1945-48 or so

When we moved to Heavener, I was pre-school age and we lived out on the old Walderon Road south of the intersecting road that went west across the "lower crossing". The lower crossing was the south RR crossing. We only had two crossings then.

If you came east on the road that crossed the lower crossing the first intersection you came to was the road that took you to downtown. On the northeast corner of that intersection was a blacksmith shop. I spent many hours standing around bare footed in that old blacksmith shop watching the old blacksmith (I never knew his name) heat metal to a glowing red and beat it into a shape he needed. Mostly Horse shoes.

My mom used to send me to Dunn's Grocery Store that was located north down that street from the old blacksmith shop to the first intersection on the southeast corner. Rayburns built there later.

One day my mom sent me to Dunn's to get a "peck" of potatoes. (who know's what a "peck" is?)
On my way I found a really nice stick of wood. It was about the size I would have needed for a crutch. So being a boy of around 7 or so, I used it for a crutch. I put it under my arm and hobbled down the street to the store. I hobbled up the step into the store not being mindful of the adults who were watching me. I was just a boy being a boy. I went up to the counter and asked Mrs. Dunn for a peck of potatoes.
She asked me why I was hobbling around on that crutch. I had to think fast, I told her that I had sprained my ankle. She gave me the potatoes and watched me as I went hobbling out of the store on my crutch carrying the peck of potatoes wondering why my mom would send me to the store hobbling on a crutch like that.

The next time I was in their store with my mom Mrs. Dunn related that incident to my mom and told her as she was watching out of the window as I left the store and started down the sidewalk, when I came to the ally between the store and the next building, I threw the stick down the ally and went walking on down the sidewalk.
Mercy!