Aunt Lefa

My paternal grandfather was from rural West Virginia. He had an aunt named Lefa. Lefa was a BAD ASS.

When Lefa was a teenager, the neighbor (possibly a widower?) dropped his young son off for her to babysit while he went out. He returned four years later, drunk, and demanded his son (who by that time, of course, had been unofficially adopted by the family). Lefa refused. I don't know exactly what transpired - I assume that he became belligerent and violent - in the end, Lefa shot and killed the man. My grandfather grew up knowing the boy as a cousin.

Years later, my newly wedded, still-hippie parents visited the relatives in West Virginia. After the customary congratulations, Aunt Lefa pulled my mom aside and told her, quietly, "Honey, if that man ever gives you any trouble, you just get yourself a big ol' hatpin. Poke him with it a couple of times and he won't bother you any more."

Do you have any, ANY idea how much I wish I could have met this woman?