Susie Hatfield and Brooke Hatfield

00:03 My name is Brooke Hatfield. I am 30 years old. Today is February 9th. We are at the storycorps booth located at the Atlanta History Center in Atlanta, Georgia. And I am talking with my mom and my name is Susie Hatfield. I am 56 years old. Today is February 9th 2013. I'm at the storycorps booth at the Atlanta History Center, and I'm with my sweet oldest daughter.

00:31 Say Mom, how are you today? Good. Thank you. Are you ready to discuss some things about yourself? I hope so. I hope you're not going to Blindside me. You really worried about that, aren't you? And I am I don't worry. I don't have any dirt on I try to dig up some dirt on me. There's not any I'm going over there. I'm sure there is OKC before we started this recording we were talking about how one of my first memories of you is recording the newspaper for blind people at the library in Downtown Albany, right? How did you get started doing that?

01:03 Well, I think it was as a volunteer opportunity when I was in the Junior League of Albany and I've always loved to read and because of where we lived always like to take you and your sister to the library to check out video tapes because we live in The Boondocks and there was no cable so we would go there and we would get books and we will get movies at I thought you and your little sister would enjoy and when I found out about doing the reading for the blind, I thought was that just works out good while we're there.

01:34 I enjoyed it was fun. I feel like it's important to do that kind of thing. And I enjoyed it something you always talked about when Mandy and I are teenagers too. And I didn't see well it'll look good on college applications of Honor does the volunteers and was always something that you emphasize. So when did that start for you?

01:54 I remember in high school that I had a friend whose mother did the not the March of Dimes that thing of Shari Lewis the Jerry Lewis Telethon Muscular Dystrophy and they took his downtown in Jacksonville. And we went to the TV station they are and I was when the folks answering the telephones, I think it was on the local channel. Okay. It was like a local the other end of the Jacksonville affiliate. But you know, that was I enjoyed it. It just makes you feel better doing something for somebody and your grandparents your grandma and granddaddy they kind of push me into doing stuff like that and they just I just enjoyed it. I had the time to do it and how old were you when you did the Jerry Lewis now, please 1616. Okay before that where you just selfish not doing things with my church youth group, but that was mostly

02:54 Washes and bake sales and that kind of things so is Jacksonville what you would call the community you grew up in Jacksonville is where I spent my junior high and high school and my first two years of college and it's where I learned to drive a car. I remember learning to drive a car in the parking lot of Regency Square back. Then the malls were not open on Sundays and there wasn't really any dirt roads or any places to go. Learn how to drive except a mall parking lot. So your granddaddy took me there. How old are u l 15 16, give me what kind of car it was your grandmother station wagon with wood paneling car. That's when you remember S. I love that car. So so was it fun? Was it scary to park real good parallel park?

03:53 Show me parallel park. I still can't do real well. Remember when I got my license and all in Leesburg. It was the test was 3 right turns. I never had one for a little but but you know now I do now and we should talk about me. Let's talk more about you mom. So what were you like as a child? Do you remember that at all. Grandma. So how you were perfect, but I know is that I'm sure you were I was absolutely perfect and I haven't had a wonderful childhood.

04:26 I was the only child until I was nine and then we adopted Kimmy and I was glad to have a little sister. So we're grandma and Grandad trying to have another child named didn't think they could have Grandma had a couple miscarriage. I never knew that but I had a I had a good time grandma and granddaddy took me everywhere they went and they were big supporters and still are you know of a Berry College that's in Rome and I have fond memories of when I was a little girl going to bury to their class reunions sitting it their friends that they made their meant a lot to them and they still do to this day that you were the star of those reunions. I'm gathering. I don't know about that. But Grandma dress be pretty well besides wearing Grandma's pretty clothes which we do have photographic evidence of what kind of things do you remember liking to do for fun when you were young. We went to the beach a lot and we did picnics a lot.

05:20 Your grandmother and Grant your great grandmother and grandfather would come down from South Carolina. That's Grandma's parents your maternal grandparents and they will spend some time with us and you're great granddaddy loved to fish so we would take him to the pier in Jacksonville and I would spend the day with him that we love you fish yourself. I guess I did. I don't really remember but I just enjoy being out that always been a beachy kind of person. I like that. So what we doing Granddad or Grandad just like talk while I guess we did. Okay. Don't really remember though. I know but I love your granddaddy. He always coming out gal. That's good.

06:03 Did you ever get into trouble when you were young? Not much. I was I was afraid to I knew I would get in trouble if I got in trouble in the trouble with yeah. Well, I knew that if I get in trouble at school, I will get in trouble at home. What's the what was the worst thing you ever did as a kid?

06:23 Oh man. I remember when I was maybe fourteen or fifteen. There was a garage sale and there was a guitar and I remember I really wanted that guitar and I think I drove your grandaddy nuts. He spanked me when I was like 14 or 15 and I really wanted that guitar. Could you just ask for guitar? Forgot it but that's okay. It's not a big deal. Wanted to get our forward. Do you want to be like Peter Paul and Mary or something bubbly or be like in this church praise band that kind of thing. What kind of music do remember like in when you were that age all kind of music all kinds mommy got the Best Buy doesn't help at all kind of music will buy grew up in a household filled with big band music from that are from your grandparents here and they love Frank Sinatra Perry Como.

07:13 Andy Williams and Grandma and granddaddy were always both their musical your grandmother sang in the choir at Berry and your granddaddy was in like a musical group. Where did they get the baritone swingster always sang and I remember going on trips and the radio would be on and we be singing in the car. So

07:42 I remember liking the Beatles. I remember when the Beatles came over. That was something I remember liking the Monkees thinking Davy Jones was so cute. He's so short and he's a little short guy. I was real talk. Yeah.

07:55 So what do you remember about school from when you were younger with something that you like going to I love going to school. I don't remember a lot about my earlier teachers because we moved so often.

08:12 I do remember when we lived in St. Petersburg. Your grandmother was a home economics teacher. She taught at the high school and I remember going to her school after I got out of school and being around the high schoolers that she worked with and she was always real close with the ones that she worked with and they will come to our house sometime but I don't really remember that much about my my own I do remember when the first man walked on the moon because that was a big deal. I think I was in Middle School.

08:47 Or junior high as it was called in and they run in TVs and we all got to watch that. That was really cool and then black and white, I guess her and I remember a lot of people thinking that didn't happen. Really. Yeah, they're so people there are a lot of build-up to him, you know in 2 days a man's going to be on the moon. So I mean it wasn't a surprise I program was really in its Heyday back then and you're your own yarn Florida to st. Petersburg and then but your your aunt Catherine's husband Uncle Bill that passed away before you probably remember he work for NASA. I never knew that he worked for NASA in I think in Birmingham.

09:36 I said yeah. They got a I think that's I think that's where they live. I don't know how long he work there. But I remember as a child going to visit Aunt Katherine and Uncle Bill, but I wish that there was more emphasis on the Space Program now, I think it's a very worthwhile interesting thing for our country to do. Why do you think that I just think it's nice to four things that side of yourself you don't you can't find out about him if you don't look into it and what do you remember thinking when you saw those first images of the man on the moon? That was really cool. Yeah. Did you ever do any point when I like being an astronaut everything yourself know? Alright. So do you have anything of a teacher or teachers who may be in the influence? Do you strongly it mean your teacher now? So I'm just wondering if there's any sort of

10:28 Instructure you had sex would have led you down the path of wanting to be one yourself.

10:33 Probably your grandmother because she she taught home economics and she just really love doing what she did. She stop teaching when we adopting Kimmy when I was nine and and she stopped probably shortly after that to stay home because in Christy came along but how old was she when she had Christy. Do you remember? How old are you? How was probably 14 or 15 K that was excited.

11:03 Do you think it was weird for Kim to have been adopted and then have like another biological Child come along if it happens off? Yeah, you know, they were done having kids and who they adopted a single child for so long that have two siblings and sort of short order. Like I liked it but left a little sisters. What were their personalities like when they were young so cute.

11:36 Jimmy had the biggest brownest eyes and she was a very happy little baby. What about Chrissy? What was she like when she was Christie was always a Dynamo look at me look at me. She was big into gymnastics.

11:52 Okay.

11:55 So Grandma highlighted is the person who's your favorite teacher, right? I really that sounds terrible to say, I don't really remember that many of my teachers. That's terrible to say I hope so my remembers me as a teacher in the grocery store in shock that you live outside of school. You wanted to be a teacher. Well, I was my first career inclination when I went off to college.

12:28 Was I was going to be an airline stewardess?

12:32 And since the history of the Mizell family tended to run I thought France I was going to be a an airline stewardess for the French Airline. Well after three semesters of or 3/4 of French in college, it was just too much so then I went into business.

12:54 I was not suited for business. Nope, and then I went into education and it just felt like a good fit. I really enjoy working with the children. I enjoyed making things to help them learn. I enjoy spending time with them. So that just a just felt right? Okay. What lessons about life have you learned from teaching?

13:19 Funny we could go on forever. I got about 30 more minutes to steal it a little but now I don't know you just always have to keep trying.

13:31 You don't give up and

13:36 With with children children respond, and I'm talking for a kindergarten first and second grade perspective cuz that's where all of my experience lies children like structure. They like knowing what's going to happen next because I feel like that gives him a security feature and when they go to their school their school needs to be there safe haven.

14:05 They need to know that they are safe there that they are with people that love them that will take care of them and will help to.

14:15 Help to help him to be a better person, you know, we talked about model students and good citizens and and the Golden Rule and all that kind of stuff. But that's the most important thing to me. Cuz so many little children nowadays don't have a safe haven schools it and so many children don't eat breakfast or lunch at home. They eat it at school and some of them will not eat supper at home. They will wait and have lunch and breakfast at school the next day. So school provides a lot for children. What is that one of the best memories you have of teaching?

14:55 Oh gosh, honey there so many the light that comes on in a child's eyes when they finally get something when they finally learned how to blend those words together in and read a book. Yeah, cuz I've had kids coming to me saying I can't read what they can read and to see them learn to have confidence in themselves and enjoy it. That's that's very gratifying to me is a teacher but as a person, you know for four people that cannot read

15:27 It's sad and in my heart hurts for those older adults and it will end in people of all ages that have such a difficult time with reading because reading is such a

15:39 A life skill that you have to have because things build on reading so much and it's just I just try to get that Firm Foundation going.

15:50 So is there a sort of like a general answer, you know like General things that you seeing lots of children that that make you happy to do what you do? But is there like a specific student that you have to have a memory of that you shared like a specific to the Happy moment with negative a lot of kids over the years so well, I've been teaching for 32 years.

16:13 And I don't remember.

16:18 That much about specific ones except more in generalities.

16:26 But I remember sweet little faces and I remember the joy that that they would have when they learn how to do something. I remember it always.

16:41 And this sounds kind of selfish it always made me feel warm and fuzzy inside when a child want to hold my hand and walk down the hall, you know, that's there's a lot of trust there.

16:51 Annum

16:53 But honey, I just taught so many over the years and when I had rheumatic fever 10 years ago, it kind of blew away a whole bunch of my specific memories, which I'm I'm sorry to say on this but it is just a good General overview. I just I've always loved what I done what I've done that and now with with me going through breast cancer and their end with everything that we have done with that and thinking I was cancer-free and then it coming back again my classroom children have a double meaning for you know, they being with them gives me another purpose to get up for the day and to try to help make things right for them.

17:40 And it keeps me occupied. It keeps me busy. So I don't dwell on breast cancer, which I really don't want to do.

17:48 We're going to get that in a minute. Okay, but next question is do you remember seeing me and Mandy for the first time. Of course was that like to tell me about it then yell at me to tell me about it. Don't yell at me telling me where y'all were precious your daddy and I were eagerly

18:09 Awaiting your birth back. Then the doctor did not do sonograms because they were afraid it would hurt the baby. So seeing you come my way up you both of you were just so beautiful know you were fewer healthy or apgar apgar score was good. And it was one of the greatest days of my life the days that you were both born in it's kind of funny. You were both born on the day that my doctor said you were going to be born us to see how is being a good girl or was it decided to make an appearance in the world will so when you were when you and Dad were deciding. All right, we're going to have a child like maybe now we're both pretty planned out. Is that okay been together for a while we had gone to college together and we felt we loved each other and we felt very comfortable with each other and after we moved from Valdosta to Albany.

19:09 And our jobs were secure. We just thought it was time to start a family we both love children.

19:18 So how is being a parent changed you?

19:25 The difference in your time management skills is a big thing of you and Mandy have brought a richness to our lives that I don't know that we would have had otherwise.

19:40 Children are God's gift to the world and the fact that your daddy's.

19:49 Your daddy and I love each other and we wanted to build our own family. It just it just makes you feel like that's the way things are supposed to be.

20:00 And I know for you and your sister it will happen in its own time whenever it's supposed to be times are different now.

20:08 You say that a lot times are different now though. They are when when we graduate from college, you were expected to get married and start a family and all that kind of stuff. But now I think there's so much more an emphasis on the careers with the way Society is a nut I agree with that. You know, when when the time is ready we'll have children. Do you feel very happy with the trajectory of your twenties? I mean, I feel like at some point you never having some conversation and you said something that made me feel like you would wish you'd waited longer to get married sometime. Yeah, I do and why is that will it has got to go visit you and Dad are like the right match for each other. Obviously. It's not related to that. But what what do you wish you may be have done? I wish that I had maybe traveled a little bit more. I wish that I had had the time to have my own place and be on my own a little bit more be a little more.

21:09 But I don't know that I would do anything differently, you know, but I'm I'm proud that you and your sister have both traveled because you and Dad supporting us not because of anything we did what we wanted you to be able to do. I think it's neat to see what's out there in the world and not just be confined to your little tiny sphere of home rule. Where would you go if you could you had Limitless resources and could just fly anywhere I go to Europe Europe. I want to see all the architecture and the old buildings that have been there for gazillion years gazillion that they are affecting in and I want to go to see the Redwood Forest see those humongous humongous trees want to go to Alaska.

21:51 Like at Hawaii

21:53 You know, I would really enjoy just a a road trip up the coast and you know, just seeing like New England and anywhere but but my favorite is the beach the beach. Yeah, they have beaches in Europe what I thought about that, but they have nude beaches. You want to go to take Mom. Would you like to go visit a nude beach in your nose thing? All right. I tried I tried. So my next question for you is what are your dreams for? Me and Mandy?

22:22 Well my dreams for y'all are to be happy and healthy.

22:27 I say my prayers for you every night and every morning it is for you to find a partner that you can spend your time with and have a family with and build a life together. And there is no you know, God has his own timeframe. So there is no set age that you know by this age. You need to be doing this or by that age. You don't know that's not the way it works and along the way I just want you to enjoy what you're doing. Okay, and I think you're both will on your way to that. I'm proud of you both what?

23:07 What is a memory you have of each of us when we were little?

23:13 I remember going to Disney World and I remember I can't remember the name of that ride, but there was one right we stood in line for such a long time and you went over and over who's at the teacup ride know what it was like in an elevator. So is it Tower of Terror of Tower Terror? That's what it was. I think I did it one time and the times that we went to Busch Gardens y'all both went through a phase where you really enjoyed is gyptian type things and they had a really good Egypt exhibit and I think we went there for two summers.

23:51 But those are fun. So my next question is little real you mentioned before cancer diagnosis. How do you sync?

24:00 Cancer has changed you if at all, I think it is made me appreciate the everyday things.

24:08 Like what is Today show? I do enjoy the Today Show in a cup of coffee when I have for you already. Appreciate it though CVS.

24:21 It's just made me appreciate.

24:24 Friends and family and my church home and my job the people I work with I'm very blessed.

24:34 I really am and I appreciate even more.

24:37 If you could speak to yourself before you were diagnosed, what would you say if Susie now could talk to Susie then?

24:44 Before I was diagnosed

24:48 Other than you know, you don't have to dye your hair. It's going to look great. If you don't diet just get a grip.

24:57 Just get a grip and move on. Alright. Alright, best Nazi. Do you look at life differently now than you did before you were diagnosed. I think so in what way does the gratefulness steam engine before will some things just don't matter. I mean, you got to look at a big picture with things and a lot of little trivial things. Just don't mean so much.

25:21 What was one of the happiest moments of your life the day I married your daddy tell me about that. Well, we were married in Valdosta, Georgia, you know after we had been dating for several years. How long were y'all take Mom like three and a half years? I think mostly through all the college and then I graduate a semester ahead of your dad.

25:46 I'm 6 months older than your daddy. So that was a school year and he loves to say that he loves it remind me of that. He loves that you're a cradle robber. You are a good girl, but we had a small church wedding during my college years when I was a junior mom and dad moved from Jacksonville to Atlanta. And so we just decided the best place to get married will be where I was living and working which was there in Valdosta.

26:21 And your on your grandma and your granddaddy work so hard to make it a pretty wedding in it and it was we had a lot of family members your cousin Donna was good at catering and I remember she helped bring some stuff like that and it was just it was a fun day. Do you remember that getting the dress stuff like that? Well, we did not have a lot of time to plan the wedding because we scheduled a shotgun wedding or something. I had graduated from college I had decided I did not want to be a teacher.

26:55 And I was working at a bank as a teller and when you work in an institution like that, you have set times for your vacation. And so we had to plan it plan the wedding for that vacation week, which was like just several months away and your ex ex aunt or my ex-sister-in-law.

27:20 Lisa had a beautiful wedding dress and I tried it on and as long as I wore flat shoes, I was a bit taller and she was as long as I wore flat shoes it would work. So I wore Lisa's dress that I wore Lisa's dress and it was beautiful.

27:35 So, you know, so that was that was right there. But I remember feeling very honored that she would let me do that. It meant a lot to me. So you are flat and we're flat ballerina shoes. That's a pretty wedding pictures. Of course. So did the dress go back to Lisa had it redone and Amy Ward in her wedding.

27:59 Amy is my cousin my Lisa Lisa's ex-husband's Lisa daughter Lisa's daughter with so what is one of the saddest moments of your life? I don't really tend to dwell or think about that kind of the other one. Don't I don't like to think about sad things.

28:21 Maybe when my granddaddy passed away, how old are you? I was I was probably in my late teens because I was really close to my granddaddy my my maternal granddaddy.

28:36 And then when when your Grandmama Hatfield you're your daddy's mama when she passed away that was really sad cuz I just really loved her know. What was it like the first time y'all met with? Mr. Lane how she just welcome welcome to me. She was just a sweet. Sweet. Sweet lady. Do you remember like specifics about the first time you guys might like where it was and I do and how long have you and Dad been dating your daddy and I have been dating for several months and his daddy. Mr. Oscar and head like a heart attack and it wasn't a stroke. It was a heart attack and we went to see him in the hospital and that was the first time I made it.

29:17 Just got out of it, but I'm at Mister Lane and we just kind of clicked. She's just a sweet sweet lady.

29:27 Who who has been the biggest influence on you? And it's okay. If you can't think of just one person don't think your grandparents your granddaddy has such a gift for looking on the bright side of things.

29:43 And I think that's where a large part of my attitude comes from. And your your Grandmama has always been so interested in making a home and you know, what all of her skills that she has with her quilting in her cooking and all that and I think it would be them and I feel very blessed to have had them as parents.

30:11 And still am

30:13 How has your life been different than you thought it would be?

30:18 Other than the Space Program not getting as much support from the federal government.

30:25 I think it's pretty much gone. Like I thought it would really yeah Marion your Daddy. Yeah when you were little girl, how did you see the trajectory of your life as I thought that I would grow up and marry somebody and have a family and that's what I think most little girls. We're trained not really trained but but grew up thinking cuz that's just the way it was you you you grew up in and you had a family do you think that's true for a little girls now? No. No, but I do remember that and it's probably because your grandparents were so

31:01 Gung-ho with with their college experience at Berry College that I was always expected to go somewhere to school after I graduate from high school and that's what happened with most of my friends at my age but not everybody went and when might when when your grandparents went to school at Berry College, that was when it was an actual working school. They they didn't just pay tuition and go there and have fun. They had jobs that they had to do around the university in that help pay for their tuition and all that. It was a a working school and I think everybody that went there did that he think that's where your strong work ethic comes from Maybe.

31:52 What do you remember about the Civil Rights Movement? I know you were a preteen during I don't remember much.

32:01 I remember John F Kennedy.

32:04 And I remember dr. Martin Luther King.

32:08 And I remember.

32:10 The terrible days when they were killed, but I was pretty young then I was probably

32:18 8 or 9 I guess but I always believed in what they said.

32:27 In an even though

32:31 Even though they were segregation back then I never had strong feelings.

32:38 And people are people red white or blue when you were in like primary school as we would call it. Now with was a segregated school probably. I don't really remember.

32:50 My grown-up in Atlanta. There's no to this history of parts of the city where where African American population work was and then like the part where now buckhead's were a lot of white people are was Jacksonville sort of similarly segregated by geography. I don't remember that honey. It it doesn't I just don't remember that. I just remember always going to school with people of all different races and it just felt like it was supposed to and it where I where I teach now, you know that there's no difference of child is a child no matter what color they are. They deserve a good education and somebody to love them. Have you feel like teaching all sorts of people and gang and getting dinner act like the parents of all sorts of people has you imagine that getting outside a little bubble. If you feel like that has helped you have a few into a something more diverse Legend I do there was one Daddy

33:46 That I really wanted to have his little boy but he was in another class. So I still just kind of looked after but but years before he had tattoos all up and down is on and I would have been a little bit afraid of him, you know, but he was the nicest man. You're the best mechanic he used to work on my car. He was wonderful and his child and he's in second grade this year. He is jealous just a jam up little boy that jam up little boy and and several years ago. I had a little girl that wore hearing aid.

34:21 And in the end, these are mostly Daddy's or he was the same way. He had long hair. He had ear piercings. He had tattoos all over the place. But oh, he loves his little girl and he was a good father and it can kind of show you where you can't judge a book by its cover and there was another day. I realize that you've been judging the books by there, I never thought that I can I just I just never thought that I had butt tattoos kind of scared because I thought they were dirty and to this day I don't I mean that's not for me but each to their own.

34:57 But there was I lost my train of thought.

35:02 So there was a little girl with a hearing aid. It was the son of the mechanic who's the jam up little boy. And then I'm sorry. I interrupted you before you were talking about the third one to remember. I can't remember but there goes

35:17 So my brain that's what you meant by saying. All right. So is there anything that you have never told me that you would like to tell me today?

35:27 I know you feel like you've been a pretty open Booker for the most part.

35:33 For the most part I do I do remember growing up and being like a thoroughly teenager. It really bothered me that you were so cheerful and I felt like you would just like whitewash reality your cheer. I not Pollyanna. I know but as I've gotten older I really see the benefit of that because yes your your Pollyanna, but you're probably on who gets things done. And so I really admired the way that you're able to be sort of like emotionally buoyant while at the same time, you know, if you did a very effective teacher and mother and financial planner and all those other things, but do you like are there things that maybe you've been so disliked cheerful and tried to cover up in our shared lives that maybe I never really knew the full extent of

36:22 Could you just working and trying to be your cheerful self? I know I just have always believed that the glasses either half-full or half-empty and I like to think of it as being half-full. What is it? So that is not a cheerful person, but I think you're a bit more cuz I think he's a pretty positive guide to but I also think that's probably all sit not always been true. I know they have you gotten older. I think he's mellowed out and I think he would admit that his definitely mellowed out. Thank the good Lord and navy beans are the more like Smiley buoyant one. Well, your daddy is a child of an alcoholic and in our early marriage we had to deal with a lot of issues related to alcoholism not the fact that your daddy was but that your daddy was raised in an atmosphere.

37:20 Where that was a problem and I was raised in an atmosphere where your grandparents were teetotalers. And so we really just had two different ways of of looking at things your daddy was the third of three boys and never had a birthday party. So I tried to rectify that. I have given him birthday party for a lot of years, of course now, we don't really do that, but we don't have birthday parties like we did but I think it's just a different frame of reference that you what was dad's first birthday party you threw him. Like how old was he?

37:57 This brought back in college early twenties a red velvet cake, he loves her but I just all of our friends from then from college remember where it was probably at his apartment. What was his apartment? Like what was dad's bachelorhood environment like well,

38:25 Furniture was left a lot to be desired. It was your very basic college boy think is his miserly and Mr. Oscar didn't really help that they just gave him money and expect him to do right and and your daddy worked he work during school, but Furniture was kind of low on the low on the list.

38:49 So what was the do you have like a specific birthday party through for dad that you remember the most? No, I don't I do remember a specific birthday party that I had. What was it when I turned 18 your grandmother surprise me. I went out to

39:09 Do I nightclub with a friend and we got in late and I remember there was some green cream.

39:17 That was such a real good for your complexion and back then I had long hair. So I went to bed with my long hair pulled up on top of my head and orange juice can is a roller and bring cream on my face as I bet you're stunning know. I know it was and then about an hour later your grandmother and a whole bunch of my friends come to my room and turn on the lights and surprised we had a birthday party with me with my hair in an orange juice candy green cream on my face. I've never forgotten that I have a good one. She got me good. How did Dad respond to that first birthday party through them?

39:55 He loved it.

39:58 He loved it. It was a surprise. I'm guessing he loved it.

40:03 And I tried to surprise him ever since.

40:06 What are the what kind of music did you play?

40:10 Sweet Home Alabama, but he was from Alabama Fleetwood Mac. Which album rumors? Yes 8-track tape.

40:22 Any Daddy's Firebird? He was a cool guy silliest then you'll go on a road trip in a truck like one of the big wheelers. Where did y'all go? I've seen a couple pictures with your uncle drove one of those humongous trucks and during the summer your daddy would help your uncle out to earn money. And so one time he was coming through Valdosta, and he was on his way to Miami.

40:49 So he picked me up in Valdosta. And it had your the big old double cab. So you could sleep and whatnot and I your daddy and I went up Wentworth went down to Miami and delivered whatever it was supposed to do and they spoke Spanish and we did not speak Spanish. I remember we were hungry and wanted a hot dog and what your daddy thought was a hot dog ended up being a bun but we were glad to get back home. It was just a day trip. How long have y'all been dating at that point least several years? Okay.

41:20 And finally, how would you like to be remembered Susie Hatfield?

41:32 Well

41:35 I would like to be remembered as a kind thoughtful person.

41:43 He trying to make things better.

41:46 If you love her family and her friends and her job.

41:51 I think you've succeeded. I hope so at 5. Love you, Mom. Love you too, sweetheart. I don't know. I've never been much of a talker. And yes.