In 1958, Beaufort, Norted on t near Morey, o y rose so   to get t from April tober beneatrees draped in Spanisreet , and sea, a scent unique to ts al aterelevision, television ant to tead our lives ered around teen os alone. t by names like tian Conement, and tist c  popular denomination around, and tist cically every corner of toself superior to tist cype-Freeists, Soutists, Congregational Baptists, Missionary Baptists, Independent Baptists . . .  ture.

    Back t of tist co to knoion  on tmas pageant at t Playually a play t ten by  Sullivan, a minister  t old, but  you could almost see t  of clammy all time, and translucent-kids ually sae as t stores around Easter.

    Anymas Angel, because   to keep on performing t old Cmas Carol. In o ion only because s, not angels-and  to  been sent directly from  exactly tell you in t sort of plays into fait  didnt trust gs if t actually sent by God, . A fe up e o Jerusalem to find taug didnt fly too  even to tion, aring  tacle-and t;t ainly interesting, it  exactly to kno;

    So  decided to try  ing ten o admit, ually interesting, especially  t;orsquot; and all t good stuff. t really got ell you,  tors. t . rees and s, quot; is a fornicator!quot; , and s, like tiest creatures ever to in t.

    Old , op dead in racks and o God, tually moved-and urn t s drunk gasoline, and tart sticking out all over, like t you see in National Geograpo side, o slits as  as suddenly, art to go pale again, back to t fis before our eyes. Boy, it o cs for sure.

    So s name t, anyand ting for us to give ourselves up, as if   stupid. ed put our o keep from laug loud, but someurning from side to side, and top, t at us, rigree. quot;I kno; ;and too.quot;  t sink in for a minute or so, and t ;God is merciful to c t be ; And  of los, not from embarrassment, but to  didnt understand us at all, range, being t  t, ter.

    Anye tmas Angel one year and decided to put on t play instead. tself  bad, actually,  s basically tory of a man on, used to be real religious, but er tle girl all on   been test fat ttle girl really s for Cmas is a special music box op, a picture of  from an old catalog. to find t, but  find it anyores, range , top at an orpo see some kids, t a lonely old ed some company on Cmas Eve. At t terious om ton y fountain and tells o look in ter and  er, tle girl, and  terious lady runs off, and tom ton searc cant find ually o tle girls room, and  s of arts to cry again because  been a good enougo  morning, magically, tree, and ts engraved on it looks exactly like t before.

    So it  t bad, really. If trutold, people cried buckets  every year it o its popularity,  eventually o move it from to t Play more seating. By time I o packed ually performed it, ory in and of itself.

    You see,  ed young people to perform t ter group. I reckon  it o college and came face-to-face ors.  kind of guy, you knoing to save us from temptation. ed us to kno God is out tc if you put your trust in God, youll be all rig  I ually learn in time, t

    me.

    As I said before, Beaufort ypical as far as souto, t did eresting ory. Blackbeard te once o said t, but no ones certain just yet, being t it sank over 250 years ago and you cant exactly reaco tment and cration. Beauforts come a long  its still not exactly a major metropolis or anyt  ed a place on to put it into perspective, trict t included Beaufort covered tire eastern part of tate-some ty t a single toy-five to  of Raleigon, all to trict my fated.

    I suppose youve  of a legend, even noy years. ion season ;orter represents ---,quot; and to fill in ty name o srue family man, t ickers, stenciled in uff like t  fly, but back t ed publicity. I imagine if ried to do t nos of foul language in t  once. Okay, maybe once. A farmer from Duplin County once e t in t, s bastard. S say exactly t I got t of it.

    So my fat everyone kne, including old man . No get along, not at all, despite t t my fat to s co all t often. , in addition to  fornicators ined to clean t communism ;a sickness t doomed mankind to ; Even t a  find it in any dictionary-tion kne ing o my fat end not to listen. My fattees t oversa;Red influencequot; supposedly infiltrating every aspect of try, including national defense, ion, and even tobacco farming. You o remember t tensions  doo a more personal level. My fatently looked for facts, o people like . After;Reverend Sullivan oday. I  part about ture  t;

    Yeah, sure, Dad. . . .

    My fatried to defuse situations  babies knoo mankind and still come up o say. quot;le c;  ;Ill bet sest girl in t; if sire face. One time a lady sook one look at ;Ill bet you ten to one t youre smartest kid in your class.quot; And  at stuff like t.   of em, ts for sure. And  suc really, especially if you consider t t  beat me or anyt  te to say t because no sort of stuff even if t  to excuse t love me . . . ts  using it to excuse t as a fact. My fat of toment t go ed me to gro;t;

    Of course, my fatook ing and fisaugo play ball, sies, all t small stuff t adds up to quite a bit before adultranger, someone I barely kne all. For t five years of my life I t all fat  until my best friend, Eric er, asked me in kindergarten  I realized somet quite rig tuation.

    quot;; I said proudly.

    quot;O; Eric said as ;I didnt know you ;

    talk about sometraighe face.

    So, I gre and gentle, t people dream about. But s, nor could s fact, coupled   a young age. Not a bad one, mind you. Me and my friends mig late and soap up car  boiled peanuts in t in ties t  made ots so t;You dont  to be like t Carter boy.  track to prison.quot;

    Me. A bad boy. For eating boiled peanuts in the graveyard. Go figure.

    Any didnt get along, but it  only because of politics. No, it seems t my fat kne ty years older ter, o  lots of time rue bastard if tune, but I dont  you to imagine  of man c groime. My grandfat. tarted as a bootlegger, accumulating  Proion by running rum up from Cuba. to . ook ninety percent of tobacco crop, t at ridiculous interest rates. Of course, ended to collect tead  to o ; of inspiration,quot; arted a bank called Carter Banking and Loan. ty radius eriously burned do of t never reopened. t  a ribution, and t t eriously burned down.

    erest rates rageous, and little by little y as people defaulted on t ,  ty o continue to  enougo keep to go. old t hem, and people always believed him.

    Never once, rolled a vast portion of tys economy, and  in every way imaginable.

    Id like to tell you ually  to a terrible deat .  a ripe-old age lived bot, eac s.

    But back to tory. . . . , once  a bastard my grandfat o try, to Beaufort and started ministering in ttended.   feing one act   time for anyty-t married; y-five le ty years younger t t a er on his own.

    ory behe play.

    People kneory even before t performed. It ories t made its rounds ize a baby or attend a funeral. Everyone kne it, and ts ional

    special meaning.

    Jamie Sullivan  t anyone else even ra special t year. It o be a big deal, maybe t ever-at least in Miss Garbers mind. Seac ties t time I met her in class.

    Noaking drama t year. I really , but it  or cry II. t it ests, no tables ons and neutrons and combine elements in t could possibly be better for a  seemed like a sure t, I t Id just be able to sleep t every class, ing, ant at time.

    On t day of class I  to arrive, coming in just a feook a seat in turned to ting ters, as if  kno to. S least six feet t so ies. S-Id say ly sy-and sterned muumuus. Sed every one ;; sort of singing t syllable. Miss Garber s for sure, and s even ter   feel sorry for a gal like her.

    Beneate ted to accomplis year. quot;Self-confidencequot; ;Self-a; and, t;Self-fulfillment.quot; Miss Garber o t;selfquot; stuff,  at time. Miss Garber  field. Maybe it o do  trying to feel better about herself.

    But I digress.

    It  until tarted t I noticed somet  large, I kne t it ty muc fifty-fifty bet least ninety percent female. to my t I felt flus;look out   tests in sight.

    Okay, so I  t forhe block.

    So Miss Garber brings up tmas play and tells everyone t Jamie Sullivan is going to be t year. Miss Garber started clapping rigoo-and t of people ic sort of  time I , I remember t it oo old to  togetranslucent  gave everyone s of course, no one ever said anyt it, at least ance of Miss Garber and . Gossip is one tful gossip is completely anot t mean.

    Miss Garber kept on clapping, all alone for a   ;Stand up, Jamie,quot; sood up and turned around, and Miss Garber started clapping even faster, as if sanding in tar.

    No ary scire lives, and Id be lying if I said I never talked to  in t rig to me for tions, but it didnt mean t I spent a lot of time  ime, even back ter scely different, and Jamie had never been on my social calendar.

    Its not t Jamie tractive-dont get me unately saken after ures Id seen,   Jamie  exactly tractive, eite t t s blue eyes, most of time s of . . . plain, and t  care muc outy,quot; and I suppose ts part of tig like a spinster,  a stitc, so intervie to t  a p sually gro of it, but s t c all. t hes.

    But it  just t made ; it ed. Jamie didnt spend any time  at Cecils Diner or going to slumber parties  t sire life. Old  tack if s even if by some odd turn of events  , it still  tered. Jamie carried , and if  didnt keep t teenage boy, but Jamie seemed to enjoy it in a  ely foreign to me. Not only did so vacation Bible sc, but s sc just  normal, even if sers daugter , reading Pauls letters to t nearly as mucing, if you know w I mean.

    But Jamie didnt stop ts influence, Jamie believed it ant to ly  ty, but for  simply  enougs to t  of ing tside of an elderly neig being asked or stop traffic to tle kids cross to buy a neball for turn around and drop to t on Sunday. S of us look bad, and y, even t done anything wrong.

    Nor did Jamie limit o people. If sance, sry to , too. Opossums, squirrels, dogs, cats, frogs . . . it didnt matter to , kne anotter inside. ake off ure and . quot; by a car, Dr. Ra o ry to save  you?quot;

    it ioned talked to ter . t? Must be to prevent sometrigonometry quiz t everyone in class fails? Must be in to give us c ture.

    t situation, and t  all. Being ters daug  s seem as if it  natural t so  s o say it, too. quot;Ive been so blessed to ; , all  sually came from.

    Despite all trikes, t really drove me crazy about  t ster  anyto t t nice to o reet, so strangers driving by in times ladies  of t seemed as if every adult in to;tter place if t;

    But my friends and I didnt quite see it t y.

    I  all tood in front of us on t day of drama class, and I admit t I  mucerested in seeing  strangely, o face us, I kind of got a sting on a loose  e blouse under ter Id seen a million times, but t ter couldnt  I s till didnt, but san, probably from Bible sc time s pretty. Of course, I dismissed t t rig as sopped and smiled rig me, obviously glad to see t I   until later t I he reason why.