On the previous post i mentioned that my older brothers had gone into the military and left my mom and me without any immediate income. The house we lived in at 7th and Schiller was a large house with a large hallway that separated two living quarters. The family that lived in the other side actually rented the whole house but rented half to us. Our rent was $11.00 per month which compared to todays prices is about the same as a normal meal. I was attending West Side Jr. Hi. and knew a girl who's mom had a drug store. She had mentioned to me that her mom needed a delivery boy to work at night delivering orders. Since i had a bicycle she hired me to work from about 5 in the afternoon till closing time at 10:oopm. She would pay me 15 cents per hour. I took the job and started making deliveries of whatever someone would order and also do some work at the soda fountain. The wages was not much but we could buy some small amount of groceries along. Needless to say this interfered with my school work but that would become secondary. This next statement is something that i have never told anyone, no not anyone in all these years. The only reason i mention it now is to make a point. On this job i was confronted by a homosexual man whom ordered something frequently from the drug store. This became a situation in which i dealt with the best i could on my own. I could not talk to the store owner since she was a woman and also her daughter worked in the store also at night. I sure could not let my mom know nor did i know how to tell it. While going to school i would not eat lunch everyday and would occasionally stop at the Battery St. Drug store where i could get a coke and some crackers for 15 cents before going to the other Drug Store to work. I got to know John Wade who owned the Battery St. drug store. I told him about working out on 12th st. and how much i made. He said if i would go to work for him he would pay me 25 cents per hour to work the soda fountain. This was only 2 blocks from school and much closer to home. I did not realize it then but as i have grown older i now feel that God had a hand in taking care of the problem i had encountered at the other place. I would no longer have to deliver to Mr. Wofford and encounter his perverted actions. Today, i still harbor a hatred for the actions of people who practice this type lifestyle. We are taught that we are to love all people and yes our enemies. This is something i still wrestle with and find it most difficult. This is all i will say about my encounter and will not discuss it any further with anyone.
After starting to work for Mr. Wade i also started delivering the Arkansas Gazette in the early morning. My drug store hours would be from 4:00 pm till 10:00 pm. I would get up at about 3:30 am and go to 8th and Battery to meet the truck for my morning papers. Since we had to walk delivering the papers my route took about 2 hours. It would give me time to get back home and get ready for school. There was a young man that was i n college that had a paper route and needed someone to deliver his route weekly. He hired me and paid me $7:00 a week to take care of his route the 9 months he was in school. This became then enough to pay our rent and also buy groceries along with my drug store money. After about 8 or 9 months my mom began to get an allotment from my bro. Bennie. My school work really suffered but the experiences i gained while working at the drug store was well worth it. It helped me to become more of a people person which would help me greatly in later life. Mo on my drug store years next.