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Many conversations with Elvis would result in his talking about spiritual matters and usually the Bible as that was his guide for living and he turned to it for solving personal problems as well. We spoke about being baptized and he told of having been ducked under water in a pond fed by a natural creek in Tupelo and that he had felt so "light" in body, as if he would float away and that he had chills just remembering that feeling. And that it wasn't because he was cold either, the water was warm and it was a real hot day, he said. He was about 12 and he wanted to be baptized so his momma let him since he was old enough to discern right from wrong according to the Bible. And that afterward, sometimes in church when somebody "spoke in tongues" praising God, he could transulate what was said- once he said there was a visiting preacher and he did it, but no one transulated so he stood up and did it. When he was done he got scared he said, because ever body was starin' at me. His mother told him it was the most Godly thing she ever heard- and she was so proud for her son to have that gift.
He didn't know what that gift was-but if he had it then he was real proud then, he said and laughed. He added that it just seemed like the thing to do since no one was going to so "I just did it". He used to go to a black church nearby because he loved the music and the pastor's delivery was "so special" and he'd sit in the back after everyone had come in-sometimes he was the only white boy there he said, and then later he took his girlfriend with him and they'd be the only white ones. She liked the music too, he said and one time she got up and sang a song with him because sometimes the pastor would ask him if he wanted to sing with them and he said, "Sure I did-and he knew I was about to bust from wanting to sing with them!" His girlfriend was Dixie at that time, I belive he said, and she could sing harmony with him "real well". He was around15 at the time... He said "if I hadn't graduated an started singing an' she'd been outta school, I'd of been married to her an' probably had 5 kids an' never would 've done records or nothin'.... I would've been workin' some job, watchin' football, lookin' sloppy 'n bein' lazy an' sittin' 'round drinkin' beer, smokin', talkin' jive 'n keepin' my wife knocked up...damn, my first hit saved me!" and he laughed. "Lawd, lawd...wouldn't be no body -don't know how that would of gone down... there'd been some body else doin' this sh.. 'n not this boy! Maybe 6 kids might of made it better...Gawd, glad that didn't happen! I'd missed all this excitement an' that'd been a real shame! Naw... not this boy-I was born to rock! 'course, if the beds a big 'un rollin' ain't bad either."
And of course he laughed that snickering giggle.