Now when we landed in Midway Kentucky we were a sight to see. Most rural southern folks had only seen "Hippies" like us on television. In the sixties protesting civil rights and trying to end the Vietnam war. So we got strange looks from people on the street. But they were actually too polite to say anything to us. I'm sure they thought we were up to no good.
It has been my experience that if you are polite and respectful of people they will respond in kind regardless of preconceived notions. And if you work next to them they come around and even like you.
When you work in tobacco fields it is hard dirty, back breaking labor.
One day after work I stopped at a crossroads store to pick up some food and beer. I walked in, my long blond hair, facial hair, earring and all. I was filthy. As I Brought my purchases up to counter to pay. The middle aged woman behind the counter looked at me and smiled. She said, "There's only way around here to get that dirty, is to work in baccer."
"Yes ma'am," I said.
"Good for you," she said. "Good honest work never hurt anybody."
"Yes ma'am," I smiled, "but it can get old real fast."
She smiled back, "Oh yes it can, Y'all have a nice day now.
"Thank you ma'am, you too."
Though working in tobacco is menial hard labor, in Midway Kentucky it garners respect.
After about a week working for Jack he came to us and said, "You know boys I have a trailer house bout a mile from here it is empty and y'all are welcome to stay there if you are thinking about stay'in around and want to work for me, it'll beat sleeping in that van."
I looked at the the rest of us, everybody smiled, so I said, "Wow that would be great! Jack we told you we would help you put your tobacco in your barns and that is what we intend to do."
Jack smiled and nodded his head.
The trailer was a modern three bedroom expand a home complete with bathroom, shower, kitchen, stove, and fridge. Totally furnished.
It was set in a big empty field with no visible neighbors. Hell it was better than the motel rooms we were living in, in Florida.
A few days later Jack shows up and knocks on the door. I open it and he has this TV in his arms.
"This is out of my son's room he never watches it. Thought you might want to see what's happening in the world."
"Jack you are the best. Thanks. Mike isn't gonna be pissed at us for taking his TV is he." I asked.
Jack said, "Naw, he never watches it. He watches the big TV in our living room."
A few days later Jack picked us up in the morning so we left Kevin's van at the trailer. We had filled the first barn and we traveled we to another barn a few miles away. I followed in Jack's farm pickup truck. It was a great truck, blue, with four on the floor, it had a handle on the shift lever to go into a compound low gear. Wasn't much to look at but was solid and in great shape.
So Twig, me, Mike White(Jacks son), and another guy loaded up a flatbed trailer with baccer from a newly cut field. Mike and the other guy on the trailer and Twig and I humping up the sticks. After it was full of baccer we drove to the new barn where Kevin, Victor, and some other guys were housing a partially filled trailer left over from the day before. Twig and I started to climb up into the the barn when Jack said,
Davy why don't you give Mike a break and start at the bottom rail. I looked at Mike and he smiled and nodded his head. This was a big thing, up until then Mike always was at the bottom rail, hell he had been working baccer since he was a little kid he had earned the bottom rail. A few minuets later another trailer full of baccer pulled up and moved over to the other side of the barn. Mike went over and assumed the bottom rail there. With Kevin right above me our crew emptied our trailer pretty fast. The bottom rail was more work but it took some brains to do it right, I liked that.
When quitting time came, Jack smiling, said to us, "You guys take the blue truck home, in fact just keep using it. That way I don't have to pick your asses up every morning. Besides it works much better on farm roads than that citified van you got. Be here at seven tomorrow. We got a lot of baccer to put in that barn."
We just smiled and nodded our heads. I guess we were learning how to speak southern baccer. A few days later Jack put Kevin on the bottom row on the other side of the barn while Mike and Twig went to get more baccer. Twig said he didn't want to be bottom row. "Looks like too much damn work to me.", he said.
He and Mike got along pretty well loading baccer. wasn't long before twig was up on the trailer with mike stacking the sticks and in the barn passing baccer up to me and Kevin on the bottom row
So there really is Southern Hospitality. Once Southern people get to know you, touch you, talk to you, work with you, a trust forms. After they trust you they will literally give you the shirt of their back. We have more examples in later episodes.