Ozark Memories: "crystal clear"

LeRoy Tucker, 1934

(Ozark Folk Liar)

We haven't recently visited with LeRoy Tucker over at Folk Liar of the Ozarks, so let's drop in on him reminiscing about about his Ozark childhood home in the woods near Kittle, Arkansas:

That little place in the woods is where I first caught tadpoles in a tin can. I caught them without any form of training or supervision. One soft summer day, while playing "down at the branch" alone and unsupervised I came nose to nose with one of those delicate little green snakes that hide on green twigs. It was a moment of magic, a joy to remember. That little, green snake's phosphorescent glow provided almost perfect camouflage. Little boys and little green snakes aren't afraid of each other, and shouldn't be. I was probably five.

The branch water was about a foot and a half deep and crystal clear. I spent a lot of time there. Laying face down, peering over the edge into that water where minnows and small sun fish swam about and various bugs moved both on the surface and the gravel bottom. In some spots the bottom was covered by purple, almost black, sunken leaves. Idling there, I gathered a lot of useless information. I'm glad I did it anyway.

I remember doing things like that not so far from Kittle myself, but I doubt that I could express them as well as Mr. Tucker does, and he relates a host of other memories as well, so go there and read.

The above photo, by the way, comes from an earlier entry by Mr. Tucker, but he looks to be about the right age for this memory of his encounter with that snake . . .