My period of awakening happened while living impoverished. As I learned more about the history of the flag, national anthem, and the United States Constitution during elementary school, my why start turning into what. I was tired of asking why we were in poverty. Now it was time to ask what we could do to get out. I learned more about my rights and why brave civil rights leaders were risking their lives to fight for our civil rights. I was behind the starting line, but I was determined I would make a strong finish.
My four siblings and I called our maternal grandparents “Momma and Poppa.” Their parents were enslaved. According to the 1920 U.S. Census, they were born around 1885 and 1894. They didn’t have birth certificates; therefore, they had to guess. Sometimes parents wrote their children’s date of birth in the Bible. This was considered a legal document. Momma and Poppa passed away when I was young, but I remember them.
Our parents were Christians. The local preacher gave our father, Dad, a worn and tattered Bible. He read passages from it on a daily basis and discussed what he learned with us. He wanted to hear our thoughts. I was still a little too young to understand but listened intently. My older brother, Lil Bro, knew I didn’t understand. He was a history buff with a photographic memory. Even with his philosophical approach, he was patient and a good teacher. When I still struggled to understand, he told me to think of the Bible as a good story. He used some words that I couldn’t comprehend, but this is what I got from his teaching.
People were on a journey to a better life. God was their guide all the way. It wasn’t easy, but the people had hope and believed God would deliver them to a better place. There were good and bad people, but they had to believe. This belief was their faith. Just like we had difficulty understanding the time in which we lived, some of the people in the Bible did too. The Bible provided us with a wealth of history. There was a period of opposition during Biblical days. The people became nervous about Jesus influence and ideas, and tried to kill him.
Dad apparently agreed with his explanation and chimed in with his comments. He told us we were living during the civil rights movement. There were also movements during Biblical times. The people had faith that God would see them through and HE did. They just had to go through something. He and our mother, MaDear, had that same faith. This was my first Bible study, and I believed what Dad and Lil Bro told me. MaDear was listening from the next room. I heard that familiar hum while she continued her chores. At that moment, I knew she was thrilled that her children were now becoming believers.
I had to believe that in God’s world, there would be justice for black people. I learned that life is not easy, but I had to cling to hope. There had to be more people who believed in justice than injustice. People from different races, educational levels, regions, and economic status could and one day would, unite for a common cause. We had to fight to be included, but there was a right way to fight. The correct way was to be seen and recognized as people and change racist laws that said otherwise. This is exactly what leaders and other brave citizens did during the civil rights movement.
My short term goals were to obey my parents, be observant, listen and learn, get baptized, and attend church on a regular basis. In school I vowed to study hard, earn good grades, and learn from my teachers and principals. In spite of segregationist laws, they were educated, employed, lived in stable housing and did not have a poverty mindset. They were nurturing and had a passion for what they did. Apparently they chose the right occupations to keep them employed. They did it, so it could be done! I learned that faith, education, and steady employment were some passages to progress.
I came to realize that God did not forget about us. HE put us in a community and placed trustworthy people in our lives as living examples of what we could become. Regardless of our belief system, most of us would agree that we are not made to go through life alone. As we journey through life, we will have many difficulties. There are opportunities in every difficulty. Difficult roads can help build character and appreciation of a beautiful life.
Our parents also studied from The Black Heritage Edition of the Holy Bible. According to the publisher, this Bible does not take away from text of the King James Version and not one word of the text has been altered. The cover was designed by students of the art department of Fisk University in Nashville. The Bible presents a documentation of Black heritage that begins at the beginning in Biblical times and moves through history. It was the conviction of the publishers that Black children should have a source where they could tract their roots to their true beginning in Biblical Heritage. I’m honored to inherit this copy to pass to my descendants.
Francie Mae. January 2, 2026.
Reference
1976. The Holy Bible. Black Heritage Edition. King James Version. Nashville, TN. Today, Inc.