"And breathe." "And breathe." "Now whenever you start feeling... those little contractions..." "I want you to take the time, find a comfortable place... and practise this exercise, understand?" "I'll see you next week." "My mind must be playing tricks on me." "Looked all in my trunk and I can't find my toby." "What's that?" "It's a charm my great-grandmother gave to me." "It'll show up." "If my daddy calls, can you tell him I walked home?" "You be careful, and thank you for taking care of Sunny." "Bye bye baby." "Bye." "Baby brother and his wife are taking advantage of the situation here." "Now I hate to be mean but this business... of them picking up Sunny whenever they choose has got to come to an end." "And i'm gonna also ask them why he wasn't at your birthday." "Gideon, don't bother the poor boy." "It just takes some people a little longer to figure out who they are." "Yeah, I don't understand how two brothers can be so different." "Suzie." "Why don't you shut that door and... come on over here." "Who is it?" "Baby brother." "Babe brother." "Oh mother it's cold out there tonight." "I'm glad you came to the door instead of him." "This does not make any sense." "You are going to drag that poor boy... out into the cold air at this time in the morning." "Is he upstairs?" "Where's Sunny?" "He's upstairs." "Come on." "At don't wake up your daddy." "Thanks... for taking care of him." "I'll try not to be so long next time." "Babe brother, what time is it?" "Now do you think you can just treat us like slaves?" "It's after 1 o'clock." "I tried to call you to let you know I was gonna be late." "That is a lie." "Can we save all this for tomorrow, please?" "Don't think you can get ahead by riding our backs." "I paid my own way." "Since when?" "Take Sunny home please." "Babe." "Take your vitamins." "I'm the boss." "No." "Babe, I said no." "Well he wouldn't want any if you didn't try to keep it away from him." "Just because you were spoilt don't try and spoil Sunny." "Spoilt?" "Spoilt?" "My daddy never gave me anything without my having to sweat for it." "Every summer, we had to pick all of big mama's $100 land hairs." "and go to church all day all Sunday." "For big daddy, callouses and sweat were the mark of a man." "Now Sunny will never have to bust his knuckles like we did." "Come on baby i'm late." "Come from a family that's no different from farm animals." "The world goes by while they stand along the fence chewing on their cud." "Look, he needs discipline." "Now you are not helping when..." "I tell him not to do something and then you allow him to get away with it." "I love you, I gotta go, see you later." "I wish that boy next door would learn how to blow that thing." "So when you gonna find time to help me fix the roof?" "You aren't gonna believe me when I tell you i'm afraid of heights." "You used that excuse..." "to get out the army." "You always got something to say, hey brother." "Your mother asked me not to mention it... but her birthday was last week." "I'd forgotton." "I ordered some cloth..." "It didn't come in and..." "I felt so bad if I were to come to your birthday without that." "I just stayed at home." "What did you wife get her?" "We got the same thing." "Boy, you tell your wife to come in here." "Why don't you come in for a while?" "What would I talk about?" "I have not read this month's almanac..." "I do not care to hear how the corn was last fall... or how to get rid of gophers by using garlic." "They pride themselves on making life difficult... and that's just not my cup of tea." "Come on." "Come on." "Just for a minute." "One minute." "Quick, how much is cut per pound and how many... gallons of water does it take to water an acre?" "Gotcha." "Babe brother, he's a poor boy." "You all should've been hard on him like you were on me." "He wouldn't be the way he is." "Junior, everybody got the same." "I breastfed him just like I breastfed you." "So another preacher said 'Brother, you are among friends... tell us what's troubling your soul, clear your conscience." "So the second preacher said..." "'We have a bond because we are confessing to one another... so I must tell you, my sin is corn liquor..." "I just acts a fool behind that spirit water..." "I loves it more than preaching, ain't that a sin lord?" "So all the preachers are confessing all their sins to one another... each one worse than the last one... finally they get to the last preacher... now he has been very quiet and listening to every word that fell... so a preacher says to him..." "'Brother, confessing will lift up your burden, bear your soul, we did.'" "So the last preacher says 'No..." "my sin is the worst of all'" "So another preacher says 'Oh man go on and stop all that s...suspense.'" "So the last preacher said 'Like I said, my sin is the worst of all... my sin is gossiping... and I can't wait to go out and tell everything i've heard.'" "Gideon, you really ought not to tell him stories like that." "Tell me another story." "No no no, you tell me a story." "Once upon a time, my mommy and daddy lived in this big..." "You stay back." "You might cut your fingers." "I looked everywhere for my toby." "Harry." "Suzie." "Is that you?" "I can't believe it, it is you." "Gideon, Gideon look who is here." "Harry, oh good God." "We haven't seen you in what?" "It must've been thirty years or more." "We haven't seen Harry since we left our old home." "This is my grandson, this is... this is my youngest son's child." "He's kinda like when my boys were about his age." "Boy that's bad luck to touch a fella with a broom." "He knows better than that." "Now Sunny, you apologise to Harry." "I'm sorry." "So, what brings you around these parts?" "I came all the way from Detroit by bus going to Oakland." "Bus stopped in Los Angeles, I had to get off and take me a rest." "You stay til you feel better now, we would like to hear all the news." "I'm worn out but... won't you feel like your taking in a stranger?" "You put them boxes down and you stay as long as you like." "You sure i'm not a bother?" "Oh man, come on." "I don't sleep on spring mattresses." "I always make me a pallette on the floor." "Poor old Harry, he really must've been worn out he's been asleep all day." "Good evening." "Good evening." "How you doing Harry?" "It must be all the time zones that crossed me made me feel this weary." "Well you should go back and rest." "No maam, if I rest any longer I won't sleep tonight." "May I use your bathroom to wash up a bit?" "Man, make like this is your home." "I always ask to keep from wearing out welcome." "Harry, one can sure tell you are from back home." "Nowadays people don't even know what good manners are." "You had to know how to act right where we come from." "You had to know how to say 'yes sir, no sir'... you had to know your place." "That's right, in those days you could always find... something redeeming in the very worst person." "Harry," "I want you to meet my oldest son Julian, his wife Pat and his daughter Rhonda." "Oh, this boy must be turning over." "He just kicked me again." "Pleased to meet you." "Wake Harry and see if he wants to go to church." "Let the man old sleep, now we are going to be late." "Harry come on." "Next time." "Hi." "I'll take care of things here." "How you doing?" "Uncle Joe have the illness, death." "What sort of work you in?" "I'm a loan officer." "And my wife's in real estate." "That's how we met." "You're lovely, yes indeed, yes indeed." "You're not like the rest of Gideon's friends." "Most of them believe if you're not hard at work then you're hard at sin." "I'm more modern... in my ways." "I don't believe in sin, though there is good and evil." "And evil is something that you work at." "Na uh, mustn't touch." "You're mother may not like you handling knives." "I think he just wanted to see a rabbit's foot." "I let this rabbit's foot take the place of my toby which I lost year's ago." "What's a toby?" "A jar... that old people teach you how to make." "You don't want to be at a crossroads without one." "I had one for a long time that used to belong... to my grandmother who had it since she was a child." "In my travels..." "I misplaced it, and I been looking over my shoulder ever since." "How do you like that?" "I now baptise you in the name of the father, the son and the holy ghost." "You have your child at home?" "Have my child at home?" "Oh please." "I had my baby at Cedar and Sinai and that ain't no county hospital." "Some folks take that natural stuff too far." "Junior's wife... she kept her afterbirth in the refridgerator... that's why I don't eat over there now." "Country folks have some strange ways." "You ever use this thing?" "For those bad acting monkeys it's just the thing for a mean dog." "Now I don't... know if I actually did what I did... or if I got my life story mixed in with other folks' story but..." "I seem to recall that I had to use my crab apple there... on a boy from back home." "And in obedience to the great command, I now baptise you... in the name of the father, the son and the holy ghost." "I was coming..." "down Beale street... and I heard this music coming from a saloon... sure enough it was Henry... he and another boy had killed the boy in their honker" "and they bailed the jack in a towel." "Henry had lost one eye and had a scar running down his face." "Bad luck I say." "We went up to his girl's room... he got to drinking that corn liquor... drink would bring out the worst in a fella." "I say him reach into his pocket for his knife... at the same time his girl turned out the lights, bang!" "If I said, 'Man, the drinks.', I keeps my knife open in my pocket." "Pick up the cards, you not in a game." "So you used the knife?" "I don't know what happened to him in the dark..." "I know I protected myself and always will." "Hey, I got some... old... records I want you to hear." "I like blues sung simple, man and his guitar." "How was church?" "Linda." "A woman in a family way reminds me... of spring in my younger days." "That's nice." "You and your husband are special." "Gideon tells me you do volunteer work to help feed the poor." "How many people do you all feed?" "Last Saturday we handed out over 200 meals." "Good God almighty, bless your bones child. 200... but the problem grows." "Week by week, crowds at the doors just keep getting larger... we just can't feed all the hungry." "Of course not." "You ever heard of a man diving into a river to save 500 drowning people?" "No." "You ain't." "You have to take just one..." "and fatten him up." "When you spread help too thin you just nickel and dime the situation." "If you try to help all, then all die." "But if you save one life, life goes on." "You just have to remember that medicine and words... leaves a bitter taste." "You have to... take one." "I don't know if we could take one in... with Rhonda and me at home alone at times." "Oh I wasn't pointing the finger at you." "I appreciate you lending me a hand." "That lazy ass brother of mine was supposed to help me." "Some folks are still waiting on their comeuppance." "Don't take me wrong, but you can't judge people how you act." "You're a caring person." "He should be caring, that's not too much to ask." "You and your wife in your spare time, work with the less fortunate." "I'm not talking about you and what you do but... some folks that are always around to help the victims... are deep down are attracted to pain and suffering." "They love to be near the dying." "But you never can tell what's in the heart." "Let me give you a hand with this." "Good morning." "Excuse me Harry, could you come downstairs for a minute... there's someone I want you to meet." "I'll be right there." "ok." "Surprise." "I couldn't believe it when Suzie called and said you was staying here." "How've you been?" "Girl, you still sing and dance?" "Oh no Harry, i'm a different person now." "Haven't the years been good to Hattie?" "It hasn't been the years, it's been the men in her life." "Harry, that's not nice." "I'm in church now." "Why go around and close the barn when the horse is gone?" "I remember when you weren't saved." "That was way back when the Natchez trace was just a dirt road." "Some people grow up and change their ways." "I know your mother ain't still operating that house of hers." "My mother passed on some years ago." "My mother passed on... years ago." "Suzie." "Do you still have Joe's number?" "I don't know, i'll have to look for it." "By the way, I came across Okra, your childhood sweetheart." "Okra?" "Shute." "I wish I would catch that egg-stealing skunk Okra." "I could sure do with a little swamp root now." "What?" "!" "I haven't heard anyone mention swamp root since... butternut shoes went out." "You can certainly tell your age my dear." "Do you know the saying 'Your heart is in your left hand'?" "Out of weariness, I spoke to my own heart... to leave it all back, and to die... and I gave my heart, to no madness and folly..." "Harry... you know you remind me of so much that went wrong in my life." "I have no enemies because I don't live in the past." "No sir, that's Pushkin, you don't know him." "He said 'In the hope of glory and good..." "I look without fear ahead.'" "An empty wagon makes alot of noise." "You tappy head." "You ain't worth the salt you put in greens." "We're speaking of tappyheads." "We ought to have an old-fashioned fish fry... we can have it here next week." "Is this your house mister?" "Sorry." "What do you say Gideon?" "Well, it's up to Suzie." "Well, it would be nice." "In the mean time, Harry can slaughter us a hog." "I already have my dear." "Fred Jenkins." "Oh Suzie, you haven't changed a bit." "And you, if you ain't John Henry..." "Hattie, Marsh, oh you look so pretty." "Where is everybody?" "Marsh." "Thanks for inviting me." "You're welcome." "Oh excuse me." "Oh Brad Tate" "I'm still in love, and not too old to get in a fight... over a woman." "How you doing?" "Where'd you get this nice jacket?" "That's my Saturday night jacket." "Alright." "Are you alright honey?" "Ok, go in there and i'll bring you something to eat." "Hey Suzie, looks who's here." "It's the Clams." "Suzie." "Oh hello Phil." "How you doing Phil." "This is..." "Cherry Bell." "Hello." "Thanks you so much for having us." "This is great." "Well it's about time." "Oh Linda i'm so glad you could come." "You look very nice." "I'm sorry we're late but Junior forgot his shoes." "I baked your favourite cherry pie." "What's that?" "Boy this is the real south." "That is real corn liquor." "Is that real corn liquor?" "It ain't Geritol." "We'll serve this in teacups." "There's a fight in everybody." "Get some teacups over here." "Let's get Hattie to sing a song from the old days." "She used to keep those juke jaws steaming." "Harry always tries to be the kingfish." "I told him i'm a different person now, i'm saved." "Grab me some teacups." "Get your socks knocked off." "Son, you ain't danced with your wife all night." "There's something i've always wanted to know... tell me..." "how did those boys die?" "Now who you talking about?" "Miss clairmer's boy Henry to start with... just as Hockle, there was another one." "Wasn't Hockle lynched?" "You know as well as I do, that was made to look like a lynching." "Now who would hang somebody from a persimmon tree?" "What difference does it make, a persimmon tree, an oak tree... a huckleberry bush?" "Hockle's death almost caused a race riot." "A lot of innocent people could've been hurt behind that." "Strange as it may seem, it mighta cleared the water." "Sometimes the right action comes for the wrong reason." "Come on Baby brother, bring Linda." "Look, can you tell me why me and Suzie... have got to be mother and father to your child?" "You never take the boy anywhere." "If we didn't take Sunny to church, he wouldn't have no sense of religion." "You don't want us to bring him over here anymore?" "No no, that's not it." "It's when do you find time to be parents?" "You never pick him up before 9 or 10 at night." "Look now you are all into yourselves." "Now Junior spends time with his child." "Oh here we go with that again." "Yes." "Wow, i'm so sick of you talking about Junior all the time." "I think if anybody had a hand in killing Hockle... you're the hands." "You should've asked Henry and Chick." "Chick was already killed by a mob." "He killed a white man that owed him some some money." "And when they caught him, they tied him behind a car... and they dragged him outta the hills, back to town." "Them boys never did have good luck." "You're damn right they didn't." "Especially my cousin..." "Henry." "Henry made a lot of enemies." "He had a big mouth." "Gideon, better be careful." "You'll get a stroke arguing." "I don't care if I drop dead, as long as he learns something from it." "Why's he always picking on me?" "He's not picking on you, he's not." "He's just being like all parents... concerned about the ones they love." "I don't need that kinda love." "I don't need to be reminded all the time that Big Momma was born in slavery... if you really care about me, just show me how to make money." "Babe brother." "He doesn't mean what he says." "Let's go back inside." "No!" "Before anybody moves, you two... shake hands." "And don't carry this thing any farther." "Honey, are you gonna lie there and sleep all morning?" "I gotta go." "If my boys had lived, I woulda had the same words as you." "I could sit in the train tracks all day" "We laid enough of them didn't we?" "So many memories stretched along tracks like these." "We'll go a little further, the walk'll do us some good." "Suzie." "Suzie." "Gideon, what's wrong?" "I'm worn out." "Just stay in bed and rest." "I gotta feed them chickens..." "before they wake everybody up." "You stay inside." "I'll see to them." "Harry, Harry." "Can you watch Gideon for a while?" "One of my girls is going into labour." "Just run along, i'll fix him some soup, he'll be alright." "The hard part is over." "Gideon." "Oh my god." "The poor thing." "Careful on this door knob." "Get out the way." "Careful of his legs." "Move out the way." "You got him?" "Ok i'm almost finished here." "Doctor says he'll be better off at home." "Let's put his robe on him." "Boy I thought you 'bout to cross the river." "You look good." "I say daddy-o." "Would you do me a favour and see if you can turn... off that tap in the bathroom, my hand is too weak." "Any time you need somebody to fill in for you, you just let me know." "Would you do me another favour?" "I don't like to ask it but could you clean the tub for me?" "My back kinda hurts when I bend over." "No problem." "That smells like fresh coffee." "Would you like a cup?" "Only if you can spare." "Son, would you get me an old newspaper please." "Yes sir, these dogs need to be buried." "Been on them too long." "I will leave you something in my will." "You think old Gideon's gonna live to see this month out?" "I came upon the valley of bones, the serpent said make this your home," "dries my sole pea, heaven is lost to thee, your gonna make a way." "Chicken hates to see a preacher coming to dinner." "Marvin you gotta catch the next one, you do it coz i'm out of breath." "If I have to chase that one, we won't eat." "Sister, we've come to see how you are doing." "We came to ask you if we could pray over Gideon." "Please." "Brother Gideon." "I put some plumber christian leaves under his feet to draw out the fever." "And what else have you been giving him?" "I crossed his stomach with some cold oil and..." "I gave him some cow tea." "Well sister Suzie, I would think you depend on prayer rather than these old fashioned remedies." "Let us read from the bible..." "'The lord reigns, the peoples tremble... he sits enthroned upon the cherubim, let the earth quake." "Never play with someone else's cards..." "You always get a new deck." "Look at this cards." "See anthing?" "It's just a regular card." "Son, I could tell you everything you got with that deck." "It's marked." "Now..." "I'm gonna show you how to make some money in case you stop somewhere." "Harry just leeches of your parents." "He's a master in wearing out wealth." "Harry's the kinda guy you'd love to take out in the woods and leave under a rock." "And where did he get the power to summon up all his raffish friends?" "They all smell like mothballs." "Damn." "How come you don't see to it that Sunny puts his shoes on right?" "What you doing?" "Why don't..." "Let's give old dry bones a call, see if he's coming or not." "Okra likes to exaggerate alot, keep us waiting all night." "Stand up, stand up." "Oh come on babe." "Come on honey." "Gotta get your shoe tied." "When was the last... the last time I saw James was..." "How about the pork chops?" "Come down this way girl." "Everbody heard the story about Oink." "You all remember the story fo Oink?" "Remember Oink?" "Oink Oink." "Give me the whole piece girl." "Two highway patrolmen coming down the street... coming down a highway, two coloured boys get picked up... asked them for their ID, so Oink says..." "Oink says, he just says 'Oink'." "Come on bro, talk to me." "Put the cigarette down." "What is it?" "Grasshopper." "Which as you can imagine, you gotta mash shit up." "Look here, I'm talking." "You got what you asked man." "Harry, you can imagine." "Remember the time they almost... because of his breath." "Hit him in the head with a piece of cake." "She did hit me in the head." "That's good." "Peter wiggled and wiggled... he wiggled right out of his jacket just in time." "Peter ran to the toolshed, he saw a watering can... and he jumped into the can, and there was some water inside." "I'm ok, go on back to your friends." "And um... there was some water inside and Peter felt cold and wet." "And then he sneezed." "You sure you ok?" "Catchoo." "What did he do?" "Sneezed." "And then he sneezed." "I want my daddy." "Rhonda, drag him in here." "Come on." "Come on." "You don't have to say anything if you don't want to." "If you be nice, I will take you to Disneyland." "I wanna hear what happened." "My brother is a jackass and a damn fool." "Both you been scarce as hens since you come here." "Calm down Junior." "I didn't know where to go." "Couldn't go to my family, my friends." "Oh, what are we." "Rhonda why don't you take Sunny out in the back yard." "Oh and get a bowl and pick some strawberries." "I bet Sunny'll enjoy that, now go on." "Now you shouldn't be talking about that boys father in front of him." "This is family business, we have to pull together." "The man is still a jackass." "Everybody should have some mother witch." "Junior, please." "He just started staying out..." "He just started staying out all night long." "Oh my god." "Watch them rocks." "Gimme your arm lest you fall." "You alright?" "You alright?" "Peaceful." "I could swear I heard my son calling me." "You probably heard the wind stirring up those dead leaves over there." "No, no." "No I heard his voice clear as day." "Maybe, maybe i'd better get back, maybe... maybe something's wrong." "And I told Babe brother, I told him... if Harry sets foot in this house one more time then i'm taking Sunny... and leaving, and just as I said that, who do you think is coming up the steps?" "Harry, Harry and his old resurrected friends." "Is that how you got that black eye?" "This was an accident." "Sure." "It was, it was unintentional." "How's he doing?" "As long as he keeps his throat clear he's able to get some sleep." "I made a fresh pot of coffee." "Okra and I thought you needed a rest." "I'll stand guard, Okra wants to talk to you anyway." "I brought you these greens... and some salt meat." "That is very thoughtful of you." "I haven't had time to tend my garden like I should." "Would you like some coffee." "I'd be much obliged." "You know..." "Gideon and I are blood brothers and... it's always been the policy to take care of the wives... you know, if something happens to a brother." "That's very sweet of you Okra but..." "Gideon has taken care of everything in case something happens to him." "He has a policy." "Well now if you become a widow... you'll be needing someone around to fix the butternuts and... we always like for the widow to marry someone from the lodge." "Now I know Gideon ain't gone yet... but there will be a lot of his old friends coming round to get in line..." "And I would like for you to sort of consider this a conditional proposal... to be first in line, so to speak." "Excuse me, I have to go feed my dog." "Why doesn't he just park his car and come in and apologise?" "Hey brother." "Hey brother." "Hey babe brother, roll down the window man." "Roll down the window and let me talk to you." "Babe brother, hey babe brother." "Roll down the... roll down the window babe brother." "Grow up." "Why don't you grow up?" "Sit there, stay in the car." "Harry always shows his good side and like the moon, the other side is black." "Back home he always did try to act like the coloured gentleman." "I'm telling you Harry is nothing but evil." "I'm warning you, you can't keep a wild animal as a pet around children." "Before even sun sets, I would have his belongings back on route 55." "That old fox." "I can't accuse him just trying on so." "Everybody who have been associated with Harry... end up with pennies over there eyes." "Hattie, what must I do?" "If it was left up to me... i'd poison him." "Just take a look at Gideon and ask yourself 'when did it all start?" "'" "How long has he been like this, just take a look at the calender." "Good afternoon ladies." "Good afternoon to you." "Good afternoon." "I'm gonna go take a look at Gideon." "As god is my witness, I have never done anything to that woman." "You must have done something to her." "Since she has repented, all she does is throw stones." "Hattie is a different person now." "I don't make any bones about where I am going to spend eternity." "I have always been wild and you know that." "When you're made to feel half a man, what do you think the other half is?" "I'm glad... you brought that up, just who you are." "I..." "I have to know who is in my house." "You invited me." "Yes I did." "But only if you are a good man." "A friend." "Are you a friend Harry?" "Like that boy next door, playing his horn... if he was a friend, he would stop irritating people." "But if he stops practising, he wouldn't be perfect at what he does someday." "I want you to leave." "Okra and MC and Herman wanna go back home with me." "MC is coming by to pick me up tonight, i'll come back and get my things." "Well, I hope Gideon recovers." "Oh... you know I got an extra picture of one of my boys... i'd like for you to put those baby pictures over your dresser." "It's better than keeping it in this... old wallet of mine." "With all these addresses and names of people who are no longer on this earth." "I'll say my so longs to Gideon before I leave." "Suzie, I truly wish he gets well." "These damn things are unloaded aren't they?" "I don't wanna wear out welcome... but you can stay in someone's heart longer than you can stay in their house." "Come on and go with us boy." "We're gonna have a good time." "It wouldn't be a bad time for me to leave right?" "I know your mind is on your wife... but you should never treat a woman as an equal." "You wanna get your wife back, get another woman." "MC, you ever heard of a real man having one woman?" "No lord." "One woman puts you out, you have to have another take you in." "You don't drive around without a spare tyre do you?" "The more mules you gets, the easier to plough." "Come home with us son." "We'll show you some steaming hot chuchos, steaming hot women." "Who's old piece of knife is this?" "Was my brother's." "I have to go by the house first." "We'll wait for you as long as we can." "Babe brother." "Take off this wet jacket." "I need to get my suitcase out of the garage." "What for?" "I'm going back home with Harry." "I've heard some foolish things in my life." "He's coming to pick me up." "Well you have lost your mind." "Have you given any thought to your wife?" "Your son?" "Not to mention your sick father?" "And I need your help to move your daddy's bed... away from that leak in that seal." "I'm busy." "Babe brother, don't make me raise my hand to you, alright... you have to see for yourself that you are going in the wrong direction." "Did you tell her to go move that bed?" "Junior go help your mother." "Now don't you get down there, move out the way." "Where's Babe brother?" "How come you didn't ask Babe brother to help you?" "He said he was too busy." "So he is busy huh?" "Why in the hell didn't you help mom?" "I told her I would she didn't return." "I bet you if your master told you to fix the hole in the roof... you would rebuild the whole damn house." "You always got the best of it around here." "And whenever dad talks about 'my son' it's always you." "So, you fix the roof." "That is a damn lie and you know it." "Every time father asks you to do something... you either half-ass do it or you run off and hide." "Momma told you to turn the dirt in her garden and... you told her with your smartass self that... you weren't a father, get Junior to do it." "Every time anybody asks you to do something you say tell Junior to do it." "Boy, you ought to grow up." "I told you about calling me boy." "See, I ain't no boy." "You and dad got a bad habit of calling me boy." "You call me boy in front of my wife, you think i'm gonna fix the roof?" "I hope the whole damn thing blows off and it pours down with rain." "I ought to break your damn neck." "Yeah, i'm leaving." "Don't even call me when the shoe falls coz... all he ever did for me was try to run my life." "I'm so sick of people trying to run my life." "Babe brother this, Babe brother that." "What's my name?" "You dumbass, it's Babe brother." "My name is Sam, Samuel." "Sit down." "Alright now, stop it Junior." "Please stop it, look what you're doing." "Junior." "Somebody get some lard." "I'll get it, you gotta get him to the emergency room." "Tamara." "I'll take her to the hospital." "We'll take her to the hospital." "Why don't you two grab a seat..." "I'll get the doctor to see you as soon as possible." "Do you need to see the doctor too?" "No, just my mother." "Excuse me, why is it so crowded?" "Well it's Friday night." "It is a full moon." "I can't believe what I heard happened." "I just came to get my things." "Babe, I think you ought to go upstairs and see how your dad is." "Wanna change your shirt." "Wash some of the blood off." "How long is Harry gonna hang around?" "What is it?" "Harry?" "There's nothing we can do for him." "Aren't you gonna take him with you?" "If he would hae died in our care, we would be required to take him... but since we found him dead, you have to wait for the county to pick him up." "What?" "And how long will that take?" "Depends on how busy they are, sorry." "Hi Junior." "Miss Hattie." "What happened?" "He slipped on some marbles that were on the floor... heart gave out." "Sunny, i've told you over and over and over again... pick up the marbles when you finished playing with them." "Honey, don't just leave them anywhere." "Honey, the baby boy didn't mean it." "Rhonda, take Sunny out for a walk." "Good job, you go to the store and you buy whatever you want." "Now if that ain't enough, you just come on back to see Uncle Marsh." "Come in." "Howdy son." "Where's the body?" "In our kitchen." "Anybody mind if I take a look at him?" "I don't think Harry would like it." "I've noticed how big his eyes were." "Excuse me for cutting you up but we pay taxes too... we shouldn't have to pay you to take a 24 hour lunch break." "Coroner said he was out here already, knocked on the door and nobody was here." "Hello, ye... yes i'm calling about the body." "Now, look he's been laying in our kitchen for hours now." "Yes I... yes I..., well when is somebody gonna get out here?" "Ok, thankyou." "He says he doesn't know when he's gonna be out this way again." "You know somebody downtown is gonna hear about this." "There just delaying coz it's the coloured neighbourhood." "If he was white they'd have had him on his feet and outta here." "Gideon, oh my god." "You having another party?" "You better come sit down." "You are still sick." "Girl, you talking to John Henry." "When was I sick?" "You been out for almost 3 weeks." "We've had some long conversations with the lord about you." "Didn't we sister Suzie?" "I said we need him down here lord." "Who's that?" "It's our friend Harry." "Not our Harry?" "I wish it wasn't." "What happened to him?" "He dropped dead." "Hattie, you're so mean." "How long has he been dead?" "Since this morning." "What happened to your hand?" "I cut it, on an old rusty knife." "I hope you take care of your mother better after i'm gone." "Baby brother, is that my shirt your wearing?" "Yes." "Why don't you have on my shoes?" "There too big." "What happened inside?" "A man dropped dead." "You live next door don't you?" "I mean, I have more sense than to give up everything." "My family?" "You and Sunny?" "No, that wasn't me." "I'm sorry, i'm sorry baby go ahead." "It was like I was swimming in muddy waters." "You were swimming in muddy water." "I'm sorry, i'm sorry baby, go ahead you were saying." "Is like all the things the old country people... when they try to tell you what hell is like." "You were in hell?" "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you." "I couldn't beleive some of the things I was doing." "It was like there was an internal struggle going on inside of me." "Do you think you won?" "It was nip and tuck." "What lessons have you learned from all this Babe brother?" "Sam." "Samuel." "To really care about you." "I mean, you hung in there." "When you boys gonna fix the roof?" "As soon as I rest up a bit." "I mean, as soon as everything's back to normal, anytime." "Here I am thinking about myself, poor old Harry resting on the kitchen floor." "Did I ever tell you the story of the man who... wanted to make up his own mind about heaven and hell?" "Now he didn't want nobody's opinion but his own." "Now he gonna check out heaven first... taking him a round trip ticket to heaven, when he get in heaven... he sees it's much like it is back home, people working in the field... bodies all dripping sweat, barely surviving." "Steven, Charles." "He asks the man who was getting drinks he said..." "What if it's a girl?" ""I thought the streets of heaven were paved with gold?"" ""They are but you'll never see them." "You got to work day and night in heaven... coz idleness is sinfulness." "Well the man used the other half of his ticket to take the express to hell." "He get there, he see everybody all stretched out, kicked back..." ""what you all doing?" he said, they all hollered back "Sitting"." "Well, he sees the devil walking round..." "I don't want to hear any joke about coloured people being in hell." "No no no, i'm almost finished, i'm coming to the punchline." "Now the preacher..." "I don't want to hear any tales about coloured people." "White people." "Anybody." "Now the punchline is..." "Gideon, I don't care to hear any jokes about people being in hell." "This hand reminds me that it is nothing to laugh at." "It's only a tale." "Was that an earthquake?" "It was something." "I'm cold, I need to get out in the sunlight." "Hey kids." "Hi." "Hey boy, you still got that dead man in you house?" "Hello everybody." "Reginia." "I know you haven't had a chance to cook or do anything... with that dead man in your kitchen." "Well, some of your neighbours have got together and we... set up a picnic table in my back yard and we got food and everything for all of you." "That's a great idea." "The day wagon come, we'll leave a note... and tell 'em we'll be down the street at a picnic."