Life's Like That - June 21, 1009

By Jerry Bullock

June 21, 2009 11:06 am

— My dad, a retrospective: Arthur Vaughn Bullock was the ninth and last child of John Calhoun Breckenridge and Mary Rebekah Nichols Bullock. He was born Aug. 26, 1901, in a half dugout on a section (164 acres) head right in Scurry County, Texas. These were still pioneer days in Texas. John and Rebekah had come to claim their land in the late 1880s. They left Steep Hollow, Texas, near Bryan in Brazos County in a covered wagon to make the trip. Today we would cover the 302 miles in about seven hours. It took John and his family almost 18 months.
John had his wife, seven children and all their belongings. He had a brace of oxen, a milk cow, a saddle horse and $60. There was not a single Dairy Queen along the route. My Uncle John said that with all they had they were really wealthy. Along the way Uncle Jess got very sick, “But Mama pulled him through with Wizard Oil,” Uncle John recounted. A girl was born in 1898 and then Dad, the baby of the family, came along.
He and my mother married late. He was a Beau Vivant, a man of the 1920s. He held two bachelors degrees in journalism and worked as a newsman, a Chamber of Commerce president and a salesman. Pictures of him show a handsome young man almost always with a girl on his arm. Actually we have more pictures of his girl friends than we have of my mother from that period.
I was born in Ralls, Texas, while he was president of the Chamber of Commerce. When I was little, we lived in Quanah where he had the same position. There was a short stay in Abilene and then back to Lubbock when he became a civil servant with the National Youth Administration. I was an only child and spent more time with professional adults than in playtime with children. I have always been very proud of my pioneer Texas heritage. Both sides of the family were pioneers and helped to establish the Republic.
The Bullock family was Baptist, as far back as I can find. Mother was a Cumberland Presbyterian. Preachers abounded in both families. My first memories are from the Sunday School of the first Baptist Church in Lubbock. The first gift from my father was the knowledge of Jesus Christ. It is also the most important since all the rest are founded in that truth. My father was a man of great integrity. He was scrupulously honest in all of his dealings. He taught me a work ethic based on what is right, not what is expedient. He gave me his love; there were times when I disappointed him but he was always there for me. He had a great sense of humor and loved to laugh, we laughed a lot together. He was my friend; I could talk to him about anything and know I had his attention. He was a man of prayer and many times I felt his prayer.
He not only taught me the love of Jesus Christ but he lived the example of a Christian every day of his life. This is a simple Father’s Day reminiscence of a thankful son. May all of you fathers have a happy special day.

Jerry Bullock has written his weekly column for the Daily Record for more than 20 years. Jerry is a retired Air Force colonel, an ordained Baptist minister, professional counselor, military historian, speaker, and writer. He is a native Texan tracing his Texas roots to the days of the Republic.