Black Oak

No. 13,974

Today, my father, brother, and I drove down into “the country,” that part of rural Washington County, Ark., which produced several generations of the Dockery and Bradley families. After stopping for a brief visit with my dad’s sister, Aunt Mary Louise, we made our way up the hill to the Black Oak church of Christ and cemetery.

This is special ground to the Dockery family. My great-great-great grandfather, James Jefferson Dockery, donated the land for the church building and the cemetery in the 1800s. He and his wife Rebecca are both buried in the church cemetery, as are my own grandfather and grandmother, George and Zelen Dockery.

The church has been meeting continuously here since 1884, as its sign proudly proclaims. Grandpa George, Dad, and I have all preached there before. My brother, who is the youth minister at the Farmington church of Christ, takes his teenagers there once a month to conduct the worship services.

After visiting Black Oak, we also visited Sunset Cemetery and the Terry Cemetery, where other members of our family are buried.

It was a good day, and a poignant one.

But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.

For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so,through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

(1 Thessalonians 4.13-14/ESV)

Used Book Store

Several months ago I went through a self-righteous anti-materialistic phase, the main feature of which was getting rid of about a third of my books. Most of the books I don’t miss. But one of the books I divested myself of was Clark Emery’s The World of Dylan Thomas, given to me by my kid sister on my 23rd birthday, when she was a precocious 17. I discovered that I missed the book, not so much for its scholarly merit, but because of its sentimental value.

Yesterday I went to the used book store on Dickson Street where I had sold the book, and there it was, with my name still written inside. The price was $7.50, and I bought it back. I don’t know how much credit I was given for the book when I sold it to the store, but I’m sure that I suffered a net loss of three or four dollars.

Would that all mistakes were undone so cheaply.