When 10 Years ago feels like Yesterday

At times, we all take a walk down memory lane, often when least expected. Where were you 10 years ago today? Nearly anyone asked would likely say “I have no idea,” unless they got a Facebook reminder. For me, I found myself thinking about the summer of 2011. The #1 movie 10 years ago today was “The Green Lantern.” My life was in rebound mode, being a year removed from divorce, and things were “different.” Fast forward to 2021, it’s a scorching hot Sunday afternoon and I’m currently standing in a remote field in Snook, Texas looking at a sea of Sunflowers. I of course think of my Dad, Wilbert Jones on this Father’s Day, but also reflecting on a decade without my Grandfather.

Family History

10 years ago on June 20th, my grandfather Major Wilson Jordan was called home to heaven at the age of 99, less than 24 hours after his last Father’s Day. Like most of us, his years were filled with a wide array of life-changing events and emotions. Daddy Major, as we called him was an amazing yet gentle man. He married Granny (Bertha Williams Jordan), brought three children into the world, to lose his only son in 1938 at 2 years of age. That kind of loss would permanently alter someone or scar them beyond repair, but he was able to persevere through such a tragic event armed only with his unswerving faith. That same faith helped him guide his family (Granny, Anne, and Barbara) through the turbulent ’40s and ’50s. In the late ’50s and ’60s, he became a Father-in-law (Vernon Allen & Wilbert Jones), and a Grandfather of four (Kevin, Keith, Dorenda, myself).

Daddy Major was also a quiet, reflective, and humble man. While he loved his family dearly, he was also a pillar of St. Johns Baptist Church. Through the years, he served a variety of roles, honoring God in real-time. But he was most remembered for his tenure on the Trustee Board. There, he worked tirelessly behind the scenes to help keep the church on proper footing. Away from Church and family, Daddy Major was a Master Pewterer at the former Shirley Pewter shop just outside Colonial Williamsburg. Over 2 dozen of his handmade pieces are proudly on display at my home.

Major Jordan touched countless people during his magical journey. The large gathering at his funeral on a sweltering summer day was a testament and a true measure of a man.

 The Measure of a Man

Speaking of that term, actor Sidney Poitier wrote a book called, “The Measure of a Man.” There, Poitier explores elements of character and personal values to take his own measure as a man, as a husband, and a father. If my grandfather had been an orator, writer, or had an autobiography written, his story would be similar to that of Poitier. In many ways, they were cut from a similar, but unique cloth.

If you close your eyes, you can almost imagine Daddy Major saying this quote: “Of all the things I’ve learned, the most enduring was the one about the true measure of a man. That true measure was how well he provided for his children, and it stuck with me as if it were etched in my brain.”

― Sidney Poitier, The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography

During his 99 years, Daddy Major laid the foundation for a generation of men in Williamsburg. He unknowingly served as a walking beacon of what’s right about being a Black Man in America, and how to best navigate the difficult days of walking the earth cloaked in caramel-colored skin. We’ll never know if people clutched their purses or locked their car doors just because he was black. He never spoke about any of that. He always looked at life through a positive lens. Daddy Major experienced decades of difficult times but lived long enough to see America’s first Black President, Barak Obama. Still, he thankfully didn’t experience his second international pandemic and the resurgence of racism against Blacks and Asians. A decade later, Daddy Major also missed the joy of seeing Juneteenth become a federal holiday.

Measuring Up

I often wonder “did I measure up?” What would my Grandfather say about me now? Unfortunately/fortunately those questions will never be answered. Like my Dad, I try to measure up to my Grandfather. Both kind and generous men. Both willing to listen, advise and guide. And lastly, they both stand for the best qualities of human existence.

A decade ago, but in many ways, it seems like yesterday. It’s the yesterday I hoped would never happen and the yesterday I will never forget. We all remember where we were during those moments in time. Today I reflect on him while standing in a field of flowers that instinctively turn their back to the sun. Unlike these unique annuals, everyone who knew my Grandfather was drawn to his rays of sunshine and warmth.

One cannot write about Daddy Major without sharing a few lines from his favorite hymn, “The Solid Rock,” written by Edward Mote in 1834 and based on Matthew 7:24-27.

My hope is built on nothing less 
than Jesus’ blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name

On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;
all other ground is sinking sand,
all other ground is sinking sand.

Happy Father’s Day, Daddy Major. You are missed by so many and will NEVER be forgotten.

Glenn “Bub” Jones Sr., “the Accidental Tourist”

A footnote: Each year, June 20th is bittersweet. While reflecting on my grandfather, I also celebrate that it was 11 years ago today that my children were baptized in Sugar Land, Texas. While one spirit moved to heaven, another spiritual journey moves among us, connected by family legacy and a coincidental date on the calendar. But, was it a coincidence?