Jacks House
Footsteps
Our house had an upstairs to it, built by my dad. This is where both the girls and boys rooms were. It was like our own apartment
up there. We were told it's bed time and proceed upstairs to our rooms but rarely did we ever go to bed right away. We would goof
around until we heard the stairway door open and my father yelling that if we knew what was good for us, we better stop the
"grap-assen" and get to sleep. So we heeded his advice and goofed around quieter. But usually somebody or something fell or one of
us got to laughing to loud and he'd open the door again. Now usually once was nothing for my dad to yell up the stairs at us, twice
was really no big deal either. Three times and now your pushin' it. But on many a night we pushed it big time. Lol
We'd hear the squeak of the door knob being turned and stop everything in our tracks and listen. For the next sound would seal our
fate. It was one of two things, either my dad yelling again or the worst…the dreaded sound of his boots coming up the wooden steps.
I still know that sound. I can hear it in my head now as I type. Lol I'm sure my brother and sisters remember that sound as well as I
do. Lol The only sound worse is the boots AND the jingle of the belt buckle as it was coming off. Lol Then Ya knew you were really
in trouble. God…it seemed like it took him forever to get up them stairs. By the time he'd get to our room we'd be "sleeping" like
angels. Lol Never fooled him though. Sometimes while we were being yelled at we would say that "the girls started it" just to get
them in some kind of trouble. Lol