Me and My Sister (concerning doctors, kerosene and what mothers know)

A phone call with my youngest older sister usually ends in remembering this or remembering that. In fact, in talking with any of my siblings, it's how I like the call to go. Me and this sis talk about everything. She's a Libra, so she sees both sides of things and can sometimes set me straight. Only, you have to listen to what she doesn't say in order to know what she knows, because she doesn't want to disturb the equilibrium by voicing her opinion or two.

I called to ask about bikes. She knows where to buy things cheap and we need a couple of bikes in the family. She mentioned her visit to the doctor and I mentioned that I need to see about my arm that's not mending itself too well. Then she mentioned that doctors are not exactly our best friends and I seconded that. Whatever they give you, they will have to give something else to remedy what that first medicine caused. Except, in some cases there is no remedy for that one.

She said she knew a fellow who stepped on a nail and went to the doctor and the doc gave him a prescription for pain pills. The fellow said, "But, I stepped on a nail." The doc said, "And now that won't hurt."

I said doctors used to maybe have a bit of sense. When I was nine or so, I stepped on a nail. Down at Grandma's house, there was a pile of boards and I climbed them. Dumb kid thing to do. And then I jumped down from them. Then I did that again. Only this time I managed to nail a board to the bottom of my foot. Dr. Echols (not the one who rode a horse to visit, but his son) gave me a tetnus shot and sent me home with Epson salts to soak that foot in.

"I'm glad Mom took you to the doctor instead of fixing it herself," my sister said.

"Well, if I'd had my tetnus shot up to date, she would have known to use Epson salts to soak in. But she one time saw a fellow with lock jaw (tetnus) and they had to put a spoon in his mouth before his teeth locked together, so they could pour liquids in to feed him, broth and coffee, mostly. So, she wanted that tetnus shot."

"Well, when I got cut one time," she said, "Mom fixed me up with kerosene and cobwebs."

"I knew about cobwebs. That's to stop the bleeding. I never heard of using kerosene."

"People used kerosene for everything."

"She knew Ezekiel 16:6."

"What's that?"

"You say that verse three times," I told her, "and each time, you put the person's name in it in three places.
'And when I passed by thee (put the whole name there) and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee (the name again) when thou wst in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee (the name for the third time) when thou wast in thy blood, Live.' 

I saw B... use that with her boy got cut. I saw S G use it when a woman at revival got a bad nosebleed, too. But there's a trick to it. Mom said a woman could tell that to a man or a man to a woman and they passed the power to stop blood down to that one. "

"I wish I'd paid attention to what Mom knew."

"So do I. She knew things."

"Yes, she did."