't leaving you back here. We gonna stay right here till this child come in this world. Go on now.”

Papa, Ma, Miss Lottie Pearl, and Mr. Bro. Wiley's casket disappeared behind the barn with Miss Florenza. We could hear Ma screaming. The sinner screamed every time Ma screamed.

I wondered what in the world was going on. Surely Ma was going to be all right. I was some kind of curious and worried about what was happening to her.

“I sure hope Miss Magnolia be all right,” Pole said.

“Well, it hurts to bring a child into the world, just like it hurt when someone leave here, child,” Reverend Hornbuckle said.