People Only Do What They Know

Growing up in a large family, the fourth son born out of ten children, he being of the darkest complexion of them all. His parents were from Baton Rouge, both parents born in the early 1920's, where that old southern mentality was the only way of life.

It was understood that a woman's place was in the home and the sole responsibility of the father was to earn a living to support the family, other than that there was no interaction with his father other than the beatings as a result of false information relayed to his father by his mother. Subsequently, he himself grew up to be abusive and violent costing him years in federal prison for a series of Bank Robberies over a period of five years. Then one day at the age of 60, he learned through a DNA search that his Grandfather on his father's side was White, something in all the years of his life was not once ever mentioned. The only thing he ever heard was that when he grew up he was going to be just like his grandfather. No good! For years he thought his grandpa was a black man with a thick mustache, hard to tell from the 1920's photograph. He knew too that his mother despised the late patriarch, which made it easy to choose what role he would take in life. Now close to the age of 70, finding himself trying to figure out what to do with the rest of his life.

Seven years had passed since he had been out of prison and off parole and for the first time since the age of 15, he was not on any form of supervision. And this is the way it all began before he was even born.

Everyone knew her as Val, a smart but strange girl who lived in the small town of Bastrop, La, with her mother, two sisters and four brothers. My father had initially met her sister Eddie first but Eddie was already involved with someone else. So my father asked her if she had a sister. After being fair warned against the introduction, my father insisted. Eddie agreed and invited him to her home in Bastrop.

The day of the meeting Val was home ironing. She kept their home impeccably neat and clean, never asking either of her two sisters or her mother Bessie to help. It was as if she had resigned herself as the sole house keeper, making certain that everything was in order. Almost like a compulsive disorder.

Bessie, who made it no secret that she was entertaining three different men at the same time, was a feisty woman from what I'd been told in bits and pieces over the years. I only remember seeing her two times briefly in my entire life. I always had the feeling we, the children were being kept away from her deliberately by my mother.

Bessie had a brother known as "Son" and as children we knew him as Uncle Son, who took a special liking to Val and he ended up having sexual relations with her starting at the age of 12, until the time of his death 40 years later.

Bessie had an entirely different prospective when it came to men. It was her belief that a woman had a responsibility to allow a man to be a man. In her mind it was only natural for a man to act out his urges with the opposite sex regardless of at whom those urges might be directed. In the South back in those days this was a subject that was widely known, but not ever discussed or spoken about in public. It was just accepted.

On the day of the meeting between my two parents to be, Val was in the back section of the house ironing until Bessie appeared and ordered

"Gal! You betta get in there an' sit with that man who come to see you" and begrudgingly Val complied

At no point in that first meeting was there any semblance of interest on the part of Val, while my father on the other hand was determined to gain the trust of a woman who clearly demonstrates having no desire what so ever to even be civil. She was aloof and ill tempered the entire time they spent in the parlor, as her sister Eddie and her man friend sat on the other side of the room enjoying each other's company.

It was a warm summer day as they all sat on opposite sides of the room sipping lemonade. There was a cool breeze blowing through the entire house. Eddie and her friend sat laughing and talking together, while my father sat attempting to make conversation to no avail, until it was time to leave and he asked

"Is it alright if I come to see you again?" and Val replied flatly

"If that's what you feel like doing".

For what ever reason, my father continued to pursue her and subsequently ended up making a death bed promise to her dying father, that no matter what he would never leave her. Val had overheard him make that promise.

Shortly afterwards, my father took off for Chicago, vowing to send for my mother once he secured a job in the Windy City. However, it was through the urging of Grand Ma Bessie that my mother got on a train and followed my father there, where they took up residence on the west side on Van Buren, in a basement apartment.

I must have been five years old when my father purchased a large brick home on a street called Walnut. It was actually five separate apartments in the house, each one with its own fully operational kitchen. The boys shared one of their own as did the girls, while my father rented out two.

It was the mid 1950's when uncle Jimmie, my mother's brother cam to live with us. He was a round face always seemed jolly kind of guy. But from the moment I met him my first thought was that he looked absolutely nothing like my mother as well as being considerably darker. Both their complexions were as different as night and day, not to mention the facial similarities. There were none.

Jimmy was a chef by trade as was my father, who secured a job for his brother-in-law at the same place where he worked in Palatine , Illinois as Head Chef. Jimmy's specialty was baking cakes and pastries. With his new job Jimmy was all set. My father eve allowed him to drive one of the two cars he owned.

Inside of six months after moving to Chicago, Jimmy was actively molesting three of his Nieces.

His first victim was the youngest, who was easily sworn to secrecy. Then his second victim, the oldest daughter, who too kept quiet. But his third victim ran and told her mother directly after Jimmy had his way with her only to be told by her mother

"You stop that! Liar. An' ya better not say anything to your daddy"

The child at that time was nine years old. Jimmy would continue to have his way with the three girls for years under the same roof, undetected by anyone, except for my mother who knew.