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JUDY ROSS

 

 

I FIRST INTRODUCED JUDY ROSS TO YOU IN MY STORY “WAGON TRAIN.”  AT THAT TIME SHE WAS FIVE YEARS OLD.  SHE AND THE REST OF US LIVED IN THE CITIES SERVICE OIL COMPANY CAMP IN THE EAST TEXAS OIL FIELD. 

 

JUDY WAS A REAL TOM BOY.  SHE WAS SHORT ON WORDS AND LONG ON ACTION.  AN EXAMPLE OF THIS WAS WHAT SHE DID WHEN OUR WAGON TRAIN CRASHED.  SHE HAD FALLEN OUT OF HER WAGON AND BEEN RUN OVER BY ANOTHER WAGON.  INSTEAD OF CRYING OR SAYING ANYTHING, SHE CHASED ME DOWN AND KICKED MY BUTT.  SHE HAD DECIDED IT WAS MY FAULT THAT SHE HAD FALLEN OUT OF HER WAGON.

 

NOW SHE IS SEVEN YEARS OLD AND SHE COULD OUT RUN, OUT THROW AND OUT SPIT ALL THE REST OF US IN OUR LITTLE GROUP.  BUT SHE IS STILL SHORT ON WORDS AND LONG ON ACTION.  SOMETIMES HER ACTIONS MAKE HER SEEM LIKE SHE IS SHORT ON JUDGMENT.

 

THERE WERE A LOT OF KIDS THAT LIVED IN THE CAMP AND THEY WERE DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS.  THOSE FROM THIRTEEN YEARS OLD AND UP IN ONE GROUP AND THOSE TWELVE YEARS OLD AND DOWN IN THE OTHER GROUP.  I WAS ELEVEN YEARS OLD AT THE TIME, BUT WE HAD ONE BOY IN OUR GROUP THAT WAS TWELVE.  BILLY WAS BIG FOR HIS AGE AND HE PRETTY WELL RAN OUR GANG.  NOT BECAUSE HE WAS THE SMARTEST ONE BUT BECAUSE HE WAS THE BIGGEST ONE IN THE GANG.

 

ONE MORNING WE HAD GONE TO THE TROLLEY SLIDE THAT THE BIG KIDS HAD BUILT.  A TROLLEY SLIDE IS A STEAL CABLE TIED TO A TREE 15 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND AND PULLED REAL TIGHT AND TIED TO ANOTHER TREE 50 YARDS AWAY, THREE FEET FROM THE GROUND.  IT HAS A PIECE OF ONE INCH PIPE, 12 INCHES LONG, THREADED ON IT.

 

AS WE GATHERED UNDER THE TREE, BILLY SAID,

“WHO WANTS TO BE FIRST TO RIDE THE TROLLEY, RIGHT AFTER ME?”

 

JUDY SAID, “I’M GOING TO BE FIRST.  BILLY YOU CAN RIDE AFTER ME.”

 

BILLY ACTED LIKE HE DIDN’T EVEN HEAR HER, AND AGAIN SAID,

 

“WHO WANTS TO BE FIRST, RIGHT AFTER ME?”

 

THIS MUST NOT HAVE SET TO WELL WITH JUDY, BECAUSE SHE COUGHED UP A BIG GOB OF SPIT AND LET FLY AT BILLY’S FACE.  IT LANDED ON HIS CHEEK.  FOR AN INSTANT BILLY JUST STOOD THERE LOOKING AT JUDY.  THEN HE REACHED FOR HER BUT IT WAS TO LATE.  SHE HAD USED THAT INSTANT TO TURN AND START RUNNING. 

 

BILLY TOOK OUT AFTER HER BUT SHE HAD A TEN YARD HEAD START ON HIM.  HE WAS TALLER AND HIS LEGS WERE LONGER THAN JUDY’S SO HE WAS HOLDING HIS OWN FOR THE FIRST 50 YARDS.  IN THE NEXT 50 YARDS HE WAS BEGINNING TO TIRE AND JUDY OPENED THE GAP TO 20 YARDS.  AFTER THE NEXT 50 YARDS BILLY WAS SO WINDED THAT HE STOPPED.

 

WHEN BILLY STOPPED, JUDY STOPPED AND PICKED UP SEVERAL SMALL ROCKS.  SHE STARTED CHUCKING THEM AT BILLY.  THE FIRST ONE HIT HIM ON THE CHEST.

 

“OWE,” YELLED BILLY AND HE STARTED RUNNING TOWARD JUDY AGAIN.

 

THE SECOND ROCK HIT HIM ON THE EAR AND THE THIRD ROCK HIT HIM ON HIS HEAD.  BILLY PUT IT IN REVERSE AND STARTED RUNNING AWAY FROM JUDY.  JUDY WAS OUT OF ROCKS BY THIS TIME, BUT SHE STARTED CHASING BILLY.  WHEN THEY CAME TO THE GRAVEL ROAD THAT WENT TO ALL OF OUR HOUSES, JUDY SCOOPED UP A HAND FULL OF GRAVEL AND STARTED THROWING IT AT BILLY.

JUST AS BILLY GOT TO HIS HOUSE JUDY SCOOPED UP ANOTHER HAND FULL OF GRAVEL AND AS BILLY WAS OPENING THE SCREEN DOOR SHE LET FLY WITH THE WHOLE HAND FULL.  IT MUST HAVE SOUNDED LIKE A LOAD OF BUCK SHOT HITTING THE FRONT OF THE HOUSE.

 

JUDY TURNED AND RAN OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE HOUSE, JUST AS BILLY’S MOTHER CAME OUT ONTO THE PORCH.  SHE NEVER DID SEE JUDY.

 

WE HAD ALL BEEN WATCHING THIS EPISODE AND WHEN JUDY WALKED BACK TO THE TROLLEY SLIDE AND SAID SHE WAS GOING TO BE FIRST TO RIDE THE TROLLEY THAT MORNING, NONE OF US SAID A WORD.

 

JUDY CLIMBED THE TREE AND TOOK HOLD OF THE PIPE AND LAUNCHED HER SELF OFF THE TREE LIMB LIKE A BIRD FLYING OFF.  SHE SLID ALL THE WAY DOWN, LANDING AS LIGHTLY AS A BALLET DANCER.

 

BILLY TURNED THIRTEEN IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS AND NEVER DID COME BACK TO OUR GROUP.  I CAN’T SAY THAT ANY OF US MISSED HIM.  IN THREE MONTHS I TURNED TWELVE AND THIS MADE ME THE OLDEST MEMBER OF OUR GROUP.  BECAUSE OF THAT, I BECAME THE LEADER, BUT I NEVER CROSSED JUDY.  I DIDN’T WANT KNOTS ON MY HEAD FROM ROCKS THROWN BY JUDY.

 

THE NEXT TIME I WILL TELL YOU ABOUT JUDY AND THE HORSES, BUT THAT’S A WHOLE NOTHER STORY FOR A DIFFERENT TIME.

 

  BY LOREN MOORE

COPYRIGHT 2003

 

LOREN

 SEE YA

 

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