On a knoll off the side of Loving Road in North Georgia, stands a most cherished building, which bonds a family of six generations. To many, the fourth Sunday in June would bear the title of homecoming day. In the same way as other older churches in the area, we address this special Sunday as the Decoration Day.

History

Founded in 1929, the Smith family donated the land for the cemetery. However, even before its official establishment, there were burials. Two early small Smith tombstones mark the lives of babies. One infant died in April 1865, the same month the Civil War ended. The other baby was left to the Smith’s by a Gypsy family traveling through the area, but it died shortly after. In addition a stone is inscribed “Smith” for a Confederate soldier.

Mt. Carmel Church

In 1943, Gus, Dennis, and Grady Hunt (Donna and my great-great uncle, our great grandfather, and my grandfather/Donna’s great uncle) built a quaint, white church. In those days, service was once a month when Mr. Henry, the traveling preacher, came into the area.

Our Aunt Anna remembers how she and all young cousins played quietly and took naps on a quilt stretched out in the aisle. The service lasted from daylight to dark. Oil lamps lit the building because there was no electricity (nor is there still). She shares, “The shadows they made on the walls would scare me a little.”

The all-day service meant everyone brought food to share for meals. Potty-breaks were taken in the nearby outhouse that is still used today. We are graced by the church’s original structure and benches. In recent years, relative added updated windows and a new roof. During these repairs, four generations, ranging in ages from two to seventy-six, refreshed the outside of the church with a new coat of white paint. Although the physical foundation of the church required rebracing this past year, the spiritual foundation of our family has not waivered for almost eighty years.

The Fourth Sunday in June

If you drive down Loving Road fifty-one Sundays of the year, you might miss this little treasure. For it is only the Fourth Sunday in June that the church hosts a congregation. On this special day, family members make such an effort to attend. As flowers are placed on graves of loved ones, hence the name decoration, we stand underneath the large oak tree singing hymns before entering the church house.

“Family sings Where the Soul of Man Never Dies” and other older hymns while accompanied by several guitars and a banjo.  As always someone collected an offering to aid in preserving the church and cemetery. A family member preached reminding us of the importance of preserving a good name while finishing the Christian race. Memories of our Moms, dads, grandparents, and other family members flooded our minds. For they left behind a Christian influence that continues to span generations. The service ended as a cousin sang “Amazing Grace”. Little by little the family joined in. After catching up and taking a few pictures, cars left their grassy parking spots.

Nana’s

Then cars coasted down the hill to the house known as Nana’s built by Granddaddy in ’72. Though their generation is no longer here, their love still lingers among us. The folding tables that now replace the sawhorses and plywood tables, grace the porch. They hold some of the most delicious food: ham, casseroles, chicken-n-dumplings, beans, okra, corn, squash, and tomatoes from the gardens, and desserts a plenty! All diets are off on this day!

As almost sixty of us line up to walk along the tables filling our plates, we pause to pray. Heads bow as the bounty of food is blessed and the hands that prepared it, and appreciation for the family that has gone before. Tom, a married-in cousin, finished this prayer with “And thank you for letting me marry into this loving family, and Lord, for allowing us all to be welcomed into your eternal family. Amen.”

The Little Mountain Church

We ate and visited for hours. We shared stories and laughed until early evening. Realizing the time, we started driving the hour over the mountain. We found ourselves singing a song that represents such an importance in our lives.

The Little Mountain Church

Looking back now, that little mountain church house,

Has become, my life’s corner stone,

It was there in that little mountain church house,

I first heard the word, I’ve based my life upon.