Pawpaw at 115
“I have learned this secret, so that at any time, I am content. I have the strength to face all conditions by the power Christ gives me.”
Robert Bailey Morgan, born July 1900, from rural small town Mississippi, came to Birmingham around 1922, got work in the steel industry. Baptist Robert soon met Methodist Irene. They semi-eloped in Jan 1923, married by her minister at Ensley 1st ME Church, South. Her mother knew; her hot tempered dad did not.
In April 1924, my dad William Bailey Morgan was the first of their children. In 1948, it was a great get-to for me as 1st of their 11 adoring grandchildren. Robert and Irene did not know that half of their lives they would be called Pawpaw and Mimi.
Baptist Pawpaw became the best salt of the earth Methodist I have known and by far most progressive person I knew in that generation of my family. It was not a say so thing, more a do-so thing. He loved being a steward on the Official Board at Ensley 1st Methodist, a carnation in the lapel usher most weeks proudly caring the offering plates to the chancel in the ringing-singing of the Doxology, then sandwiching me between Mimi and him to endure/enjoy the sermon.
BTW: always in the offering plate was their weekly tithe check, that Mimi had dutifully/gladly written from the big 1st National Bank of Birmingham ledger checkbook on the corner of the big mahogany dining room table, that she somehow would laden with a wonderful fried chicken or roast beef lunch within the hour after church.
Across their 50 years at Ensley 1st, there was quite a buffet of pastors - buffoons to saintly servant leaders. Though there was a chuckle or a groan on occasion of taking some with a gracious grain of salt, I never heard Pawpaw criticize his pastor.
Pawpaw and Mimi lived in the neighborhood around Ensley High School for 40+ years. In the late 1960's, after long time neighbors aged widows Mrs. Gafney and Mrs. Mullarkey died, white fright/flight began. As blacks moved in and other whites moved out, Pawpaw and Mimi stayed on, becoming friends with their new black neighbors like they had with their former white ones. Pawpaw was delighted to have another able bodied guy in the neighborhood. Mr. George and he teamed up for house painting and yard improvement projects for both their places - 'watched' each other's house when the other family went on vacation. Pawpaw and Mimi did that for almost a decade before concerned grown kids decided they needed to move to Vestavia.
I know this is going longer than proper Facebook posts. Feel free to use your digital freedom to delete or leave, but before I finish, I want to share some paragraphs of what I said at Pawpaw's service in 1990 - the finding of which in all my recent shuffling of files, books, and papers precipitated this post in the first place.
"My grandfather taught me about living with a simple joy and contentment. As a child, I spent all the time I could maneuver at his house. I watched him leave and return from his railroad engineer job. Sometimes he worked days, other times nights, always he left and returned smiling, whistling, and joking. I think it went deeper than his having lived through the job challenged days of the Depression. He was simply glad to have work and glad to have work on his beloved trains. Pawpaw taught me about the joy of a job and being happy in my work.
The fateful July 1967 day came. Pawpaw made his last train run to Birmingport. Some men have trouble with the transition into retirement. Amazingly, Pawpaw appeared as content in retirement as he was with his job. He was clearly happy to be around the house with Mimi. While she washed the breakfast dishes, he manned the carpet sweeper. But, friend, it didn't take long for him to get his hat when going was mentioned. The man who had been happy in his work was happy in retirement. The man who enjoyed being at home, liked to go.
Pawpaw taught me the pleasure of wearing a suit and tie. He taught me the importance of taking care of and pride in your car regardless of its age. But most of all, he taught me about being happy and finding contentment at whatever point in life I happen to be."