The Unsung Hero of Birdsong, USA: Chapters 22–33

Daddy put down his pencil and looked up from his ledger.

One good thing about having nothing to do is that it gives you time to ponder, and as I waited idly at the gas pumps, that's exactly what I did.

One good thing about having nothing to do is that it gives you time to ponder, and as I waited idly at the gas pumps, that's exactly what I did.

An hour later, half the folks in town who owned a car must have decided at the same time to show up at Jake's for gas and oil, with tires that were low on air and radiators that had decided to go haywire and all kinds of other automobile malfunctions.

An hour later, half the folks in town who owned a car must have decided at the same time to show up at Jake's for gas and oil, with tires that were low on air and radiators that had decided to go haywire and all kinds of other automobile malfunctions.

"Yessiree. I was a member of the United States Army's 761st Tank Battalion...all colored. Called ourselves the Black Panthers. Motto was Come Out Fighting, and that's exactly what we did. Proud to say we finished off a lotta Nazis and did our part to win the war."

"Had some trainin' in high school but mastered it in the army. Spent more than a year learnin' everything 'bout those tanks, includin' how to take 'em apart and put 'em back together again. Most of us thought we'd never see any action. Idling in neutral same as a car, that's what it felt like. But we were prepared, ready, and rarin' to go...All we needed was someone to slip us into gear and step on the gas. Finally, General Patton did and we were deployed."

"'Less they wanna wind up lynched from a tree or like that colored soldier over in Batesburg who got his eyes poked out and now he's forever blind. Would you want your daddy to be killed or forever blind?"

A car horn honking let me know a customer was waiting at the gas pumps, and since Matt was home sick with tonsillitis, I needed to skedaddle.

Daddy was there waiting, and he made it crystal clear that I had to stay up front so that when customers drove up, they didn't have to wait. "Not good for business," he instructed. And that's exactly what I was doing the rest of the afternoon until a ruckus near the garage caught my attention.

"I'm plum flabbergasted, Meriwether. I swear you're some kinda magician." He turned to Abigail and asked, "Did you actually see your daddy fix it or did he wave a magic wand and say 'presto chango'?"

"I'll get the certificate of title transferred to your name soon as I can." Daddy motioned to the pile of papers on his desk. "It might take a little time, though, because as you can see, I'm swamped," he explained. "For now, I'll write a note in case of anything unforeseen."

"I've been meanin' to ask you some questions," I told him.
He chuckled. "You mean start one of your interrogations?"

And that was how Patrick Kelly became the unpaid apprentice mechanic at Jake's and how he came to be with us that morning when the mostly right-side-up world of mostly quiet Birdsong, USA, for a while turned upside down.

Somewhat reluctantly, he stepped over the threshold into the house, but instead of sitting, he paced.

"Been keepin' promises all my life—promised to be loyal to my country and bravely serve, which I did. And for the most part. I've even kept the Ten Commandments 'cept for the one that forbids us to covet...Hard for a colored man to see some of y'all havin' what looks like heaven on earth and not long for it myself."

"God surely works in mysterious ways," Pastor Honeywell said. "And in this case, expeditiously. Wouldn't you agree, Mr. Haberlin?" he inquired.

"I'm 'bout done with Birdsong, and I have a strong suspicion Birdsong is through with me...Time to head north to a place that's rumored to be a trifle more hospitable."

"His heart. It was why the army, navy, and marines wouldn't take him when he tried to enlist. Wondered when it was finally gonna quit on him...Just a matter of time. Even the heart doctor I sent him to down in Charleston was in total agreement. Born with it, you know...a sick ticker. Nuthin' could be done. His sister won't likely ask for an autopsy, with his medical history. I'll stop over there to deliver the news and call the undertaker."

"No, thank you, ma'am. I'ma go up front and help out Mr. Haberlin, like it was agreed," he replied. Then, his hand tightly clutching his medal, he sauntered off.