MARVIN CHURCH, LAURENS COUNTY, GEORGIA

by Scott B. Thompson, Sr.

You may have never heard of Marvin Church. And, you probably never knew it was in Laurens County, much less that actually it still is. Many of you ride by it nearly every week and never knew it was there. Wearing a disguise of clay bricks, Marvin Methodist still stands more than one hundred and thirty years after it was first built. Transported from its original location on the New Buckeye Road in northeastern Laurens County, the small one room church is now a part of Centenary Methodist Church, which recently closed its doors after nearly ninety years of service to the Lord.

The story of Marvin Church actually goes back to January of 1866, when Pro Gustavas Adolfus Holcomb, a teacher from Riddleville, Georgia, opened a school on the old W.O. Prescott Place on the Dublin to Sandersville Road. Sixty seven students came to class on the first day, eager to learn. Holcomb's school house was a one room log structure, measuring only eighteen by twenty feet. Obviously with less than five square feet per pupil, the facility was not large enough to accommodate the students. Parents rushed into action and added a forty by fifty foot shelter. The ten foot tall addition rested upon hearted pine posts. The floor was made of rough pine planks nailed to a foundation of logs. The cover was made from five foot pine boards, cut from local woods and fastened with nails made in a local blacksmith shop. One end of the shelter was boarded up entirely and the others were left open except about three feet around the three sides at the bottom, which gave an appearance of an enclosure.

The primitive school house had no heat. On colder days, the teacher and the students built a large fire out on the grounds and positioned their school benches as close to the heart of the fire as possible. In the school's early days, twenty of the older kids were denied the opportunity to attend school because they were serving in the Confederate army.These young men, who had experienced vast extremes of heat and cold, spent most of their time in outdoor classrooms. In 1867, the Methodist Conference sent the Rev. John Morgan of Guyton, Georgia, to serve as the minister of the Dublin Circuit. At the time, there were only four Methodist churches in the circuit. The main church was in Dublin with three churches located in eastern Laurens County at Boiling Springs, Gethsemane and what would become Lovett Methodist Church, but which was then a small church about one mile north of Lovett, known as "Gopher Hill," taking its name from the fact that gophers had chosen this sand hill for easy digging of their holes.

Church services began in the school, which was affectionately known as "the Shelter." Rev. Morgan kept his appointments to preach on the third Sunday of every month. The Rev. Thomas Harris, a Christian Church minister from Sandersville, preached to his flock late in the evening on every fourth Sunday. Frederick W. Flanders, a member of a clan of Methodist ministers from Johnson and Emanuel Counties, filled in when ever he had a free Sunday.

For nearly a decade, the plan of filing engagements had to suffice until a permanent church could be established. After ten years of planning and hoping, it was the energy of a young minister, H.M. Williams, that provided the impetus to build at church at "the Shelter."

During the four years in which Rev. Morgan served the yet organized and unofficial church, local residents subscribed twelve hundred dollars to build a permanent house of worship. Any building needs a plan and it was obvious that Col. John M. Stubbs was just the man to design the church. Stubbs, a lawyer by profession and a man of many talents, lived just up the road at Tucker's Crossroads, the seat of his wife's family, the Tuckers. Mrs. Stubbs' father was Dr. Nathan Tucker, the largest plantation owner in the area and one of the largest property owners in the county. Stubbs tried several plans and attempted to come up with final cost estimates. He settled on his design which included a magnificent edifice with a tall steeple. His estimate of a cost at five thousand dollars discouraged many citizens whose resources were scant in the days of Reconstruction and its aftermath. The young lawyer's ambitious plans were abandoned in favor of the status quo.

Only when Rev. Williams rekindled up a new interest, did the citizens of the community come forward with their pledges and subscriptions to pay for the framing and weather boarding. A new site one mile south from "the Shelter" was chosen as a more desirable location at a meeting at the old "Shelter."

Sixteen people stepped forward to form the new church to be named Marvin. The members represented many of the oldest and wealthiest citizens of the community. They were: Elijah F. Blackshear, Mrs. Elijah F. Blackshear, William H. Walker, Mrs. William H. Walker, Kinchen H. Walker, Richard A. Kellam, Mrs. Temperance Kellam, Miss Addie F. Kellam, Winfield B. Smith, Alfred A. Morgan, Laura M. Smith, Mrs. Polly Garnto, Mrs. Rebecca Davis, Mrs. I.M. Blackshear, David S. Blackshear, Mrs. Susan Mason and Mrs. Winifred Mason.

The first Board of Stewards was composed of Kinchen H. Walker, Richard A. Kellam, W.B. Smith and David S. Blackshear. After the election of stewards, the next step was to give the church a new name. Suggestions were sought from the members. Some suggested the traditional names such as Evergreen and Olivet. One person suggested naming the new church Guyton in honor of Joseph M. Guyton and Col. C.S. Guyton who had given the land for the site. A disillusioned old gentleman rose from his seat in the back of the church and proposed the name of "Luck and Trouble." Rev. Williams asked the pessimistic old man, who was somewhat of an agnostic, why he suggested that name he supplied should be used. He responded that "they were lucky to get it so far and trouble to get it further." Rev. Williams proposed the name of "Marvin" in honor of Bishop Enoch Mather Marvin. Rev. Williams's suggestion seemed most popular and the new church was given the name of "Marvin."

Robert H. Hightower instructed his mill hands to furnish the lumber from his mill, some sixteen miles away in Johnson County. T.J. Blackshear volunteered to hall the lumber with a three-yoke team of oxen as his matching contribution. David Stout Blackshear directed the construction. With little or no haste the the church was framed, weather boarded and covered The building remained unfinished until about 1885, when the work was finally completed. During the interim, regular services were held at "the Shelter."

After the organizing of Marvin Church, the membership increased until the day of opening the new church A large enrollment of members were present. The church was not dedicated until 1885. Dr. J.O.H. Clark preached the dedication sermon. George C. Thompson was pastor at that time. The following preachers filled the pulpit at intervals. Rev. A.M. Williams, Rev. F.W. Flanders, Rev. Hudson, Rev. Powell, Rev. Hearn. Rev. H.A. Hodges, Rev. Joseph Carr and Rev. G.M. Prescott, a local preacher.

By the 1940s, the church, located on the western side of the Buckeye Road, just before it intersects with the Cullens/Ben Hall Lake Road, was abandoned and was used sparingly for funerals in the church yard cemetery. After decades of abandonment, the building was removed some twenty five years ago and annexed to Centenary Methodist Church on Telfair Street, where it still stands today.


INFORMATION ABOUT MARVIN CHURCH
Written by T.J. Blackshear, son of David S. Blackshear, circa 1900

In January 1866, Pro Gustavas Adolfus Holcomb from Riddleville, Ga. opened a school at what is known as the W.O. Prescott place on the Dublin and Sandersville Road. On the opening day for the school 67 pupils were enrolled.

The school house was a small one room log house about 18 x 20 feet which was not large enough to accommodate 67 pupils. The patrons seeing the predicament they were in hurriedly erected a large shelter 40x50 feet. This shelter rested upon heart pine post let to the ground and extending up ten feet. A pine board floor of rough planks resting on logs laid on the ground which put the ___ wall above the ground. The cover was of five foot board made from pine trees and nailed on small pine poles which were used for laths(?). The boards were nailed on with nails made in the local blacksmith shop and generally known as _ought nails. One end of the shelter was boarded up entirely and the others were left open except about three feet around the three sides at the bottom, which gave an appearance of an enclosure.

There was no provision for heating on cold days. A large fire was kindled in the yard nearby and a few benches moved out for girls and the boys to stand around the fire to keep warm. Among the male pupils was about 20 young men form 17 to 22 years most of whom has served in the Confederate war and had had no opportunity for school advantages during the four year period of the war. The large boys were allowed to spend their study periods out in the yard where they enjoyed the warm sunshine on cold days and the shade during summer.

In 1867, Conference sent Rev. J.M. Morgan from Guyton, Ga. as pastor of the Dublin Circuit, which was at that time composed of Dublin, Gethsemane, Boiling Springs and a small church about one mile north of Lovett, known as "Gopher Hill," taking its name from the fact that gophers had chosen this sand hill for easy digging of their holes.

The Holcomb School shelter was not included in the Dublin Circuit at that time. Rev. Morgan by giving an evening apportionment made good to the Shelter, as it was generally known, and appointment every third Sunday in the month. Rev. Tom Harris, a Christian minister from Sandersville, had an evening appointment for nearly every fourth Sunday. Rev. F.W. Flanders also filled engagements at "The Shelter" when and ______ occurred. This plan of filling engagements at "The Shelter" continued until 1876 when Rev. H.M. Williams then quite a young man full of energy and determination was sent to the Dublin Circuit.

The building of the Methodist Church at the "Shelter" site had been agitated at intervals for several years. At one time during Rev. Morgan’s ministry of four years, twelve hundred dollars was subscribed and Col. John M. Stubbs then a young lawyer living at Tucker’s Cross Roads was instructed to draw plans and make estimates of the cost. He drew a beautiful plan with a tall steeple and estimated the cost at five thousand dollars. This amount seemed so large to many of the citizens until it was like sealing the whole enterprise in ice waters to _______ until 1876.

When Rev. Williams worked up new interest and called a meeting of the public and money enough to pay for framing and weather boarding was subscribed and a new site one mile south from the Shelter was chosen as a more desirable location at a meeting at the old "Shelter." Rev. Williams decided it was best to organize a church. The organization was completed with sixteen names as charter members of the new church. As the ____ members. They were: Elijah F. Blackshear, Mrs. Elijah F. Blackshear, William H. Walker, Mrs. William H. Walker, Kinchen H. Walker, Richard A. Kellam, Mrs. Temperance Kellam, Miss Addie F. Kellam, Winfield B. Smith, Alfred A. Morgan, Laura M. Smith, Mrs. Polly Garnto, Mrs. Rebecca Davis, Mrs. I.M. Blackshear, David S. Blackshear, Mrs. Susan Mason and Mrs. Winifred Mason.

The first board of Stewards was Kinchen H. Walker, Richard A. Kellam, W.B. Smith and David S. Blackshear. After completing the organization of the new church, it was in order to give it a name. All persons were asked to suggest names: Evergeen, Olivet, Guyton (as Joseph M. Guyton and Col. C.S. Guyton had given the land for the site). One old gentleman in the back of the church who was not a member of any church rose and suggested the name of "Luck and Trouble." Rev. Williams asked why he suggested that name he supplied because they were lucky to get it so far and trouble to get it further. Rev. Williams proposed the name of "Marvin" in honor of Bishop Marvin. Rev. Williams’s suggestion seemed most popular and the new church was given the name of "Marvin."

Lumber was immediately furnished from Robert H. Hightower’s mill. The great grandfather of Robert H. now residing in Dublin. The lumber was to be hauled from the mill 16 miles away in Johnson County. T.J. Blackshear with a three-yoke team of oxen did the hauling as a part of his matching contribution.

Work began at once with Mr. D.S. Blackshear as director with any volunteer labor wh came. The church was framed, weather boarded and covered and with no delay and a floor. It remained in a unfinished condition for quite a while and D.S. Blackshear was finally hired to complete the church about 1874 (?) During the time the church was being furnished and ruing the periods work was not progressing, regular services were being conducted at "The Shelter by regular pastors assigned to Marvin Church. The "Old Shelter" be referred to as forge upon which a spring board to the building of a new church.

After the organizing of Marvin Church, the membership increased until the day of opening the new church A large enrollment of members were present. The church was not dedicated until 1885. Dr. J.O.H. Clark preached the dedication sermon. George C. Thompson was Pastor at that time. The following preachers filled the pulpit at intervals. Rev. A.M. Williams, Rev. F.W. Flanders, Rev. Hudson, Rev. Powell, Rev. Hearn. Rev. H.A. Hodges, Rev. Joseph Carr and Rev. G.M. Prescott, a local preacher.

ADRIAN, GEORGIA

Adrian actually began as a place in 1891 when a post office was opened under the direction of Postmaster W.R. Smith. Smith, in accordance with the custom of the day, was given the honor of submitting a name for the town. Smith began looking at a long list of available names for a pleasant name. Smith didn’t have to look very far down the list for he decided on the name of Adrian. Adrian, a railroad town by birth, soon became a trading center for citizens of four counties which joined southwest of the new town. Those who lived in eastern Laurens, southern Johnson, western Emanuel, and northern Treutlen counties did most of their trading in Adrian - a fact that would later lead to a movement to create a new county with the crossroads town as the county seat.

No history of Adrian would be complete without mentioning an amusing story which led to the town being located in two counties, with a zig-zagging line running right through the middle of town. Joe Hutcheson and Burrel Kea each wanted a river bridge to built over the Ohoopee, known to anyone who lived in Adrian as “The Hoopee.” Kea, a county official at the time, won out. Hutcheson, not taking this defeat very lightly and not wanting to live in the same county as Kea, influenced the local members of the legislature to carve the line separating the new county of Johnson and Emanuel County in a way that none of Kea’s land was in his county. One of the results of this gerrymandered line caused Hardee Thigpen to sleep in Emanuel County, eat in Johnson County, and feed his horses in Treutlen County.

The First Baptist Church was established on September 25, 1891 under the leadership of Rev. J.A. Stephens and Rev. J.A. Chipley. The charter members of the church were J.F. Williams, Arcena Williams, Joseph Williams, Fanny M. Williams, Mr. and Mrs. J.M. Williams, Mr. and Mrs. Morgan Johnson, and Mary J. Cox. After a few services in a brush arbor, the church moved to a building known as the “Handberry House.” J.F. Williams, W.T. Bennett, and W.T. Phelps headed a committee to build a new church in 1892. Their efforts resulted in a two-story wooden building - the top story being the home of Adrian Masonic Lodge. This building was used until 1919, when the present building was constructed.

The impetus for the creation of the town of Adrian came in the early 1890s when Thomas Jefferson James, known to all the old-timers as Captain James, began grading his railroad, The Wadley and Mt. Vernon through the old Aaron Hutcheson place. James, like many other railroad men, used hired convict labor to build the railroad along the Johnson/Emanuel County line toward its terminus at Rockledge. James purchased the remaining assets of the bankrupt Perkins Lumber Company and set up a saw mill in the area. As many as 1,100 prisoners came to work in the mill, which was one of the largest in the state. E.P. Rentz, former Dublin banker and founder of Rentz, Georgia, took over operation in 1906. In 1908, the state outlawed prisoner leasing and the camp was closed. Captain James died in 1911. His house, said to have been located on the highest spot in town, burned in 1937, in a spectacular mass of flames which were seen for miles in every direction. Rufus Youmans, Carl Gillis, Jr., Richard Augley, Billy Belote, and others kept the mill in operation for nine decades. The Wadley and Mt. Vernon Railroad was completed to Adrian in 1893. By the end of the 19th century, the road was completed to Rockledge.

With 1,100 men in the area, the need for supporting businesses soon followed. Captain James drilled an artesian well to supply the camp with fresh water. One of his first wells, the flowing well at the northern end of the Ohoopee River Bridge, was a failure - being too far away for the water to be pumped up the hill to Adrian.

After sharing a church building with the Baptists for four years, the Methodists led by Capt. James, began the process of building their own church building. James, along with Aaron Hutcheson, Will Curry, and a Mr. Houston led the construction of Adrian Methodist Church building in 1897. That building burned in 1935 and was replaced by the current house of worship. Adrian is known far and wide for it native sons who have served in the ministry. Rev. Jack Key and his brother Rev. Billy Key, along with their friend the Rev. Robert Moye, began their ministerial careers as teenagers in the late 1930s are about to enter their eighth decades of preaching the Gospel.

Adrian Chapel C.M.E. Church was founded in 1894. St. James Baptist Church was founded in 1898. White Grove Church followed in 1900. The first school for black students was established in 1898 under the direction of Flora Troup. Faith Tabernacle Holiness Church was founded in 1933. Adrian’s newest church, The Church of Jesus Christ, began holding its services in the old Citizens Bank building in 1997.

The growth of Adrian accelerated in 1897 when the Brewton and Pineora Railroad began its operation as part of the Central of Georgia railroad system. The “B and P or the biscuit and potato” railroad crossed the tracks of the Wadley and Mt. Vernon in the center of community, which was appropriated called “The Crossing.” Some of the first stores were opened by W.R. Smith and M.L. Bailey.

Dr. Tyson led the establishment of the first telephone exchange in 1898. That same year, a catastrophic fire incinerated the main line of stores. J.Y. King moved in from Dublin and erected a department store on the ash-laden ground. In 1912, A.J. Peddy erected a line of stores along the Wadley and Mt. Vernon Railroad.

The act to incorporate Adrian as a town became effective on December 19, 1899. The town limits extended five-eighths of a mile from the intersection of the railroads. The enabling law gave the authority to the mayor and council to police the town, tax property in the town, and establish a public school system. The sale of liquor and gambling in any form was expressly prohibited. Billard and pool tables were outlawed, as well as any ten pin alley. In an effort to attract factories, new and existing ones were exempt from property taxes until 1909.

The first mayor of Adrian was Dr. Jeff Tyson. Dr. Tyson, died before taking office and was replaced by Mayor-Pro Tem, Will Curry. Capt. T.J. James, James Kea, and Aaron Hutcheson were elected to serve on the initial town council. Many of the early records of the town were destroyed when the city hall, then housed in the old depot, burned in the 1930s. Among those serving as mayor of Adrian over the last century are: Will J. Curry, M.O. Campbell, J.W.A. Ivey, Alonzo M. Rountree, W.M. Rountree, Leon G. Moye, Ed Ellison, H.C. Williams, Gordon A. Fountain, A.E. Harrison, S.P. Chapman, Carl L. Gillis, Jr., J.R. Youmans, James M. Wammock, Richard Augley, E.W. Avery, and John E. Tyson, Jimmy Woods, Von Kersey, Mike Thigpen, Harol Meeks, and Joe Lumley. Dr. Leon G. Moye served as mayor for twenty years, Von Kersey for ten years, while James M. Wommack and Carl L. Gillis, Jr. served eight years each. Enoch Oliver was the first Town Marshall.


Adrian’s population soared to nearly three thousand persons according to some. The actual population according to the census of 1900 was 833. The town’s population declined every ten years until the 1950s, when people began to return to Adrian. At the turn of the 20th Century the businessmen of Adrian included sawmill owners T.J. James and Rufus Pennington; merchants , Thomas Cheatam, William Bailey, Sidney Scott, Sig Lichtenstein, and Charlie Fountain; blacksmiths Noah Jones, Jim Ruis, and Henry Stocks; barber, Fred Page; liverymen George L. Mason and Zachariah Anderson; dairyman, Arthur Ponder; druggist, James Mason; hotel proprietor, Susan Green; and Gristmiller, Allen Ham.

The biggest industry in the town were the sawmills.Twenty eight men worked in the mill along with the 73 of Captain James’s prisoners under the supervision of John M. Davis. Among the town lawyers were Louis Lightfoot, Bryon Kea, Col.Stephens, and William Pope.. Dr. Jeff Tyson was the first town doctor. He was followed by Jim Hamilton, Alonzo Rountree, G.E. Youmans, Thomas Kea, Dr. B.C. Yates, and Dr. Hutcheson. Leon G. Moye, who came to town as the physician in Capt. James’s prison camp and remained in town, where he practiced medicine for fifty years. Dr. Donald Kennedy provided valuable in-town medical services in Adrian in the third quarter of the century in the Adrian Clinic which was established by Dr. Moye. Dr. J.R. Rogers practiced dentistry in the early years of Adrian.

Among the other early merchants of Adrian were: the Barwick Brothers, M.C. Carter, T.J. Braswell, Ed Page, W.K. Porter, A.J. Peddy, F.A. Franklin, Levy Spivey, Sam Chapman, Everett Webb, Milo Mimbs, Mrs. McConnell, George Barwick, Mr. Ellison, J.B. Hutchinson, Clint Smith, Homer Youngblood, Morris Key, Tom Fountain, the Coleman family, Mr. Dent, Will Clements, and T.J. James, who owned several business in town.

Adrian’s first bank, the Adrian Banking Company, was established on May 26, 1902 by R.M. Rogers, J.D. Tyson, H.L. Yarborough, G.H. Barwick, T.A. Cheatam, A.T. Cobb, M.O. Campbell,and C.A. Fountain. This bank was located on the old drug store site. The town’s second bank, The Farmers Bank of Adrian, was incorporated on December 21, 1905 by M.C. Carter, E.L. Ricks, A.G. Smith, T.J. James, and W.S. Clements. A third bank, the Union Savings Bank, appears to have been a successor to the first banks. It was incorporated on April 25, 1908 by T.J. James, W.F. Staten, G.E. Youmans, T.A. Cheatam, and G.W. Drake. The fourth, and most enduring, bank was incorporated on November 26, 1909. With a virtual “who’s who” of incorporators, the bank lasted until it was forced into receivership in 1932. The founders of Citizens Bank of Adrian included C.R. Williams, E.J. Sumner, G.W. Drake, Morris T. Riner, W.D. Sumner, E.W. Carter, F. Carter, S.J. Sumner, J.R. Rowland, W.R. Smith, W.S. Burns, H.A. Stewart, J.L. Williams, M.T. Drake, J.R. Cherry, C.B. Spell, John A. Braswell, F.C. Gillis, Hardee Thigpen, B.R. Sandifer, F.J. Williams, W. Horton, A.W. Gillis, J.W. Smith, James H. Campbell, Arch Woods, A.M. Skinner, Uriah Anderson, S.H. Lynch, R. L. Odom, Ira Thigpen, and R.B. Thigpen. The old bank building, used at one time as a city hall, still stands at the northeast corner of U.S. Hwy. 80 and Ga. Hwy. 15. Through the efforts of Rufus Youmans and others, the Citizens Bank of Swainsboro opened a branch bank in town, which operated into the 1980s.

Adrian had one newspaper and possibly another. “The Adrian Index”, which began in 1914, was a weekly paper which sold for one dollar per year. J.G. Elder was reported to have began publishing a newspaper in 1905.

Adrian benefitted greatly from the location of Dixie Overland Highway along its Main Street in the years of World War I. The highway, which later became known as U.S. Highway 80, brought thousands of travelers through the town, until the completion of Interstate Highway 16 in the 1970s.

By 1920, the population of Adrian had increased sufficiently to authorize the legislature to re-incorporate Adrian as a city. The city limits were extended to one mile in every direction from the railroad intersection. Mayoral and council powers were extended. The legislature gave the city the right to tax dog owners two dollars per dog, the power to limit vehicular speeds, and to make improvements to the city’s infrastructure.

Captain James built the first school near the location of the Tom Fountain home. He hired Miss Annie Cheatam to teach. The second school, located near Mrs. Emma Spell’s home, was used until 1906, when a bond issue was approved to build a new two-story school. This imposing brick structure, which was located across the street from the First Baptist Church, was completed at a cost of eight thousand dollars. Part of that cost was recouped through a tuition fee of $1.25 per student per month. It burned in February of 1926. The fourth school, most of which was razed in 1998, served students for over sixty years. A modern gym, which brought basketball indoors for the first time, was completed in the spring of 1940. Basketball dominated the sports scene in Adrian for over three decades. In 1940, the boys team won the county championship for the third consecutive year. Playing on that team, were the Rev. Billy, Kea, Henry Neal, J.T. Horton, Dale Thompson, Verlon Watson, and Edsel Flanders. They were a close team, most of them being related to each other. The current gym was completed in 1957. Adrian’s boys and girls basketball teams were always tough, fast, and scrappy. Crowds jammed the gym every night the Red Devils were at home.

Adrian sent its sons and daughters off to war in World Wars I and II. Those who didn’t enter military service served on the home front, some even moved to Savannah to work in the war supporting industries. Thankfully, most of them came home safe. Jim Gay, a member of the 11th Division, single-handedly captured 192 German prisoners in World War I. Alonzo Drake attained the rank of General and is a candidate for admission to the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame. Adrian’s biggest post war business, Adrian Housing Corporation, began in 1962 under the ownership of Carl L. Gillis, Jr., in the old D&J Building. The company’s output soared in the 60s and 70s and remains one of the largest employers in the area in their current facilities on Hwy. 80 east of town.

Adrian was, and still is, the epitome of the small towns and cities of Central Georgia. For nearly everyone who ever lived there, it holds a lifetime of fond memories. Perhaps Paul Kea said it best in his 1982 poem,

Make Me Once Again Your Barefoot Boy

“I walk as a ghost in my own hometown,
keeping to the shadows of shaded streets ‘neath stately oaks, pecan, and sycamore
looking for friendly faces from that happy carefree childhood.
Forty years away from you have not my vision dimmed.
How simple was my world in the days of my youth.
Oh! To once again feel the chill where the swamp begins at the bottom of the hill.
Bending over for that first sweet sip from Cap’n James’ well.
Watching squirrels play in the hardwoods along the lush banks.
To walk ‘neath the bridge, mist rising from the swamp,
or climb a tangled mass of logs left by time and high water.
To reach the special bend in the river where we always swam.
Come Adrian, help me throw off this sickly ghostlike visage.
Rise in youthful vigor as did the fable phoenix.
Become again what was, not is or will be.
Enshrine my name in a place of honor on your scroll of living dead.
Forgotten am I only if you forget me.
Wrap me securely in your comforting mantle of childhood joy,
lest my two worlds be always but a dream apart.
Make me once again your barefoot boy.”