(Everything) Join with your knowedge & imagination to tell the story. THE AWAKENING

Don't give up yet on this story y'all. North Alabama is fixin' to get real interesting. The Tiger and his band are about to make an appearence and hopefully they can help out Sper and his bunch.
I will work on my contribution this week end and hopefully post it by Monday. Spear contribute as you can.

Sorry gang but I caught this "cold" or flu that is going around and I haven't felt much like doing anything. If I fee better in the next few days I will post a chunk of the story.

Are we starting up our story again? I thought that it had dissappeared into the void!!!!

If enough are interested, I'm sure that we could once again continue the story! I like to write and appreciate all comments! Ya, even the more critical ones!

Nostalgia Bump :D

Oh man, I for vote for more more more!!! I loved this story, probably read it five times.


Cat

good lord it feels wonderful to type..to know that there are others out there..that the fight isn't over, that we have reclaimed some of what is ours! It has been years since I have been able to do this..and I had only just begun when I started!

I'm alive, my kids are, a bit worse for the wear, and I won't go into that, except to say that the fuggers who hurt my kids died, and my kids weren't around to see what I did with them, thank God. and I have no regrets about that, either. The scum grabbed what they though was all the food and my kids..

I got my kids back. An AK, ammo, and two horses as well. I told the kids to ride to the dam, and wait until the next day, then go home if I hadn't made it back. After I got some satisfaction from the few wounded survivors, I went to where I said I'd meet them, and we all rode back home. I still had some stocks there hidden in other places they hadn't found. My daughter bounced back right away..my son..well, it took a bit longer.

After a while, since I knew they wouldn't go without me, and I just had to find out, we set out the 30 some miles to get to my parents home, staying off roads as much as possible. The guilt over not taking off sooner is still with me. Found my Dad dead, and my mom dying, hurt badly, but with a dead piece of human garbage on top of her, dead, with the kitchen knife mom had grabbed still sticking out from his back.

We buried my folks, with the kids helping, then put some stones on top, and even took the days to carve their names and dates of birth and death and 'beloved parents and grandparents' into the largest stone we could find. I was glad we had taken some food for us, as they had very little in the house. I looked at the fruit trees they had planted in full bloom, then decided to make that our new home.

I went to their cars, and by some miracle, the EMP from the OKC hit hadn't damaged the small truck, so we all went together. I found my dad's .22 , and gave it to my son, with my daughter carrying the winchester, and me the AK. I was very scared about taking the highway home, and even more so about leaving the horses behind, albeit in the barn and well fed and watered ( It was probably the bastards that killed my folks that took the three horses they had), but my kids were not willing to leave my sight, so they all went with me. To tell the truth, I don't think I would have been that willing to leave either or both of them behind, considering what had happened.

We were almost to our hometown, when we saw the roadblock. It was a combination of cops and civilians. I had seen a few cars going the other direction, and a few stranded by the side of the road, and now I knew why. I pulled to a stop, left the AK in the truck, and told my daughter to get in the drivers side, and if there was any trouble, to turn around and hightail it out of there. She argued with me for a minute, but then agreed.

I got out and approached the roadblock, and was both grateful and yet disappointed to see someone I recognized; one of the cops on duty. I was grateful to see someone I recognized, and yet disappointed to see who he was. In a small town where everyone knows everyone else, he was known for being a jackass. "Hey, Mobley," I said. He looked at me and I could tell he recognized but couldn't place me. "I live next to the old pso building, but am going to be living at my folks from now on, and need to get some stuff from the house. He scratched his head, and I could tell he was undecided. "Why don't you call and ask if it's okay..you can follow me to my house and watch me leave if you don't believe me."

It must have been time for a changeup of the guard, because another cop car and a civilian truck loaded with two in the front, and eight in the back, all armed, pulled up. I was very glad to see I recognized two of the civilians and one of the cops. "Hey Jordan, Ray, B.G.," I yelled out as they got close. "Well, I'll be.." B.G. yelled back...we thought tjem looters had got ahold of ya'll!" "Well, they got my kids, but I got them back," I yelled back.

Jordan got out of the patrol car and asked me why I wasn't home, and where were the horses? I guess our sticking close to the house had been paid attention to more than I had thought, even though none of us had left it for a few weeks, except for me to go out to feed them. I told him we went to our folks and were going to be staying there and were just coming back to get some things, and the horses were there.

He looked at me penetratingly, but didn't ask anymore questions, but told the others to let us through. When I got in I could tell that my kids were full of questions, but I told them to wait until we got back 'home'. When we got to our house, I went to all the 'secret' spots I had stored food, found them all still there, and loaded them up. Also took a few personal items like photo albums and some books, as well as clothes we would all need, board games, my kerosene lamps and oil, candles, batteries, and the hand cranked radio.

While we were packing it all in the back of the truck, Mobley pulled up in the cop car. Great, I thought, just what I needed. He came into the house and was making small talk as we were packing. I did my damndest to be civil to him though I didn't care for him much.

Then he broke out with what he was going to say. "Hey, I know yer single, and want to know if you ever want me to come by where you'll be". I bit my tongue of the quickest and rudest retort that came to me, before I reconsidered. Having a friend, even a not wholly wanted one, that was a cop, in what little law existed, might come in handy. So I sounded noncomittal, but gave him the address.

"Is there anything you might need hon," he asked, walking up very close to me until we were eye to eye. aw hell, I thought, then answered. "I need some chickens..maybe some goats." He looked at me in surprise. "I could give you some money.." and I cut him off and said. " I ain't no whore, but my kids and I are gonna stay alive. I need some chickens and goats. If you can't manage that, I need some seed." He must have heard the tone in my voice because he shut up, and as we were done with what we were going to take, and the kids already in the truck, I ran out and hopped in the truck, and tore off.

well, my time to use the computer is up until tomorrow, so I will sign off. sure feels good to know that there is a world out there besides my own neck of the woods, and will try and catch everyone up to date when I an able to sign on again. If the kids weren't so happy to get some candy and pop through tradin, they might be more pissed at me using my 'splurge' trade to be on a computer, but as it is, they better not complain.

Well, I had one more day to be on the puter in town before headin back to the folks house, so I will use it to bring ya'll up to date on everything that has happened since 'the day'. When we got back to my folks house, thank God the horses were okay, and we settled in right away. Our days were pretty damn busy with planting, but our nights were filled with anxiety..as it was difficult for any of us to sleep. And thank God for that too. Twice I had to shoot people trying to steal our horses. Then came the refugees from Ft. Smith, and I had to stop feeding them, and start shooting them, and what it did to me, I can't begin to tell you. I picked out a nice family..mom a nurse, dad a former trucker with some electrical experience, and three kids..simply because I needed someone to help out with keeping watch and planting. Two other families I sent on to my house, with letters saying they had permission to settle on my property in stigler.

All was going okay for a while, until the NG came and took one of the horses, and Carl, the trucker from the first family, as well as two other men. When they found out I had been in the Army too, they wanted to take me, but there was a compromise..I offered to have the small homestead of my folks as a MASH unit, and they fixed up the barn.

Then the wounded came..and came..and never seemed to stop. Pam, the nurse, and I were kept pretty busy, and Nicki helped out some too, more than I wanted her too. I know she was worried about her fiance who was a Marine..we never heard anything about him.

I never knew if we were winning or losing, and would like to say I cared, but the only thing I cared about was would we have enough to eat this winter. We did, thanks to the NG, and to a good season and the crops comin out okay, including the fruit trees my Dad had planted.


Carl came back without a leg, but he still was quite a help, as he showed us how to make a handpump so water stopped being a problem..it had gotten to the point where I was almost ready to move back to Stigler simply to have the lake nearby, but wasn't sure what would happen with the three families in the house that used to be mine.

Mobley came over, and tried to 'woo' me..brought a few goats..some sorry lookin specimems..but I turned him down..he didn't come by again, and I managed to get some better goats to improve my stock. I thanked God that my cousin Mike had shown me quite a bit about goats, so I knew how to take care of them..somewhat..we still lost four out of 20 that first year, but considering that others prolly did worse, I don't think we did too bad. I traded off the ones that died..wouldn't take any chances eatin them ourselves.

We did finally luck out in getting an actual plow instead of our jury rigged one, and that helped immeasurably the second year.

Nicki met another NG she liked, and he was only here once ina while, but they got stuck on on another, so six months later were married.

I have no time to type any more..have to wait until I can come over to town next week and trade off some more apple cider. So until then, God bless, alla ya'll.

I am glad that I found this thread. THANKS to all who wrote it!!!