He bragged that he made more money during the Great Depression than most adults by selling GladysвЂ™ phone number to passing men after making sure they also purchased a newspaper whilst he was вЂњspit shiningвЂќ their shoes. At the tender age of seven years he bravely set up shop across the street from the window of the drugstore where his much older sister, Gladys, who was a small town Marilyn Monroe, worked behind the counter. My father was an abandoned child, an orphan, a self-made boy with a second grade education who became a mathematics whiz on the sidewalks of Wichita Falls, Texas.

Once I had gotten my head as best I could around a time continuum with no endвЂ¦ everвЂ¦ my small mind moved forward delighted and amused by trying to picture paradise. If indeed you were on the list and gained clearance, greatly relieved, you were welcomed through the gates onto streets that were вЂњpaved with goldвЂќ into вЂњthe most beautiful place you could imagineвЂќ where you could then spend eternity in a blissful garden setting amongst departed loved ones and docile beasts. Once you had arrived at вЂњThe Pearly Gates вЂќ you were screened by a saint named Peter who checked вЂњThe Book of LifeвЂќ to be sure you were where you belonged.

If you were вЂњgoodвЂќ during your lifetime on some undisclosed day a shout would unexpectedly come from the sky and angels would begin playing harp music to awaken yours and others spirits which could then rise up from their graves and drift to вЂњThe Promised Land,вЂќ where heaven was located. I first heard about heaven attending worship services at 23rd and Grace, the Church of Christ, where my babysitter took me as a child. Listen to KimmieвЂ™s audio version of this blog post which emanates from the car radio of Terry AllenвЂ™s вЂњRoad AngelвЂќ sculpture at Laguna Gloria Art Museum in Austin, TX

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