Lesson 23:No More Cotton Blues

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The next morning, my father and mother were sitting at the table, talking in hushed voices. They went quiet when we sat down for breakfast. Then my father got up and left, without saying a word to any of us. When spring came, my father fixed up a broken down old Ford another family had left behind. With nothing but a few dollars in our pockets, a box of crackers, and the promise of a better life, we left our cabin and headed for Atlanta. 17
Life in Georgia My uncle helped us as best he could. He got my father and my brother jobs in construction through one of those government programs. Back in those days, when the Depression was bearing down on everybody, black or white, President Roosevelt started something called the New Deal. He believed the best way to get the economy going was for the government to lend a hand. So he started programs that put people to work building all kinds of things, like libraries, roads, parks, and schools. Uncle Eugene put me to work as an usher in his movie house. When I wasn’t showing people to their seats, I ducked down to the basement and tinkered away on an old piano. Once it made silent movies come to life. But those days were long gone. By the time the war started, I was making a little money playing piano in small clubs along Sweet Auburn. But I hurt my hand during the war, so after I got out of the Army, I had to do something else. I started writing music, book, and movie reviews for a local paper and columns about life in Georgia after the war. Twenty years later, I’m one of the editors. I’ve got a nice home and my own family now. For the son of a sharecropper, I guess you could say I did all right. 18
Page 1 and 2: HOUGHTON MIFFLIN
Page 3: Looking Back I remember the day the
Page 6 and 7: I can still see him riding toward u
Page 8 and 9: Ardell and I glanced at each other.
Page 10 and 11: My brother Kermit had asked me to c
Page 12: house on Sweet Auburn Avenue. He ca
Page 15 and 16: He even figured out how many more a
Page 17: “But all along Atlanta’s Sweet
Page 21 and 22: TARGET VOCABULARY confronting conte

Lesson 23:No More Cotton Blues

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