April 16, 2020 - There is nothing quite as upsetting to a young lad as being falsely accused of a crime. Now understand, I was not an angel around nine or ten years of age but being accused of a heinous crime was a shock to my total being.

March 27, 2020 - I was bit by the fishing bug at an early age. Growing up in East Texas in the 1940s and the 1950s gave me ample ponds, lakes, and rivers in which to practice my new avocation.

My uncle Ben Woods was an avid fisherman and he taught me the fine art of bait casting, river fishing, set hooks, and trot lines. Each summer he would take me over into Louisiana where we would fish on Black Lake for an entire week. If the fish were not biting in Black Lake, we would drive a few miles to the Cane River and set out trot lines to catch catfish.

March 12, 2020 - I was a “latchkey kid” in 1942 and did not know it. My sister, Evelyn, at around the age of fifteen, was involved in being one as well. I was in the first grade school, which was located in the high school gymnasium, becausethe new elementary school was not quite completed. My first grade teacher, Mrs. Saunders, liked to line the class students in a straight line for some activity, and then say “Kneel." The first time she did this I was confused. My name was Neal, so I thought she was calling out to me for something I had done.

February 25, 2020 - Back in the “good old days” buses were the main mode of travel from city A to city B by the general populace. We are fortunate that San Augustine had a nice bus station with service to several large cities in Texas.

February 6, 2020 - Serving on a jury can be an exciting and interesting experience. I have been summoned to jury duty many times but only once have I been picked as a jurist.