Twin Great-uncles Ode (Otis) and Ocie
Waller
The last time I saw uncle Ode was the day Ocie’s wife was
buried. We got a carload together, including aunt Vivian, and went over to
Halifax County to Clover Bottom Baptist Church, near Cody, for the funeral. We
went to the church and sat. Uncle Ode came in and sat in front of us, alone,
since his wife was dead. My aged mother leaned over and called to him “Uncle
Ode, Uncle Ode, do you know who I am?” He, even more aged, replied in a
disgusted voice, “Yas! I know who you be.”
After the burial we stood around in the cemetery, relatives
conversing with various others. Someone made a comment to uncle “There are a
lot of people here today.” He replied “Yas, and I’m kin to ‘em all; black and
white alike.” As we prepared to leave he suddenly had to go to the bathroom. I
saw him go into the Baptist church side door, then out of the opposite side
door, across the lot and into the Methodist church side door. As we drove by I
spotted him standing behind the opposite side of the Methodist church, letting
fly. Apparently neither church had a restroom that he could find.
Author Margie Waller
Walton
Here are high school pictures of Ode and Ocie. They were
fraternal twins. Ode inherited his father’s and Waller traits while Ocie is
from his mother’s Hunt side of the family. Ode was short and rambunctious. Ocie
was a large man and more decorous.