Just Be You

Chapter I

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

“She was the oldest and sometimes she could really get under your skin. After getting on his nerves so bad that day he retaliated by picking up a clay ash tray and throwing it at her. Well she moved out of the way and instead of it hitting her it hit me I was standing behind her it came from no where it was a shock and it was unexpected. Well this is where it all began and my life would change forever.  There was blood every where mom had to be called and no one wanted to call.  My sister Darlene made the call and mom rushed home.  After getting there she did not ask many questions but she was upset and worried all at the same time.  She gathered my things and took me as quickly as she could to Andalusia hospital.  After much consideration the doctors concluded that there would be nothing they could do for me there and I would have to be rushed to Montgomery, Al.  There I would see a specialist on eye surgery and get the special attention I needed to try to repair the great damage that had been done to my eye. Montgomery was about a 3 hour drive from Andalusia but mom didn’t mind she just wanted to get me some help.

After arriving in Montgomery they took me to Baptist hospital and as soon as I arrived they took me into surgery to work on the immediate repair of my right eye.  After the surgery they explained to my mom that I would have to be there for six months even after the surgery to monitor my eye and take daily test.  Mom stayed there right by my side not knowing what the outcome would be. When the surgery was finally over the doctors explained to my mom they did what they could but there was no repair.  There I said it after all these years of keeping it a secret, that’s right no repair. No repair for my pupil, my retina, my right eye vision, nothing the clay ash tray had damaged my whole eye.

With a patch over my eye day in and day out four years old I lay there wondering what was going to happen next no one told me anything. Until a couple days later I over heard my mom talking to the doctors. They had come up with the best solution they could due to my situation.  Although there would be no repair for my real eye they could give me a glass eye that looked just like my real eye.”

Chapter II

GOING TO SCHOOL

“Mom never questioned God about my accident but she wanted to always be sure he was in our life.  There was a revival coming up at our church and mom was excited about it because she was determined that all her children would be saved and filled with the Holy Ghost.  We belonged to House Of God Which Is The Church Of The Living God The Pillar and Ground Of The Truth.

Long name it was I know I thought so to, but I loved our church and our Pastor Elder MacDougle and his wife and all the people at our church.  Well it was time for revival and a Pastor from Bo Mount Texas was coming to run the revival Elder Taylor.  Mom wanted all of us to go that night but when the time came I was the only one prepared to go. I somehow felt I would be going anyway because not only was I the youngest of my elder brothers and sisters I think mom felt like she had to look out for me because of my eye. 

And then to I think she didn’t want anything else to happen to me because she was not home.  So I went and that night she put me on the altar to tarry for the Holy Ghost.  I was in my young years of age I will never forget it when I really understood who and what God really was in my life. That night while on the altar I called on Jesus, we where brought up in a Pentecostal church which in the old days meant that you were holiness.  We believed that if you called on Jesus he would come in and fill you with the Holy Ghost.  And even in my adult life I still believe the same way today. Nevertheless as I called on Jesus I heard mom say call him Trina (my nickname) get in a hurry, call him like you want him! call him get in a hurry! and I did just that.  And as I called him I waited on the manifestation of God’s son Jesus to fill me with the Holy Ghost.  And all of a certain I say him yes Jesus, I saw him or what I thought to be him with a bright light behind him holding out his hand telling me to come.  And as I cried tears ran down my cheek and I heard someone say Jesus is all over her.  Suddenly a woman in the church picked me up off the altar. Mom was still there but she had to be giving God praise because all I heard was praise him. I praised God until I couldn’t I shouted and I remember as I was praising him and shouting some strange words began to come out of my mouth and I began to speak in unknown tongues.  I didn’t know what I was saying but God knew, I praised God so much that night when service was over my eyes were red and my feet were tired.”