| Biographical Non-Fiction posted July 9, 2020 | Chapters: |
...47 48 -49- 50... 
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We may be moving to New Orleans
A chapter in the book Remembering Yesterday
Uncertain Future
by BethShelby
| Background After so many years of my husbands job being the secure one, now there are rumors the company is moving out of state. Whether or not we will go is uncertain. |
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Throughout the fifteen years we had been married, you had worked at only two jobs. Since 1957, you'd worked at your present job as a draftsman for an oil company. Although you liked the work and got along well with your co-workers, you had never become comfortable with your immediate supervisor. He was a thorn in your side from day one. If you’d not had a family to support, I believe you would have left long ago.
On the other hand, I’d almost lost count of all the times I’d changed jobs. Some of the time, I'd been able to stay home with the children, and you had been the sole wage earner. Many things had happened with my jobs, but in spite of the rumors and layoffs in your company, you remained the one that held our family together.
Now you were telling me that rumors were circulating that your company planned to close the Jackson office and move a few of the draftsmen to the New Orleans office. At first, these were only vague rumors, but as time went on, it became a certainty. It was also a fact that only a small part of the drafting crew would be going. You were sure you would not be one of the ones who would be transferred. A few people in your department had already been asked to go, but you had not.
We had put down roots in this area. We owned three properties, and both of our families lived in Mississippi. In spite of not knowing what would be next for you, you seemed relieved that you weren't being considered for the transfer. At last, you wouldn't be going to work each day dreading your tenuous relationship with your supervisor.
There were a number of others with the company who had not been asked if they were willing to transfer. Mac, who was one of our closer friends, had been with the company over twenty years and was planning to retire in three years. His wife, Mary, was freaking out and calling me every day wondering how they would manage if they weren't asked to go.
Knowing that my jobs had not been dependable in the past, I was worried. Good paying drafting jobs didn’t become available that often. I was afraid you would want to sell our new house and move our family to the country, hoping we could make a living with our cattle and timber. It had supplemented our income, but anything involving farming depended on many things we couldn’t control. Besides the children and I liked living where stores and restaurants were convenient.
As the weeks went by, one or two of the people who had been tapped for the transfer decided against it. At that point, the supervisor asked if you would be interested in transferring. You didn't give him an immediate answer, but told him you would discuss it with your wife. You obviously didn’t want to go, but I thought it was the thing we should do. It would be an adventure to live in another state. I had been disappointed years before, when you were actually hired in New Orleans, but allowed to take an opening that was available in Jackson.
You had a decision to make which involved all of us, so you agreed to pray about it. One day when you were down in the country walking over our property, you said you were troubled and wondering what you needed to do. Suddenly, you heard an audible voice speak, and say the words “Look at your paycheck.” Startled, you looked around thinking someone was talking, but no one was there. You decided it must be a supernatural answer to your prayer. You realized the farm would not bring in enough money to support five people. Even if I continued to work, our standard of living would be reduced dramatically.The money you were making would keep us going until I could find a job in New Orleans.
When you got home, you said, “Let’s take the kids to your parents for the weekend, and you and I will go to New Orleans and see what is available to rent. We’re not buying a house down there, because as soon as I can figure out something else, we're coming back home.”
The year was 1972. We had only lived in our new home a little over two years. My job was going well at the moment, but with my track record, I couldn't be certain things would continue smoothly. If we stayed in Jackson, I doubted we could afford to keep the kids in a private school. You told me once, when I’d expressed doubt about whether or not we should be buying more land, that I had no sense of adventure. I'm sure your sense of adventure was different from mine, but I was ready to prove you wrong. I grinned and said, “Let’s do it.”
When we got to New Orleans, the city had bulldozers and cranes in a section of the city that was being demolished to make room for the Superdome.
”Wow!” I said. “We’ll get to watch the Superdome being built.”
“No we won’t,” you told me. “They are still demolishing houses. We’ll be long gone before they finish that project.”
How little you knew. We’re lucky we don’t know what the future holds in store.
On the other hand, I’d almost lost count of all the times I’d changed jobs. Some of the time, I'd been able to stay home with the children, and you had been the sole wage earner. Many things had happened with my jobs, but in spite of the rumors and layoffs in your company, you remained the one that held our family together.
Now you were telling me that rumors were circulating that your company planned to close the Jackson office and move a few of the draftsmen to the New Orleans office. At first, these were only vague rumors, but as time went on, it became a certainty. It was also a fact that only a small part of the drafting crew would be going. You were sure you would not be one of the ones who would be transferred. A few people in your department had already been asked to go, but you had not.
We had put down roots in this area. We owned three properties, and both of our families lived in Mississippi. In spite of not knowing what would be next for you, you seemed relieved that you weren't being considered for the transfer. At last, you wouldn't be going to work each day dreading your tenuous relationship with your supervisor.
There were a number of others with the company who had not been asked if they were willing to transfer. Mac, who was one of our closer friends, had been with the company over twenty years and was planning to retire in three years. His wife, Mary, was freaking out and calling me every day wondering how they would manage if they weren't asked to go.
Knowing that my jobs had not been dependable in the past, I was worried. Good paying drafting jobs didn’t become available that often. I was afraid you would want to sell our new house and move our family to the country, hoping we could make a living with our cattle and timber. It had supplemented our income, but anything involving farming depended on many things we couldn’t control. Besides the children and I liked living where stores and restaurants were convenient.
As the weeks went by, one or two of the people who had been tapped for the transfer decided against it. At that point, the supervisor asked if you would be interested in transferring. You didn't give him an immediate answer, but told him you would discuss it with your wife. You obviously didn’t want to go, but I thought it was the thing we should do. It would be an adventure to live in another state. I had been disappointed years before, when you were actually hired in New Orleans, but allowed to take an opening that was available in Jackson.
You had a decision to make which involved all of us, so you agreed to pray about it. One day when you were down in the country walking over our property, you said you were troubled and wondering what you needed to do. Suddenly, you heard an audible voice speak, and say the words “Look at your paycheck.” Startled, you looked around thinking someone was talking, but no one was there. You decided it must be a supernatural answer to your prayer. You realized the farm would not bring in enough money to support five people. Even if I continued to work, our standard of living would be reduced dramatically.The money you were making would keep us going until I could find a job in New Orleans.
When you got home, you said, “Let’s take the kids to your parents for the weekend, and you and I will go to New Orleans and see what is available to rent. We’re not buying a house down there, because as soon as I can figure out something else, we're coming back home.”
The year was 1972. We had only lived in our new home a little over two years. My job was going well at the moment, but with my track record, I couldn't be certain things would continue smoothly. If we stayed in Jackson, I doubted we could afford to keep the kids in a private school. You told me once, when I’d expressed doubt about whether or not we should be buying more land, that I had no sense of adventure. I'm sure your sense of adventure was different from mine, but I was ready to prove you wrong. I grinned and said, “Let’s do it.”
When we got to New Orleans, the city had bulldozers and cranes in a section of the city that was being demolished to make room for the Superdome.
”Wow!” I said. “We’ll get to watch the Superdome being built.”
“No we won’t,” you told me. “They are still demolishing houses. We’ll be long gone before they finish that project.”
How little you knew. We’re lucky we don’t know what the future holds in store.
 Recognized |
I'm continuing to recall memories of life with my deceased husband as if I am talking aloud to him. I'm doing this because I want my children to know us as we knew each other and not just as their parents
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