Walk the Line

Prologue

I remember the day I first met James Rogers. I was a young girl, only about 7 years old, just 10 years ago.

I had lived my whole life on a big farm. Located in a little town of Alabama. Being the only girl of 7 children taught you to be rough.

James grew up on the farm a few miles down the road from mine. It was summer time and my father decided to sell a few cows, so he brought me along to go sell them to his old friend, Mr. Rogers.

My hair was in two little braids and I had on some overalls. Daddy loaded up the cows in the trailer that was hooked up to our old blue Ford pickup.

My brothers were mad when they found out Daddy was taking only me and not them.

"It's not fair!!! I wanna go play with those Rogers boys!!!" My older brother, Daniel whined.

"Get your butt in that house or you're gonna go pick out a switch for me to beat your butt with!!! Evelyn never gets to go with me, let her!" Father threatens, I had never seen Daniel run faster into that house.

As father pulled out of the dirt driveway I couldn't help but ask, "Daddy, does Mr. Rogers have kids my age?"

My dad softly chuckled, "Hoping for a little girl your age to play with for a change?" He asks.

"Yes, sir." I say, nodding.

"Sorry, darling. But no. Only boys. There's one just a year older than you though, his name is James. You can play with him while I'm talking to his father. I phoned him and told him you were coming." He says.

"I guess that will be okay." I sigh.

"Don't be a downer, you'll like this boy." He says, smiling.

A few minutes later we pull up to a little house surrounding by farm land with a little red barn. A man stood outside on the porch swing with a boy about my age, whom I was guessing, was James.

Father parked the truck and we got out. I was a shy when it came to meeting new people so I quickly grabbed my daddy's hand.

"Rance! How's it going?" My father asks, smiling brightly as he greeted Mr. Rogers.

"It's been rough, Mary is down with a bad case of the flu. You?" Mr. Rogers says.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Gail might be able to help, y'know how she is with her doctoring skills. She might be able to make a medicine. And it's been pretty good." Fathers says.

"That would be good, thank you. And this is Evelyn? I haven't seen her in 3 or 4 years." Mr. Rogers says, sticking his hand out for me to shake.

I look up at father and then slowly shake his hand.

"This is James, he's 8." He says, smiling kindly.

I look over at the boy who was sitting next to him. He shyly smiled and whispered, "Hi."

"Hello." I whisper back.

"Y'all go play and we are gonna unload the cows." Father says.

James gets up, "I can show you around." He says, and walks off the porch, me following behind.