I can remember climbing down those concrete steps as a little girl. He had his wood working stuff down there, so it always smelled of sawdust. There were always big piles of saw dust everywhere. Papaw would pay me to sweep them up (he was always looking for "jobs" for me to do). The basement was always damp, and in the back just a little creepy. A wood burning stove was situated down there, used heat the whole house. Coffee cans of nails and buttons and screws and twine took up all the shelf space. Old newspapers and magazines were stacked up in the corner. A bunch of junk to a small girl... but to Papaw, one of the smartest men I've ever known, it was all useful. He could create something out of nothing, and his coffee cans were his material. He always cautioned me not to be wasteful. You see, his story was about making a use for everything. When he was a little boy, it wasn't as easy as it was for me, just to drive to the store and buy what you needed. His story was one of walking to school in the snow, of younger brothers and sisters looking up to him, of working hard so future generations would reap the benefit. It also includes marrying the love of his life 60 years ago last Saturday. They two can bicker, but they love each other so much... and I'm so blessed to have their example. In honor of Valentine's day, I'd like to point out that true love really does exist... not just in fairy tales, but in true life.
And it's no wonder his basement is so junky. The upstairs is full of owls... thousands of owls, and a man who never throws anything away accumulates a lot of stuff in 60 years. =)
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