Maypops

My grandfather on my mother’s side passed away when I was only five years old, so I did not get to know him, but my grandmother who we called “Mama Downs” had a farm, and that was my favorite place to visit when I was growing up. Granted, her house was nothing to write home about, but she had acres of pasture and woods and animals. There were just so many places to explore. My cousins and I would build forts out of branches and sage grass. We would then gather a generous supply of maypops that we would use as weapons.

Oh, you have never heard of maypops. The maypop is a fast-growing perennial vine with climbing stems. It is a member of the passionflower genus Passiflora and is also called purple passionflower. Below this posting is an image of a maypop and its beautiful purple flower.

When you throw a maypop at someone, and it smacks them on the head, the maypop makes a popping sound. I know that is not why they are named maypops, but it surely sounds good when you are playing war with your playmates.

One day when the cousins and I were exploring, we were in a deep and dark ravine and found the remains of several metal barrels and a lot of other scrap metal. We could not wait to tell Mama Downs about our discovery. She told us those were the remains of Papp’s old still. At that innocent age, we had no idea what she was talking about. Only later as a teenager did I stumble upon those remains once again and realized that was all that was left of my grandfather’s whiskey still.

Papp made corn whiskey, but my mother tells me he never made a dime from his whiskey. He gave it all away-usually in Mason jars. Everyone for miles around knew that John Henry Downs made corn whiskey, but no one ever turned him in to the authorities because at one time or another Papp gave almost everyone in the country some of his recipe.

My mother and her 10 brothers and sisters grew up in a house constructed of rough-cut pine with no running water, no insulation and no heat except a fireplace and a pot-bellied stove. She says they thought they were rich because they were never hungry, and they heard about other people being hungry. They thought they were rich because everybody they ever saw was just like them.

So many of our children and grandchildren are growing up thinking about how they are going to become rich. The pursuit of riches is nothing new under the sun. For time immemorial people have sought riches.

I regularly talk with people who have attained a great deal of wealth. Many of them are not really happy with their wealth. Some of them will say the pursuit of wealth is all that is important to them. Some have as their goal to gain more and more wealth. Some of them would trade places with people of less wealth just to get out from under the burden of having to make decisions about their wealth. Many of them regret that they did not talk to their children and grandchildren more about values than valuables.

I am so happy that many Christians who are people of wealth totally understand how to manage their wealth in a manner that is pleasing to our Lord. They understand the biblical mandate of generosity and legacy that is embedded in these biblical passages:

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. 1 Timothy 6:17-19

“A good name is to be more desired than great wealth.” Proverbs 22:11

From Philippians 4:19, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”