Prologue
One mornin’ when Tom's Ma and Pa were goin to work in the fields he realized somthin' that his Ma had been tryin to tell 'im for all of his life... "Be a kid while you can be a kid, it sure don't last forever."
***
Story
Every mornin’ before the rooster let out his alarm Tom and his Pa would go up the mountain to check on the still, make sure it was still there. When Tom and his Pa would walk up that mountain they would keep a sharp eye out for possums. Everyone sane knew that them there possums would come in the mornin' to the stills and have 'em some nice Blue Rocket. The black tape hangin’ from the trees would show Tom and his Pa were the still was, you could say that the tape was kinda’ important. Tom and his Pa continued up the mountain lookin for black tape and drunk possums, The crisp fall air wisped up there backs like white whisky. What Tom didn't know is that chill carried the virus that one day would kill his old Pa. Finally They were there. First him and his Pa would grab the glass mason jars hangin’ under that shiny copper tubin’ filled with the purest likkor in the holler. Then they would snap on the lids and givim’ a nice shakin to see if there was a good head to ‘em. Tom loved the paper thin layer of bubbles grazing the top of the glass, Tom thought of it as snow or silk that he could touch and feel till his hearts content. Tom didn't know what he loved more, the shakin’ of the Blue Rocket or the feelin’ that he had done somthin’ bad.
***
Fifteen years later Tom was a true man with the heart of an angel and a body like a bulldozer. The tears on his face were like a fountain of joy, spitting tears that grazed the mine walls like a thin wool quilt. He hadn't been home for nearly eight years because of the black demon, and him and his family had grown more apart every year. But he finally got the letter, he was goin home.As Tom read the letter notifying him of his return to the family he started to weep in pure excitement. Ma and Pa had been workin’ hard on their moonshine business while Tom was at the coal mines, every mornin’ Tom’s Pa would go to everyone in the holler except the officers lookin’ to see if he could find a quick drunk that he could squeeze a dollar out of. Pa was dedicated to his work just like Tom was, and as they worked for many years on their businesses their money started to grow until it was enough to send Tom home. Nearly dead Tom wanted to go anywhere except the cold, dark, dusty coal mines. They had broken him down into a salty black mush filled with sadness, the only thing keeping him alive was a thriving compassion for his loving family. He was done with going to work in a hole and living in a shack on a hill. His life was like a burned down house and his dreams were like moldy bread. Every mornin’ Tom would go to the coal mines and work till he neared death, then he would come home and wash off on the hose and go to bed. The next day he would do it again. Coal was an infection, spreading faster than light and darker than night. But now it can all come to an end, Tom was finally goin home.
***
It was the middle of the great depression, and sadness floated in the air like clouds in his home town. The year was 1933 and work was nearly impossible to find everywhere, especially in the hollers, because of Hoover. The only work around was filled with black tape and drunk possums. Even though Tom was home with his loving family, and life was much better for him there was still a problem, His Pa was dying. Darkness again hovered among the family, Pa was dying of the very thing that Tom’s family tried to prevent the most, The plague. Pa’s body was perfectly healthy the many years before and no one expected it to come to an end like this, but everyone knew it would.The plague had already killed seven others in the holler and was prepared to kill more, including Tom’s Pa.
***
Two years passed and Tom’s Pa was miraculously still alive, but life was hard with the sadness of knowing that Pa was creeping behind the reaper. Then one day the bell rang in the town signifying the death of old Pa, but the thing that struck the people in the town the most is that that bell rang sixty one times, the longest in town history.
Tom’s neighbor had made a casket for Pa, and Tom’s Ma sent letters with the black borders to all of the family tellin’ ‘em of the death of old Pa. Everything seamed to happen simultaneously like everyone was programed with the code of death. The last jar of their old Blue Rocket was placed in Tom's Pa's casket, and the memories of love and happiness were put in the ground like an old book.
***
Life for Tom and Ma became harder without the help of Pa, but the saddest thing in Tom’s eyes was that Pa’s many tricks were taken with him to his grave. Every time Tom heard the bell ring it reminded him of the miracle of his Pa's age, and it also reminded him of the loving heart that now lies in a pine box in the dirt. His family mourned for months over the passing of Pa but as tom said, "never mourn on something that is gone, just mourn on what is bad today."
Hunger slowly became an issue now that the skills of the farmer were gone. It seemed like the sadness let out by Tom and Ma leaked onto the plants like a cold droopy liquid, freezing the stalks like black ice. There was only one option left to save the family, coal. Coal had been the cause of constant sadness and now it seemed like coal would be the key to life, but their was another problem that came into the picture, Ma. Ma could not take care of herself without Pa around and since Pa was gone they only had one choice, Ma was now part of the system. Tom and his ma left there house only on a horse drawn carage packed with food and straw mattresses they had bought with the money from their farm and the rest of the blue rocket, on their ride they spoke of what the future ahead of them would look like. They talked about how it seamed like coal was the golden door that lead to the path of happiness, but Tom knew that his pa was turning in his grave because of this bad opportunity. They had brought all the animals to sell on the road so they would have money for the mining supplies that Tom knew Mele and sons would charge. One of the most important things to know if you are a miner is that when you go in with no money you will leave with less money, but if you come with money you will make more money than you had before. The coal industry was like a game, sometimes you are all up there and all of a sudden you are in dept, but the way to win is to back out before the end.
When Tom and Ma finally arrived in West Virginia at Mele and sons coal mine after eighteen days of travel with only three ears of corn and a small canteen of water left to their name, they immediately begin there work in the coal mines. Coal seamed to get into their brains and change it to be able to manipulate them to fall into it's grip, and now they where getting squeezed to death. Ma was the one that struggled the most, every time her pick touched the mines her heart started to fade. Ma at age forty nine was officially the oldest one to start at mele and sons and she will probably be the last one to die, But what Tom started to realize is that he had felt lightly on their journey, but now he knew what he had to do to help his mother. Tom decided to send her to housing, she would not work, she could not work at her age anyway and Tom had realized that know. They would be apart for nearly ten hours a day, Tom worked group two in the mid day, he would be at housing in the mornings and at night but not in the day. While tom worked in the mines ma decided to help any way she could, so she stitched blankets with the American flag surrounded by coal to signify the miners in America, and sold them to the miners for money that she could by food and clothing with. Together Ma and Tom where an unbeatable team with ambition and they worked as hard as they could to support their selves and over time they saved enough money to finaly go back home. Together they bought two horses, a carage, food and water, and finaly they bought straw mattresses as a soft luxury for all of there hard work. Tom and ma finaly set off for their journey back to pure freedom, and together they rode off into the distance with money in their pockets and food in their stomachs.
***
Happily they lived together for eleven more years, then old Ma finaly decided to go meet Pa in their Paradise. Tom lived another twenty six years, makin’ the bell ring sixty two times, he finaly beat his old pa. At the end of Tom’s life he was a moonshiner makin his Pa’s famous blue rocket.
One mornin’ when Tom's Ma and Pa were goin to work in the fields he realized somthin' that his Ma had been tryin to tell 'im for all of his life... "Be a kid while you can be a kid, it sure don't last forever."
***
Story
Every mornin’ before the rooster let out his alarm Tom and his Pa would go up the mountain to check on the still, make sure it was still there. When Tom and his Pa would walk up that mountain they would keep a sharp eye out for possums. Everyone sane knew that them there possums would come in the mornin' to the stills and have 'em some nice Blue Rocket. The black tape hangin’ from the trees would show Tom and his Pa were the still was, you could say that the tape was kinda’ important. Tom and his Pa continued up the mountain lookin for black tape and drunk possums, The crisp fall air wisped up there backs like white whisky. What Tom didn't know is that chill carried the virus that one day would kill his old Pa. Finally They were there. First him and his Pa would grab the glass mason jars hangin’ under that shiny copper tubin’ filled with the purest likkor in the holler. Then they would snap on the lids and givim’ a nice shakin to see if there was a good head to ‘em. Tom loved the paper thin layer of bubbles grazing the top of the glass, Tom thought of it as snow or silk that he could touch and feel till his hearts content. Tom didn't know what he loved more, the shakin’ of the Blue Rocket or the feelin’ that he had done somthin’ bad.
***
Fifteen years later Tom was a true man with the heart of an angel and a body like a bulldozer. The tears on his face were like a fountain of joy, spitting tears that grazed the mine walls like a thin wool quilt. He hadn't been home for nearly eight years because of the black demon, and him and his family had grown more apart every year. But he finally got the letter, he was goin home.As Tom read the letter notifying him of his return to the family he started to weep in pure excitement. Ma and Pa had been workin’ hard on their moonshine business while Tom was at the coal mines, every mornin’ Tom’s Pa would go to everyone in the holler except the officers lookin’ to see if he could find a quick drunk that he could squeeze a dollar out of. Pa was dedicated to his work just like Tom was, and as they worked for many years on their businesses their money started to grow until it was enough to send Tom home. Nearly dead Tom wanted to go anywhere except the cold, dark, dusty coal mines. They had broken him down into a salty black mush filled with sadness, the only thing keeping him alive was a thriving compassion for his loving family. He was done with going to work in a hole and living in a shack on a hill. His life was like a burned down house and his dreams were like moldy bread. Every mornin’ Tom would go to the coal mines and work till he neared death, then he would come home and wash off on the hose and go to bed. The next day he would do it again. Coal was an infection, spreading faster than light and darker than night. But now it can all come to an end, Tom was finally goin home.
***
It was the middle of the great depression, and sadness floated in the air like clouds in his home town. The year was 1933 and work was nearly impossible to find everywhere, especially in the hollers, because of Hoover. The only work around was filled with black tape and drunk possums. Even though Tom was home with his loving family, and life was much better for him there was still a problem, His Pa was dying. Darkness again hovered among the family, Pa was dying of the very thing that Tom’s family tried to prevent the most, The plague. Pa’s body was perfectly healthy the many years before and no one expected it to come to an end like this, but everyone knew it would.The plague had already killed seven others in the holler and was prepared to kill more, including Tom’s Pa.
***
Two years passed and Tom’s Pa was miraculously still alive, but life was hard with the sadness of knowing that Pa was creeping behind the reaper. Then one day the bell rang in the town signifying the death of old Pa, but the thing that struck the people in the town the most is that that bell rang sixty one times, the longest in town history.
Tom’s neighbor had made a casket for Pa, and Tom’s Ma sent letters with the black borders to all of the family tellin’ ‘em of the death of old Pa. Everything seamed to happen simultaneously like everyone was programed with the code of death. The last jar of their old Blue Rocket was placed in Tom's Pa's casket, and the memories of love and happiness were put in the ground like an old book.
***
Life for Tom and Ma became harder without the help of Pa, but the saddest thing in Tom’s eyes was that Pa’s many tricks were taken with him to his grave. Every time Tom heard the bell ring it reminded him of the miracle of his Pa's age, and it also reminded him of the loving heart that now lies in a pine box in the dirt. His family mourned for months over the passing of Pa but as tom said, "never mourn on something that is gone, just mourn on what is bad today."
Hunger slowly became an issue now that the skills of the farmer were gone. It seemed like the sadness let out by Tom and Ma leaked onto the plants like a cold droopy liquid, freezing the stalks like black ice. There was only one option left to save the family, coal. Coal had been the cause of constant sadness and now it seemed like coal would be the key to life, but their was another problem that came into the picture, Ma. Ma could not take care of herself without Pa around and since Pa was gone they only had one choice, Ma was now part of the system. Tom and his ma left there house only on a horse drawn carage packed with food and straw mattresses they had bought with the money from their farm and the rest of the blue rocket, on their ride they spoke of what the future ahead of them would look like. They talked about how it seamed like coal was the golden door that lead to the path of happiness, but Tom knew that his pa was turning in his grave because of this bad opportunity. They had brought all the animals to sell on the road so they would have money for the mining supplies that Tom knew Mele and sons would charge. One of the most important things to know if you are a miner is that when you go in with no money you will leave with less money, but if you come with money you will make more money than you had before. The coal industry was like a game, sometimes you are all up there and all of a sudden you are in dept, but the way to win is to back out before the end.
When Tom and Ma finally arrived in West Virginia at Mele and sons coal mine after eighteen days of travel with only three ears of corn and a small canteen of water left to their name, they immediately begin there work in the coal mines. Coal seamed to get into their brains and change it to be able to manipulate them to fall into it's grip, and now they where getting squeezed to death. Ma was the one that struggled the most, every time her pick touched the mines her heart started to fade. Ma at age forty nine was officially the oldest one to start at mele and sons and she will probably be the last one to die, But what Tom started to realize is that he had felt lightly on their journey, but now he knew what he had to do to help his mother. Tom decided to send her to housing, she would not work, she could not work at her age anyway and Tom had realized that know. They would be apart for nearly ten hours a day, Tom worked group two in the mid day, he would be at housing in the mornings and at night but not in the day. While tom worked in the mines ma decided to help any way she could, so she stitched blankets with the American flag surrounded by coal to signify the miners in America, and sold them to the miners for money that she could by food and clothing with. Together Ma and Tom where an unbeatable team with ambition and they worked as hard as they could to support their selves and over time they saved enough money to finaly go back home. Together they bought two horses, a carage, food and water, and finaly they bought straw mattresses as a soft luxury for all of there hard work. Tom and ma finaly set off for their journey back to pure freedom, and together they rode off into the distance with money in their pockets and food in their stomachs.
***
Happily they lived together for eleven more years, then old Ma finaly decided to go meet Pa in their Paradise. Tom lived another twenty six years, makin’ the bell ring sixty two times, he finaly beat his old pa. At the end of Tom’s life he was a moonshiner makin his Pa’s famous blue rocket.