Hayter for August 17, 2025
“Back in the day...”
Do you know the last time the Hayter
brothers got together? – Neither do I. We haven’t been on any adventures or
even met at one another’s house or at a café in years. The scary thing about
this is that we have no idea how many years we’ve got left.
That’s what time will do to you. I’ve written about two million articles about the Hayter Family. Give or take. A handful were sad, but most were uplifting. I imagine there are only two of you who can remember many of my stories. While I still recall a lot of the family gatherings, I can’t remember much of what I wrote about them. And that is what time can do to you. Kick you right in the rear.
That thought came to me a few minutes ago, after I listened to a song sung by the trio known as Pozo-Seco, a trio made up of Don Williams, Loftin Kline, and Susan Taylor. If you’re old enough to have heard them, you’re likely too old to remember them. The song I’m referring to is called “Time.” The key line to the lyrics is “Time O’ time, where did you go?”
That’s an indication that the song is less than perky. However, it’s sung beautifully… as was the popular song ‘Hang Down Your Head Tom Dooley.” A different trio sang that one.
Most of us may have memories of our early past. Those who don’t are likely not reading this. A few have fortunately managed to forget their past. Me? I have reached an age where I can recall more about my childhood than I can about what happened last week. (That’s a line that the less-young share way too often.)
During my elementary and Junior High school days, I can remember the names of most of my teachers, but I never gave a thought about the problems they might’ve been going through. In those days, I selected ME to be the one person I needed to worry about. It was a time when I did fairly well in my classes but had little confidence in myself. Over the years, my mind still refuses to eliminate my planted “uncertainties.”
Each summer from the time I was born to the time I was a junior in high school, our family’s yearly vacation was a two-week trip to and from Bristow, Oklahoma, to meet Mom’s family and Dad’s grandpa.
After at least 10 years of Oklahoma visits, I began noticing that time was not being kind to Mom’s family. It would’ve been so much better had Mom and Dad let Dennis and me stay home from the Oklahoma trip, and our oldest sister checked on us periodically. My big sister Lynda was the nicest babysitter on the planet. It would’ve broken my heart had we ever upset her. By the way, Lynda and three other Hayter children were born in Bristow, Oklahoma. God was kind to the last three Texan children, Big Al, Jill, and me.
Since the ‘70s, we have only visited the Oklahoma family for funerals. Here it is 50 years later, and there is no longer any excuse for us to return to Bristow.
My time immediately after high school did not fly by. I spent four summers working at a chemical plant near Houston to pay for college. After four years at Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches, I was awarded a bachelor’s degree in forestry, which qualified me to get a job with the Texas Forest Service at Conroe’s District 6 headquarters. I’ve written a few stories about the two years I worked there.
The time I spent in college and with TFS put me in Montgomery County. That’s where I am right now. The reason Kay and I are still here is because I got a master’s degree from Sam Houston State University, which allowed me to teach anything that involved History or Political Science. After I graduated, I ended up teaching at McCullough High School in The Woodlands for six years. Afterward, I spent the rest of my teaching at Oak Ridge High, just across the freeway from The Woodlands.
Our Christmas shopping and Movie watching were done in The Woodlands, but my lawn mowing and weed eating are still being done in Conroe. I take that back; Kay does most of the mowing. I would’ve kept the job myself, but she was actually better at mowing than I was..
Concerning time, the best thing that ever happened to Kay and me was that we lived long enough to retire. We’re two weeks apart in age. I’m the younger one. My Dad lived only one year before his death by heart attack. He was 61 at the time. That thought still breaks my heart. I was able to retire from teaching at the age of 53 in the year 2003. I never deserved such a blessing.
I started my column back in 1980 and have published a novel, “The Summer of ‘76” and a book of Christmas Stories. I am about to finish completion on two other novels. I hope to make both of them audiobooks. That should take me a couple more years. If it takes much longer, my voice is likely to sound like somebody’s grandpa. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Yes, I like to think that Kay and I have made use of our lengthy retirement. I only wish Faris Hayter, my dad, had had a longer time doing what he really wanted to do. He told me that he wanted to be a writer. He read a lot. Mostly Westerns. On occasion, the family would gather around Dad’s recliner and listen to his stories. Those times seemed to zoom by.
Yes, those were the days, my friend. Time that got away from Kay and me several years back. Time that I would never wish to relive. Life as an older man has been very, very good to me. Kay tells me that she feels the same. At the moment we’re living the good time. It’s shorter, but for me it’s such a blessing. Until it’s not. That’s what time can do if you stay around long enough.
end
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