Proverbs 31:10-31
When I was a Sophomore in High School, I went to the Principles Office one day to get some information. Our high school band director, Mr. Len Lastinger was also in the office. During some discussion and “howdy-dos”, he asked me if I would like to be in the band. Now the Big Blue and White band of Tifton High School was known far and wide as the biggest and best band around. No school could match the Big Blue and White. I had no formal music training but he told me he needed someone who could “hold a steady beat” for the band on the Bass Drum. Uncle Len, as we all called him, said that he would show me how to play the drum and that I would have no trouble. I was a student that was in most everything. I sang in the Glee Club (which was also known far and wide), I was active in the Thespians (putting on plays), and I was generally involved in a lot of things. Uncle Len said that I had the talent and he wished I would play the bass drum for him. Of course, I said “Yes”, and that started my band career. Another story on that later.
The drums were located at the rear of the band room at the farthermost point in the semi-circle arrangement of the instruments. One day at practice, I happened to look across the heads of the band members and spotted The Prettiest Girl I Ever Saw. She was playing a flute up on the front row near where Uncle Len stood. She was blond headed, blue eyed, five feet two inches and a general “knockout.” When I suddenly noticed her I said: “Who is that!” She was also a majorette so that tells you a lot about her beauty because the Big Blue and White had the prettiest majorette corps you ever saw. Anyway, I decided I would try to talk to her when we left the band building after practice. That’s exactly what I did. I made sure I left as she did and I took up my place next to her as we walked across the back campus. “Man, that was a hard practice session wasn’t it”, I said. “Yes, it was.” That’s all. She wouldn’t talk to me. I tried a couple of other approaches. Same basic response. She was toting an armload of books and tending to her business. Well, I tried that approach several more times with varying success so I decided that maybe she wasn’t for me. I thought, “let her go, there’s more than one monkey in the jungle.”
I found out that this pretty girl, Carolyn Gibbs, was working at the Tift Theater each day and that’s where she was going after band practice. I also found out that she lived about two blocks up the street from me. How had I missed her! Amazing! Anyway, one day I was walking up College Avenue going to a ball field where I was going to meet some friends and fly model airplanes. I was walking up the street (we walked in those days) with my plane and all the paraphernalia that goes along with flying it, when, much to my chagrin, there was this pretty girl sitting on the front porch of her friend who lived near her and they were sitting there talking. I wanted to eat that plane. Get rid of it. Too late. So, I spoke to them and went on my way trying to hide the plane on the opposite side of my body. Didn’t work.
A couple of days later while leaving band practice, I was walking across the campus by myself when someone said: “Did you get your plane to fly?” Lo and behold it was her…The Prettiest Girl I Ever Saw! She actually spoke to me first! “Yes, I flew it, but I really don’t do that kind of thing very much.”
Anyway, we talked as we walked and suddenly, I found that we were at the Tift Theater in downtown Tifton about half a mile away. I did that many times. Our friendship developed, we dated for a couple of years after which we were married on June 16, 1962. We have been side by side for all these years now and she has made a wonderful Pastor’s wife. God never made a more faithful person in the whole world. She has stuck by my side and made sure that our household was in proper order. This pretty girl worked hard to help make a living and when I wanted to go to college, she gave up everything in order to make sure it happened and that I would graduate. When in Seminary, we lived about 50 miles from the campus and on many days, I had to leave her at home which was a small field house on a farm. We had sold our new home to enter the seminary and here she was in a field house on a farm. I honestly don’t understand how she suffered through that but she did. I cried many a day when I would leave her up there in that two-hundred acre field by herself all day.
Over the years she had made her mark in the ministry God gave to me or rather I should say that He gave it to US. Without her, I could not have made it through the trials and tribulations of a Pastorate. But, she was always faithful to what we had to do in the ministry. The Prettiest Girl I Ever Saw served as my personal secretary for about 27 years. She was the “first lady” of our church and all the people knew it.
My Girl, has always carried herself with dignity and class. Not much of that left today but she has it. She set a good example for people to follow in the way she has lived her life. The Lord gave us three beautiful daughters, seven grandchildren and six great grandchildren. Life has had many ups and downs but My Girl has weathered them all with class and helped me in ways that she will never know. To a great extent, the success of our Ministry has been because of her. I could never have performed all that the ministry required of me without her by my side. If I told of all the times that she has given advice and support which was the cause of good things happening, it would fill a book with hundreds of pages. I could never have made it as a Pastor without Carolyn, The Prettiest Girl I Ever Saw.
As time has gone by, I have learned to look deeper and appreciate her the more. I am convinced that God chose her for me because I could never have selected a more perfect mate for life than Joanne Carolyn Gibbs and here we are all these many years later and She is still The Prettiest Girl I Ever Saw!
I love you more today than ever before!
Happy Mother’s Day Sweet Pea,
Bill
