Back in the states, I decided to move to Atlanta, Georgia. Being only a couple of hours from home felt strange and tempting to say the least. It’s July 4, 1976, the nation’s bicentennial birthday as well as my eighty-fourth birthday. My health’s fading, but I’m grateful for the journey nonetheless. Aside from my folks being taken away from me, I wouldn’t change a single thing. I’ve made many a mistake and learned many a lesson. But I believe every lesson brings a blessing. Every moment, situation, and experience has shaped me into the man I am today–a human being, with faults and flaws like everyone else. Life is funny, and if you keep your eyes and ears open, your heart will reveal and tell you all of its secrets.
Aside from love, the most important thing in life is time. Its passing will go on whether we want it to or not. It never changes, yet it changes everything. It’s the only thing the world we can never get back. You can get money, health, family, career, and even love back, but never time.
As tempting as it was to go to Attapulgus, I kept my wits and stayed put. Like I said earlier, I’m not the picture of health anyhow. Besides, why tempt fate now? My heart tells me the sand is running through my hourglass a little faster these days. But in my heart of hearts, I really want to see home just one more time before that chariot swings low for me…
Charles R. Butts Jr. 