Clean Shirt
Crisp, Huey

HUEY: I want to tell two literacy stories. I went to a little high school in East Texas in the 50's and we had two English teachers and they taught. One of them, Miss Stallon, taught the freshman and the juniors and Miss Kirkham taught the sophomores and the seniors and one thing that I remember Miss Stallon doing, I read a lot of books those days and I didn't want my friends to know it because I wanted them to think I was a thug and a tough guy. So I didn't let people know I was reading books but I read a lot, but I hadn't read much literature I don't think. Miss Stallon came to class one day and said, "There are two books in our library that are too suggestive for young minds and I'm going to see that they're taken out." And I said, "What are they Miss Stallon?" And she said, "Look Homeward at Aunt Joland," and I forgot the other one. But I raced straight to the library after class because suggestive was very interesting to me. 

[Laughing]

HUEY: So I think I became an English major when I read Thomas Wolfe. 

SPEAKER: Awesome.

[Laughing] 

HUEY: The next year when I was a sophomore I went to Miss Kirkham's class and she came to me one day and said, "Huey, tomorrow I want you to-" And I want to brag on her for a minute, I think this is what makes good teachers, she could see though my facade of my trying to be this tough guy and that I was really interested in things and she said, "Tomorrow, Huey, you're going to represent Gaston School at the interscholastic Ready Writing Contest in Overton, Texas. So where a clean shirt and spit out your chew." So I was flattered, I didn't want to say it very loudly in front of my friends but I was flattered and happy that she'd seen through my tough guy act. And I went there and I won the third place ribbon and I got an honorable mention. They said I would have got better but I misspelled fourteen words.

[Laughing]

HUEY: But I still have my ribbon and I can get it if you want to see it. 

[Laughing]