Brenda and Friends: Happy Birthday Mama

Lida Evora Overton Outlaw – My Mama

Ninety-four years today the world changed – for the better. My Mama was born. This event didn’t make headlines in newspapers all around the world; it wasn’t earth-shattering news. There was no television back then; she just quietly entered the world.

She was one of 11 children. I can only remember five of my Mama’s siblings – three sisters and two brothers. Mama married my Daddy, Raymond, when she was only 15 ; had her first child when she was 16 and 1/2 and had her last child when she was 31 . Mama never had a very easy life, but you know I don’t remember hearing her complain about it. You just took whatever live handed you and made the best of it. Boy, wouldn’t it be nice if it was like that today? All people do is complain….about just about everything. She was a hard worker, worked in the fields with my Daddy, worked in a retail store in the winter, took care of the garden and all the things that go with having a garden, was a great cook, awesome seamstress, great housekeeper and I could go on and on.

This is an early picture of my Mama and Daddy with my sister, Jean (who we all called Sister), my other sister Faye and my brother Ronald (known to all of us as Bud).

This is my Mama and me. This is probably taken at the house that burned when I was 3 years old.

This is Mama and me taken the day Sister and HG got married.

This has always been one of my favorite pictures of the three of us. I don’t exactly know why. I just always felt so safe when I looked at this picture.I can barely remember my Daddy looking like this. He was almost totally gray from the time I was little and wore glasses. This was taken on Mama and Daddy’s

25th. wedding anniversary – a surprise party.

This was at the little grocery store my Mama and Daddy operated in the big city of Merry Hill. Boy, the things a nickel would buy back then!This picture is very special along with all of them that were taken on that Easter Sunday. It is Mama, Daddy and all of the grandchildren they had at the time. Several more came along after this, but sad to say, they never knew my Daddy. This was taken on Easter Sunday and he died on April 30. The grandchildren called them Mother and Papa.This was taken in the summer of 1966, shortly after I graduated from high school. This is the best picture I have of Mama and my boys. TJ called her Muver and Ray called her Wuver. They would send mail to her with those names on the envelope and believe it or not, she would get the mail. That wouldn’t happen today.

My Mama and I didn’t always get along. I guess she and I were too much alike. But she was a great Mama. I loved her very much and I miss her a lot. She died on December 30, 1994. I know she was always my champion. I also know that later on in my life I did some things that disappointed her, but she never let me down. She, my two sisters and their husbands were at my Church the night I got baptized – May 15, 1988. I am so thankful she knew I was saved when she died.

Thanks for taking this journey with me.

I meant to post this yesterday, June 15, Mama’s birthday and I forgot to do it.