By By Robbie Byrd, News Editor
Mama Shirley is what people call her.
She lives in a small house on the far side of town. A charming little place. She's lived there for most of her life. She's seen two husbands and three children leave this world. All that's left of her family is her. Well, and her dog Skip.
You can usually find her sitting on her front porch most mornings and afternoons, sipping on a cup of tea.
The only visitors she gets is a young fellow by the name of Jim. He comes most everyday, usually after school. He's always greeted with a warm smile and a glass of juice and some fruit. She grows the fruit herself, in a little garden out behind her home. It used to be much larger, but as she has aged, so has her ability to tend more to her garden.
She speaks with a voice as sweet and thick with southern charm as a jar of homemade molasses.
It was a quiet Monday, just like any other. Jim had just gotten out from school and, as he always did, went to visit his best friend and young-spirited friend.