That was it, I was baptized. No fanfare. No music, no cheers.

When I was a child, Nana never struck me as a religious person.  I never saw any religious artifacts, crosses or bibles. One thing I remember was her saying, when there was thunder and lightning, that GOD was angry.

The other was that she told me a story that her mother had had some items stolen. They called a lady over to the house and the lady attached a string to a bible, she said some mumbo jumbo, extended the bible from the string and told Nana's mother to start naming people she thought might have stolen the items. When she came to a certain name, Nana told me the bible started spinning uncontrollably.

Those were the only things I can remembers but she was adamant about getting me baptized.  She didn't care about a big ceremony, she just wanted me baptized.


How many remember your baptism?  Did you do it for yourself or to please someone else?

Read more in Ghetto Bastard: A Memoir and Ghetto Bastard 2 available on Amazon.