Be it Gods will, or, we go to war, my plans will go according to one of those two choices. This book reminds me of that. Johnny Cash had a hit with the song If The Good Lords Willing, and Hank Williams Jr. titled his song If the Good Lords Willin (And The Creeks Dont Rise).. This Southern saying, God Willing and the Creek Don't Rise. With a colorful cast of characters and a flair for the Southern Gothic, If the Creek Don't Rise is a debut novel bursting with heart, honesty, and homegrown grit. He was a politician and Indian agent. A true Southern tradition. This is a high compliment in the South, since Southern states are known for their peaches. Whether you're talking about volume or value, a hill of beans isn't worth much. According to http://www.aboutnorthgeorgia.com/ang/Benjamin_Hawkins: Generally recognized as the Creek Indian agent, Benjamin Hawkins also held the title of General Superintendent of all tribes south of the Ohio River. John Wayne. However, if you're from the South, you know that sometimes there's just no other way to get your point across. And this is one appearance in a newspaper: We are an American people, born under the flag of independence and if the Lord is willing and the creeks dont rise, the American people who made this country will come pretty near controlling it. The expression make groceries is a translation of the French faire son march (to do ones market shopping). Theres two or three creeks, he said. And Lord have mercy, wait till you meet Birdie with her gamy birds-nest hairdo and top notch fine feathered companion Samuel.and all his buddies. Yelling out this humorous backronym for sh*tmight just tame the anger a bit. If the creek don't risewas a whimsical way of saying that the speaker would carry out some task provided that no figurative obstacle were put in his path. Share. No bigger than a minnow in a fishing pond is as tiny as can be. Many thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for the ARC in return for an unbiased review. We do our best to keep our promises, but sometimes unforeseen circumstances come up. The thing isI read one that I have never stopped thinking about. Statements of the form "God/Lord willing and (some other condition being met)" are ancient extensions of simple acceptance of God's will in phrases like God willing and Lord willing. Used in a sentence - If the creek don't rise and God's willing, you should be able to see this video. Given that many small farm streams were crossed without bridges, which worked find most of the time, a swollen stream would cause problems. But we declareif your only knowledge of Southern sayings comes fromGone With the Wind, youre missing out on a lot of Southern expressions. I absolutely loved the southern voice of these characters throughout this book. In the 1900s, the word evolved, taking on a Southern spin as well as new meanings such as "courage" and "get-up-and-go.". This is our creative way of saying that you shouldn't crow like a rooster about your wealth and belonging today, because it could all disappear tomorrow. We didnt. Georgia-born blogger Jennifer Collins says she always rolled her eyes when her mom said this to her. Although he admits when the rain starts to fall, it makes him a little nervous. The Cree and the Creek lived over a thousand miles apart, (the Cree are from Canada), so we now have people contributing folk etymologies that are nonsense on their face. We've had a lot of delays, but God willing and the creek don't rise, we should have the house finished before winter. What is the origin of the phrase the good Lord willing and the creek dont rise? If the Creek Dont Rise by Leah Weiss is a 2017 Sourcebooks Landmark publication. The tale is widely reproduced and believed nevertheless. Other words sites
(LogOut/ From the start there's been a film of dingy on my days.. Well, I found it. Hawkins, college-educated and a well-written man would never have made a grammatical error, so the capitalization of Creek is the only way the phrase could make sense. False folk etymology. This page was last edited on 17 January 2023, at 01:18. If you think you can't, you won't be able to accomplish something, but if you think you can, you'll succeed. the creek don't rise " is an American slang expression implying strong intentions subject to complete frustration by uncommon but not unforeseeable events. Im not going to wrestle with historians and their Creek uprising story. PS A belated congratulations on your appointment as moderator, Tom. I always took it as a reference to the level of water in a creek. All of my life there have been local mountain sayings that I've heard and of course repeated, complete with a North Carolina southern drawl as literal fact. Therefore if the Lord is willing and the Creek don't rise up and start up another uprising or battle, we will be able complete what ever it is we intend to do. Because that is supposedly how the original author first wrote it. That argues for a more mundane origin: the old-time difficulties of travelling on dirt roads that forded rivers and streams; a sudden storm could cause water levels to rise without warning and render the route impassable. You'll most often hear it coming out of Mama's mouth when the kids are running amok. This string of double negatives is actually meant as encouragement! From the present day of the story in 1970 to flashbacks of the past and dreams, these various points of view give us a vivid picture of this place and the people who live there. Quick, what do you call a soft drink? The catchphrase itself was associated with Hank Williams. This is a point of emphasis and exclamation that often ends without any additional telling at all. Note that the Creek Nation(s) did not "rise" at all. However, this is clearly one of those evolving language cases. Siever, known as Nolichucky Jack to his friends, was as brutal to the Cherokee and Creek as they were to him, but Siever knew to frame his attacks as responses to incursion or wrongs. Rather, when this phrase is used, we'd like you to mind your manners and stop acting inappropriately. Threats not only from abroad, but internally as well, forced the fledgling nation to negotiate treaties with the tribes on the western frontier. With a colorful cast of characters and a flair for the Southern Gothic, If the Creek Don't Rise is a debut novel bursting with heart, honesty, and homegrown grit. Marty Stuart places the words "If the Good Lord's willin' and the creek don't rise, we'll see you in the mornin'." QFrom Bob Scala: An item that has been floating around the internet claims that the expression God willing and the creek dont rise referred to the Creek Indians, not a body of water. She's seventeen, pregnant and two weeks into her marriage to Roy Tupkin, after enduring brutal beatings, Sadie knows she has made a mistake. To cover your bases you might say, "I'll see you then if the creek don't rise." If the Creek Don't Rise. HARDY, Ark. I'm a sucker for the well turned phrase and I was highlighting sentences here, one after another. "If The Good Lord's Willing and The Creek Don't Rise" is a 1955 American country song by Jerry Reed which was particularly popularized by the 1958 recording of Johnny Cash and has been covered by multiple artists.[1]. Settle in, because whatever we're talking about is going to take all day. As they returned home, some of them also killed some settlers in the Ohio valley. At the time Hawkins was Congressman, he joined other well known Southeastern American leaders in negotiating a major treaty with the Creek and Cherokee at the South Carolina city of Hopewell. Yet here I stand before you a speckled hermit, wrapt in the risen-sun counterpane of my popilarity, an intendin, Providence permittin, and the creek dont rise, to go it blind!. The History And Traditions That Make Hanukkah Light Up, Examples Of Ableist Language You May Not Realize Youre Using, Winter 2023 New Words: Everything, Everywhere, All At Once, Fall In Love With 14 Captivating Valentines Day Words, Rizz And 7 Other Slang Trends That Explain The Internet In 2023, Win With Qi And This List Of Our Best Scrabble Words, We Had ChatGPT Coin Nonsense PhrasesAnd Then We Defined Them, Surprise! The first big battles in the Creek War were, indeed, attacks on white settlements, but it was not a matter of an uprising that threatened settlers, rather it was an outbreak of war between two armed groups in which whites and Indians sought each other out. My officers and fire department, we went along the river houses and notified everybody and recommended evacuation, said Hardy Police Chief Scott Rose. Gumption is spirit, courage, spunk, boldness, and initiative. Is this derivation correct? Neither provides any documentation: http://pub122.ezboard.com/fwordoriginsorgfrm2.showMessage?topicID=191.topic, http://members.aol.com/MorelandC/HaveOriginsData.htm#LordWillingAndTheCreek. And even if it did, the initial capital letter would mean nothing, as at the time it was still common practice to capitalise all nouns. Come visit me at LeahWeiss.com where you can subscribe to my CREEKRISE author news. Cows aren't known for their speed, and they are usually out and about, wandering until feeding time. Then theres a long gap in the record before it began to appear again in the 1950s. A preacher who hires a very different kind of woman than is usually found in these parts. What Grandma says when you pull in the driveway, pop out of the car, and come running. Maya Rodale is a best-selling romance author. I was reading a post on one of the West Virginia pages that I follow in which a person referenced God willing and the creeks dont rise. in reference to rain and floods. Learn how your comment data is processed. Back when I was in the fourth grade we had an English teacher who dumped a box of books out one day and told us to read them and do book reports. "The Good Lord willing and the 'creek' don't rise" is just one of them. Affixes dictionary. In his response, he was said to write, God willing and the Creek dont rise. Because he capitalized the word Creek it is deduced that he was referring to the Creek Indian tribe and not a body of water. The doin hasnt been done yet. When you're fixin' to do something, it's going to happen, but you also may decide to take your sweet time. [1][2], Classic versions of its use tend to be along the lines of "The good Lord willing, and the creek doesn't rise"i.e. Get help and learn more about the design. It can be summarised as "if all goes well". The Creek were a tribe of Native Americans (indians) who would ambush people who were traveling West. That means whatever you're talking about is worth less than very little. (I would not be surprised to discover that the last contributor on your first link is none other than our own samclem.). Speaking ofI declare, this now old-fashioned phrase acts as flustered response to an insult or an unbelievable story about someone who sadly made it into the rumor mill. A true Southern tradition. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. A rising creek could spell trouble, as it can lead to flooding and other issues. What's The Difference Between Y'all And Ya'll? 24 of 30. Oh, if the good Lord's willing and the creek don't rise. When the road looks rough ahead, remember the 'Man upstairs'. The underscore of that sentiment would be that he married his common-law wife on his deathbed and she was of the Creek Indians. Stop right there! Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. But I know of just four instances from that century. If you're trying to be nice, but you just can't quite let it go, "bless your heart" is a go-to. Devil's beating his wife (when it would be sunny and raining). And I mean took me there! By clicking Accept All Cookies, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Those who live on Valley Drive along the Spring River in Hardy awoke around 3 Friday morning to first responders urging them to leave their homes due to rising water. This was an extremely enjoyable read! As they returned home, some of them also killed some settlers in the Ohio valley. 4.5 stars! I'm fixin' to tell you that this phrase is as Southern as sweet tea. Theres no better zinger than a bless your heart delivered in a condescending tone of voice that implies, as the Southern Decoder puts it, youre dumb, homely, or otherwise impaired, but you cant help it.Go ahead and practice it in the mirror a few times. The exact tranlation might be, 'If God is willing, and there isn't a flood that would prevent us from meeting again next week'. The General replied to Stonewall Jackson that he would send troops "the Good Lord is willing and the Creeks don't rise (in rebellion). https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=Lord_willing_and_the_creek_don%27t_rise&oldid=70955250. A very young, newly married pregnant woman, she vows her no good moonshining husband has beaten her for the last time. What in tarnation? Marty Stuart places the words "If the Good Lord's willin' and the creek don't rise, we'll see you in the mornin'." Step into the Deep South and experience the lives and hardships, hopes and dreams, of folk who have nothing except gritand sometimes loveas their currency. Georgia-born blogger Jennifer Collins says she always rolled her eyes when her mom said this to her. It turns out that the phrase was written by Benjamin Hawkins in the late 18th century. Copyright Michael Quinion, 1996. We are an American people, born under the flag of independence and if the Lord is willing and the creeks dont rise, the American people who made this country will come pretty near controlling it. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Anytime it rains as hard as it did last night, it always brings back fears of having to face something like we did in 1984, he said. If you use this phrase, you could be declaring any number of things: surprise, dissent, happiness. IF THE CREEK DON'T RISE is character driven and one fine gritty and entertaining debut with one fine satisfying ending! "Well I s'wanee" evokes the Southern Suwannee River.