Growing Up In The Southern States In The 1800s Before The U. S. Civil War...[ Dwarf; Family; Gunsmith; Slavery; Farming; Freedom; Longish ] Poem by Bri Edwards

I woke up and before I got out of bed I thought...
about words of a poem which I'd not yet wrought.
I once heard about something 'God' had 'wrought',
but THAT is not what, by tonight, I hope I've brought
.....to YOU.

The title, which this a.m. had rolled around in my head,
was 'Tom T. Terwillager, Twit' **, but now it's 'this' instead:
[ See above to read what 'this' (my poem's title) refers TO ]
NOW I'll do my best, today, to bring a new poem to YOU!

But I think I'll still tackle a poem 'bout Tom T. Terwillager,
a young man who, LONG ago, in Tennessee, was a villager.
Tom, not 'Thomas', was, like Thomas Jefferson, not 'dumb',
but he was MUCH smaller, ....about the size of 'Tom Thumb'.

[ I now digress aka 'depart temporarily
from the main subject' ]:

Well I've been 'reminded' that TWO Tom Thumbs....'existed',
one an American dwarf, who, by showman P.T. Barnum, was
.....enlisted...
to enthrall sideshow audiences because Tom was only 2' 6' tall, ....
......AND an 1600's English folklore character, also VERY SMALL!

[ [ Now, back to the main subject, T. Terwilliger ] ]

'T' as Tom was often called was born in the village..... 'Three Way'.
I think he wasn't anymore 'good' OR 'bad' than any boy of that day.
'That day' is to say: in the early part of the19th century, .....long ago.
AND in his early 'schooling', T was neither very clever, nor very slow.

Tom WAS a dwarf, it is true, standing [without shoes] not higher than....
thirty inches!
His height SOMETIMES invited, from many, usually females, ....
many pinches,
Yes! Pinches. often on his cheeks, cheeks both on his face and on his.....
'backside'.
During good weather, having fun, on his family's dwarf pony, Sally, ...
Tom would ride.

So, now that I've thought more of 'our friend' T, I WON'T say that T....
is a 'Twit'.
The word I used in my head this morning, now just won't really FIT!
By that I mean the slang word 'Twit' is not now my image of Tom.
NOW I think 'he is KIND and has good sense and also aplomb***! '

Yes, T has turned out [ in my mind ] to be quite like ME! He...is LUCKY!
In fact I think it's safe to say 'T's life may turn out to be quite ducky **** '.
Oh, I see my poem about T is getting rather, like others of mine, i.e. LONG.
If it turns out that way, I may need to 'dig up' Readers by banging a brass....
GONG!

So it may benefit both YOU & ME to fast-forward Tom's life, so as to...
finish this tonight!
Already it's begun, in these Carolina hills, to get gloomy outside; I am....
losing my 'natural light'.
[Light from the Sun I mean! ] Tom finished 'formal school' [as was......
common]...at age 10.
There were FEW who went farther than that, nearly none at all to college,
way back...THEN!

Tom's parents sheltered him [some would say], and I say: 'Why.....not? '
After all, as a dwarf.....like the pony Sally, Tom could use 'help', & at...
times a LOT.
He learned to read and write English, and to add, subtract, multiply, ....
and divide.
And the few times each year he was taunted by bullies, T knew how to....
hide.

Through his 'teen years' he worked at what jobs, to him, came along.
Some of it was very muscle-dependent and he got very VERY strong!
Some were jobs, like picking cotton, which, mostly only slaves would do.
There, joining the black workers, were some 'native american' slaves too.

At times he worked parttime, evenings, stocking shelves, at a general store,
a 'mercantile'.
At the store Tom met Martha, his boss's 15-year-old daughter, who T did......
court for a while.
She got sick and they were then 'just friends', though Tom loved her with...
'all of his heart'.
After their 5-month 'freindship', T & Martha married and a family they......
together did start.

With their family growing, Tom became, parttime, an apprentice to a......
gunsmith.
If anyone tells you 'a dwarf's lazy, doesn't work hard', I say now: 'That...
is a MYTH!
Sure T & M & family still accepted help at times from each grandma.....
& granddad.
[ When Tom's dad and M's mom died within 10 years, Tom & Martha...
were both VERY sad. ]

: (: (

T continued to learn to fix and even make guns (and get paid to help....
& LEARN) .
Tom was an excellent worker. The gunsmith, Mr. Smith, said 'EVERY....
cent you get you EARN! '
Tom & Martha could have used more cents and dollars. Their family....
kept on GROWING!
But they both had good 'sense', worked HARD, and had 'proof' for.......
the showing!

In fifteen years Martha bore 12 children. Four of them died..........
in childbirth.
But Tom & Martha, as sad as they got sometimes, still found time for.....
MIRTH.
They also took time, each week, to attend their Southern Baptist Church.
During each service, at least one child on each parent's knees did perch.

After 7 years, T's apprenticeship at Mr. Smith's shop was....nearly ended.
'Guns' was a growing business in 'Tom's days', for hunting, and to keep...... settlements defended.
The customers admired T's work. After age & health ended Mr. Smith's....
reign, Tom took his place.
With a higher income, he and Martha could at last afford to...add ONE....
room for more space.

Another grandparent died, but life went on. Two of Martha's young.....
children died of disease.
But 'child mortality' was more common back then and.death often came...
with 'SOME' ease.
More years passed, and before long, Tom & M's children began to marry.
Then T & M became grandparents! And unrest in 'The States' began, &...
for some it was SCARY.

[[ In Baptist churches, they
prayed for PEACE. Their
prayers did NOT work! ]]

Southern states began to feel pressure, from 'The North', to free slaves, &...
for other reasons too.
The leaders of ''The South'' would not 'give in to demands'. Calls to......
'secede' from the ''UNION'' grew.
But I keep forgetting that some readers may 'ask ME'....
'Bri, T was a dwarf,30 inches high. How tall was 'SHE'? !

Well, Readers, Martha was 57 inches ***** tall, not TOO tall
....for, with Tom, lovemaking.
And as bonuses, Martha was a GREAT mom, raised hens, did sewing, ....
and a lot of baking!
She could shoot a gun as well as most men, & washed clothes, in a....
kettle of boiling water & soap.
AND, she could plow a cleared piece of land, even on......a Slight Slope! !

Now it's getting quite late for me, Bri, AND my eyes may need some.....
...rest.
Yet I'm determined to complete this poem before midnight! That, now, ...
is my quest! !
I know, if I've ''piqued your interest'' ******.......ENOUGH, Readers,
your nose you can follow....
into your computer or set of encyclopedias [what ARE those? ]. There...
some of you may wallow!

[[ In Baptist churches, they
prayed for PEACE again.
Again their prayers did NOT work! ]]

Unrest in 'The United States' grew. Disruption and a CRISIS arose.

Some farmers and (other) businessmen faced uncertaintly. Families....
were divided sometimes, ....and MORE.
After April 1861, and for four more years, the 'Yankees'....and the....
'Rebels' were at WAR! ! .
The country, founded about 70 years earlier, was divided, with much......
blood and destruction.
In 1865, at the end of the war, came a longlasting period of what's been...
known as Reconstruction.

Tom, too short, and busy making AND fixing guns, understandably, ....
never got called to fight.
But two sons and husbands of three of T & M's daughters DID. On the....
family it was a BLIGHT!
: (

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** twit
noun (slang)
'an unpleasant or annoying person. Used as an insult'

*** aplomb
ə-plŏm′, ə-plŭm′
noun
'Self-confident assurance; poise.'

**** ducky
dŭk′ē
adjective
'Fine; satisfactory'

***** 57 inches
equals 4 feet and 9 inches
equals 144.78 centimeters

****** 'pique one's interest'
(an idiom)
'make somebody very interested in something'
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(June 29th,2023)

Bri Edwards........aka Brian Edward Whitaker...in 'The Real World'

:)