First Fruits

By Jacob Hatcher 

Community Columnist 

It was the late 40’s and Papa had just graduated high school. In an effort to make his first real money as an adult, he had convinced Grandpa to give him the rights to a one acre tobacco plot. Win, lose, or draw, Papa and the landlord would split whatever there was to be had come harvest time.  

For the better part of a year, he toiled in that plot with great anticipation. All summer he battled the bugs and the weeds, and by late August the leaves had developed a nice yellow color and things looked promising for when it came time to take the tobacco to market. Having cut the plants, Papa took a gamble and left them in the field to cure, which would bring significantly better profits provided it didn’t rain too much. 

Unfortunately, like so many gamblers before and after him, Papa watched his winning hand turn on him as it rained for a week without stopping, washing his hopes of a windfall into the stream. The entire crop was so black by the time the rain stopped that he could have just as easily left it in the field to wither away, but trying to salvage what he could, he made the trip to town to see what he could get for his years worth of work.  

He came home with the princely sum of $46, ten of which was a pity contribution from a neighbor. A year’s worth of work for what would be just shy of $500 today. 

There are plenty of things he could have spent that money on, and would have been well within his rights to, but there comes a time when what’s needed outweighs what’s needed, and this was one of those times. Papa had three younger brothers and it was coming on Christmas.  

Like the widow placing her few precious coins into the treasury, Papa chose to buy his little brother’s shoes for the winter, giving them dry feet for months and an example of generosity for the rest of their lives.