Life's Journey by Heritage Biographies

Life’s Journey

With loving gratitude we dedicate this book to our families and friends for the inspiration, love and support we receive from them.

Contents

HAZEL WILSON

pages 5-16

ELLEN LITTLETON

pages 29-44

The Spring 5

My Favorite Uncle 29

Apples 8

Entrepreneur 35

Thunder Chair 9

County Fair 38

The Big Suprise 11

Childhood Entertainment 39

Prayer Time 15

BARBARA MASON

pages 17-28

LINDA ROLLINS

pages 45-56

I Knew My Grandmother Loved Us When… 18

Beach Memories 46

The Leopard 20

Car Memories 51

A Safe Place 22

The Stone Mountain Adventure 53

Miss Gristle 23 When I Knew I Was Not A Dancer… 25

Contents

REBECCA SAHAKIAN

pages 57-64

TERRI MITCHELL

pages 81-86

Life In The Thirties 57

My Wedding Day 82

My Favorite Motherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Day 60

A Lasting Friendship 84

My Mother 61 Anticipation 63

SILVIA MUNGER

pages 65-80

NORINA LEWIS

pages 87-96

Introduction To Living History 66

Life With Ernie 89

Scharpf Family Christmas Eve 67

Kitty 91

Soldiers 69

I Am 95

Latin 76 The Seasons 78

Preface

After reading about an organization called The Association of Personal Historians in a local newspaper in 2006, I realized that becoming a personal historian would be a perfect it for me. As a personal historian, I could combine all of my talents in photography, videography, and graphic design in ways that would bene it my clients to help them record their family stories to create a permanent legacy.

A couple of years ago, after my mother’s death, I realized

I also realized it might be bene icial to develop a

how few stories I remembered about my mother’s life, most were just fragments and none of what I remembered had

workshop that helped people learn how to do this themselves.

been written down by my mother. Part of my history had

I called it “Jumpstart Your Life History Project” and oﬀered

disappeared and I realized then how important it was to

it at the Snellville Senior Center and eventually the Gwinnett

preserve family stories. I felt compelled to help prevent this

Senior Center.

from happening to other families.

There are many bene its of recording and sharing your life stories. Remembering and sharing your stories helps you

I ‘ve always been interested in stories about life and as a photographer, I worked in the editorial ield illustrating

to integrate parts of yourself that you may have forgotten

stories with my images. Finding out the story about the person

and gives you a deeper understanding of who you are and

in the image was the most enjoyable part of the job for me.

how you came to be the person you are today. There are also 1

Preface

health bene its. Exercising and developing your memory

This workshop is designed to help each student develop

helps to prevent cognitive decline as you age and sharing

a comfortable way for them to access their memories and

your stories in a group setting strengthens your social

record them in a way that they enjoy, whether that way is

structure. Students develop emotional bonds to the other

writing, scrapbooking or audio/ video recording.

members of the workshop when they share their stories.

The emphasis of this workshop is on the â&#x20AC;&#x153;storyâ&#x20AC;? not

There is no better way for a person to learn about you than

the grammar and elements of writing. This way the low of

through the stories of your life, told in your own words. Your

emerging memories is not interrupted by critical thoughts

stories reveal your struggles, your successes and all of the

and the student is not overwhelmed by the technical details

events and people who helped to shape your life. As you

of writing. Using a variety of tools and memory triggers,

share your stories with the workshop participants your story

workshop participants learn to access deeper levels of

details help trigger memories for the other members, and

memory, unveiling the rich detail they have available for

everyone is enriched in the process.

writing their stories. Many are astounded by the low of memories and how easily they are accessed. Workshop

The workshop has evolved over the last three years and I have adjusted the format depending on my studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

participants ind themselves in a supportive environment and

individual needs. Most of my students are interested in

feel comfortable revealing themselves with no fear of critique.

writing their stories but this is not your usual writing class.

This book is an anthology of personal stories from

Learning to write is not the purpose of the workshop.

students that have been in the workshop over the past couple 2

Preface of years. I wanted to do a book for a couple of reasons. I thought it would be a great exercise for my students to be part of the process of designing a book and having it printed so they could experience it irsthand. The other reason was to honor and express my appreciation to my students for enriching my life. They reaf irm to me how rewarding it is to record, preserve and share the stories of our lives with those we love. I hope you will enjoy this collection of stories as much as I have listening to them in class.

To ind out more about what a Personal Historian does, please visit my website www.HeritageBiographies.com, there you will ind a complete listing of ways your life stories can be turned into a lasting family legacy. You can also visit www.celebrateyourlifeworkshop.com to learn more about the workshop mentioned in this book

Introduction I am encouraged to listen to the members of my class

what we remember. We hope that these records of our

read their stories from our life history. We all are so diﬀerent

accomplishments as well as lessons learned from our

and have lived such unique and separate lives. There is no

mistakes will trickle down from generation to generation.

contest, and no one story is better than the other, but all are

Some of the things that we have experienced might be

very interesting. While one person is reading, I might want

unbelievable and hard to comprehend, but this is our

to cry; another, I might feel like laughing; another paints

legacy that we hope will be bene icial to those who follow.

a picture that I would love to have experienced because

Hazel F. Wilson

it sounds so far from anything of which I’ve been a part. However, I realize that I would not want to exchange my memories for any that I’ve heard. I would like to have visited some of the places that they describe or maybe seen some of the sights they have seen, but I would not give up my own, because my life is the result of the experiences that I have had with my family and friends. All of us are unique people, God’s creation, who have collected a lifetime of memories that each one will always cherish. Now we are writing our stories to pass on to the next generation that they might learn and grow from 4

Hazel F. Wilson

The Spring

Living on the farm in rural Virginia before electricity had Hazel Franklin Wilson, a

become available, we didn’t have the luxury of inside bathrooms

native Virginian, has been

or being able to turn on a faucet to get water. I remember when

a resident of Lawrenceville, Georgia for ive years, and was the irst student

we moved to the farm, my Dad took us quite a distance from the house and down a hill to get some fresh water. It was just a deep

to enroll in Enid Grigg’s class, “Jumpstart Your

hole in the ground with clear water bubbling up in it; we called it

Life History.” Inspired and encouraged by Enid,

a SPRING. The men of the family would search in the lower level

she has enjoyed penning some of her many stories, giving a glimpse of her life’s journey. At age 81, Hazel fondly remembers her child-

of their farmland until they would ind a very moist area. Then they would dig deeper until they hit the spot where the water

hood days spent living on the farm with her

was coming upward. If it was a continuous low, they would

parents and ive siblings. Hazel’s four children,

investigate further until, as they called it, “they had discovered

son-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandchildren and

a (vein of water).” What a great accomplishment it was to ind

great grandchild are all great motivation as she prepares a wonderful legacy of memories.

a place to get pure water for their families and their livestock! After digging deep enough, they would secure the spring so that nothing could fall in. There was always enough water there to supply all of a family’s needs. I can almost hear my mother as she would say to us, “Children, take these buckets and go to the spring and get some more water, please.” My mom was noted as being very particular about keeping things clean for her family. She thoroughly washed everything that she cooked for us 5

The Spring or gave us to eat. We had to bring water from that spring for

and looked like diamonds. As I am remembering it now,

Mom to wash our clothes, scrub our loors, and to have water

the sand and those rocks could do none other than to shine

for our baths and anything that required the use of water.

because that pure water was washing over them day and

Soon my Dad was able to make a big improvement to our

night. The water would come up out of the earth, low out of

spring. He was blessed to ind a big round pipe that was made

the spigot over the sand and rocks, and down the stream. That

of a material which resembled cement. Daddy put it over the

water kept going; it never came back, providing a continuous

“vein.” It was open at the top and bottom, so the water could

low of pure water. My! The sand and rocks did sparkle, so

continue to come up. The opening at the top was wide enough

clear and bright!

for us to bend over it, put a bucket down in the spring and

This inspirational thought comes to mind: that the

pull it up full of water. I remember it being so hard for me to

blood of Jesus Christ that was shed for me is supernaturally

get my bucket full. We had a cover for the spring when it was

pouring over me day and night, cleansing my soul, making me

not in use to keep the animals out or any other impurities

a glowing and shining being to the glory of God.

that might get into the water. Dad thought of another good idea: he was able to make a hole in the side of the pipe which

1 John 1:7

served as sort of a spigot under which we could set the

and the blood of Jesus, His Son, puriϔies us from all sin.

bucket. That device made it so much easier for us. Dad was very creative and always tried to make life better for his family. I remember that directly under that spigot, there were some rocks and sand that gleamed in the sunlight 6

The Spring The water would be fresh, clear and cold,

I had illed my pail and was already to go

“Please get another pail,” we were often told.

With a pail full of water I had to walk slow.

“Run down the hill and please hurry back,

I began to panic when I saw the tall tree,

Don’t walk so slow don’t count your tracks.”

Many more were looking down at me.

Mom gave each of us a pail to be illed,

Suppose those trees will began to walk,

The spring was at the bottom of the hill.

And what if some will began to talk?

“I need more water to wash these greens,

I ran home carrying an empty pail,

I won’t cook them unless they are clean.”

Afraid that the trees were on my trail.

We grabbed our pails and were on our way,

I ran straight into my Mothers arms,

We went to the spring many times a day.

She held me tightly until I was calm.

Once my ive siblings were not at home,

Mom and Dad had great conversation

So I told Mom that I could go alone.

While laughing at my vivid imagination.

Apples “Bring in a few of those red apples” my Mom would say I think I will begin saving some of them today. The sun is shining brightly and the sky is very clear I should start drying some apples for us to eat next year. We would get a big bag and sometimes a bucket too It wouldn’t be very long before we’d be all through Picking the ripe red apples that had fallen to the ground They would be such big ones they weighted almost a pound. We would take them to the kitchen and my Mom would be there Getting out her knife and pan and reaching for her chair. After we had done our job we could go out to play Mom would peel and slice apples the rest of the day. When she had inished, she would give us a call To put the apples upon the roof we’d be careful not to fall. We would spread the apple slices; the roof was made of tin When they touched the heated surface the drying would begin. We would leave them for a day or two, out on the roof to dry This was done on sunny days when no clouds were in the sky. Mom would put them in cloth bags and store them out of sight She cooked them during the winter months, when the time was right. Sometimes Mom would cook something special for us to eat Those brown apple turnovers were always a delicious treat. 8

Thunder Chair The TV program was suddenly interrupted with breaking

about lightening striking and killing a relative, who lived near

news and the meteorologist was announcing that severe storms

us. That happened before I was old enough to know anything

were approaching our area, packing high winds, lightening, hail,

about it but I remember the story being told. I was told that he

rain, and a possibility of tornadoes.

had been working in the ield and was on his way to the house with his metal hoe on his shoulder. Each story contributed to

This reminded me of those times during my childhood years,

my fear of storms.

when living on the farm in Virginia as a storm approached. We would be working in the ields, planting, cultivating or

We were given many precautions to help protect us from

harvesting the crops when my Dad would take oﬀ his old straw

getting struck by lightening. We were told to never handle metal

hat, gaze into the sky, and say to my siblings and me, “We have

when it was storming, get in water, stand under a tree, and by all

to work fast to get this job done because I can see those thunder

means, not to sit in front of an open door or window. Whenever

heads getting together up there, and the wind is coming from the

the thunder would start rolling, and the lightening lashing, all

right direction to develop into a severe storm.” We had heard so

of my siblings and I would get Mama’s quilts to lie on in the

many storm stories that my sister, Dorothy, and I would dread

dark hallway. Sometimes the storm would last so long that we

those times when Dad would make that announcement. My

would fall asleep; staying there all night sleeping on those soft

sister was so afraid of storms that sometimes she would have

quilts that Mom had so lovingly made for us. We were taught

headaches.

to be quiet when it was storming. I heard my Dad quote this

Occasionally, we would hear Mom and Dad talking about

scripture many times, “The Lord is in His Holy Temple let all the

someone’s house being struck by lightening. They also told us

earth keep silent before Him.” I have always given reverence to 9

Thunder Chair God during those thunder storms. After all my 76 years of inding a dark place in my home in Virginia, moving to Georgia required that I look for a special place in my new home. One day during a storm, I had found a dark place in my hallway and was just sitting there in a chair waiting for the storm to pass when my son-in-law came by and noticed me there. He suddenly exclaimed, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Oh, you are sitting in your My Thunder Chair

Thunder Chair!â&#x20AC;? We laughed because it was such an appropriate name for the chair. We discovered that that chair was not very comfortable, so my son-in-law and my daughter gave me a more comfortable chair for my dark place. So whenever the storms come, you can always ind me sitting quietly in my THUNDER CHAIR.

The Big Suprise I knew I would be 70 years old on my birthday, but I

so she hoped something would it. I didn’t think it strange

wasn’t giving much thought to that, for my daughter, Gloria,

because she was always buying clothes for me. It did seem

had invited my sister, Dorothy, her daughter, and me to

odd, however, that everyone there was looking so serious and

Pennsylvania for a visit and to attend a women’s conference.

looking at me. I just assumed they were curious. My brother-

We were all so excited, so plans had to be made: my husband,

in-law was a little anxious, but I thought it was because he

who wasn’t well, was going to stay with his sister, and my

was ready to get on the road; after all, he was the driver.

sister Dorothy’s husband would drive us to Pennsylvania.

We got on the road and rode the four hours that it

We made the trip, arriving safely and looking forward

took to get to my sister’s house. I remember that once we

to worshipping and praising the Lord. My sister, our two

arrived, my niece wanted to show me her children’s school,

daughters, and I were together attending the conference daily,

but my sister remained in the car and seemed very upset

eating meals together, and enjoying late night discussions

that we stayed so long. I realized later that she was anxious

with each other. Although we were together almost all the

to get home to inish the tasks awaiting her at her house in

time, no one let a word slip that would let me know that they

preparation for the party.

were planning a surprise birthday party for me.

Upon arrival at my sister’s house, instead of resting,

Well, Saturday morning was our time to leave

she and Fred (her husband) began cleaning. I asked, “Aren’t

Pennsylvania and return to Virginia. After the car was packed,

you people tired from the trip?” I was, and thought they

Gloria came to me with a big box and said, “Mama, try this on

should be also. I began to help but when my brother-in-law

and let’s see what its.” She had two purple three-piece suits

began washing windows on the porch, I got upset with them.

(jacket, skirts, and pants) for me to try, two diﬀerent sizes,

My sister said she was cleaning because her children were 11

The Big Suprise coming for Mother’s Day. I remember thinking, “If my children

space, I saw a family that I knew getting out of the car. My

were coming and I needed to do all that cleaning, I would let

sister pretended that I was mistaken. Once inside, I saw

them clean themselves.” I got so upset with them that I sat in

Kristin, Gloria’s daughter. I was confused, because I had just

a chair and went to sleep.

left her in Pennsylvania that morning. She said, “Grandma, I am not saying anything.” While we were standing in the

My daughter, Lorraine, was supposed to come to take me home at 6:00 p.m. I needed to get my husband from his

entrance, one waitress asked another, “Is she the one?” I then

sister’s house, but my sister, Dorothy, said, “Don’t call her yet,

asked, “What’s going on?” My sister told me to open the door

I’m talking to my son about plans for Mother’s Day dinner.”

to the banquet room and to go in to see what’s going on. She opened the door, pushing me in. The room was full of people:

Soon my sister said to me, “Wake up, Haydee, and go put on that suit that Gloria gave you and we can go to dinner.

the irst ones I recognized were my sister-in-law and her

Linda (her daughter) will meet us there.” When I came down

children who were living in Savannah, Georgia at that time.

after getting dressed, there were she and Fred, all dressed in

The next person was my husband who I thought was miles

white suits. I said, “You two look so nice; I can’t go with you

away at his sister’s house. All of my immediate family were

all.” Sister said, “Come on, girl, you look nice too.” I was a little

there except one of my brothers. My children, grandchildren,

upset with her, because I really wanted to save my suit to

nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and neighbors were all there

wear on Mother’s Day.

in that banquet room.

We left the house to go to the restaurant where her children were supposed to meet us to have an early Mother’s Day dinner. When we arrived and were looking for a parking

continued... 12

The Big Suprise

My dear Fred and Dottee,

I was shocked beyond explanation. It was a great

The well-kept secret

party. I realized that my sister had worn the white suit

Can be attributed to you.

because her singing group had decided to wear white

You carried out the part

for they were on the program. Granddaughter, Kara, did

You were asked to do.

a mime. My son and his singing group sang also. Family

Like movie stars on Broadway, Acting out a play,

and friends said such nice things about me. A cousin even wrote a poem. My family and friends gave me nice gifts

The premier of the movie

(cash included) and many hugs and kisses. I had heard of

Was to be on my birthday.

surprise parties, but this one was my irst, such a joyful

An excellent performance,

experience that I will never forget.

You did not give away a clue. But you were right there Trusting God to see me through.

The Big Suprise

My dear Clarence and Gloria, It seems like to me I should have known; After all I was right there in your home. You planned it well we all agree, A surprise party just for me! You have given me so much through the years; Your kindness always brings me to tears. I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t count the blessings you have sent my way; But oh, you surprised me on my birthday! Financially speaking, there was a price to pay: The Restaurant, the food and a place to stay, The calls, the trips and the invitations too; That was an awesome chore for you to do. Family and friends from far and near; A surprise like that, did I act queer? That was a nice gift you gave to your mother, The love that you show me is like none other. I thank you both for your sacriĎ?ice and care; Your blessings from God, you so willingly share. 14

Prayer Time

Growing up in a Christian home, it was our custom to always give thanks to God before we ate our meals. On Sunday mornings, mother would cook a special breakfast of our best foods. As the aroma from those hot buttered rolls, sausage, bacon, eggs, fried potatoes or apples, etc. would ill the house; all of us would kneel around the table as Daddy prayed. We had to stay on our knees until he inished talking to the Lord. I can still remember some of the McDonald â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mackâ&#x20AC;? Franklin

words Daddy would say:

Alibee W. Franklin

Prayer Time

“O God, our heavenly Father, once more and again your humble servant bow before Thee to thank Thee for thou long forbearing mercy; for we realize, our Father, that mercy suits our case. We thank Thee that You woke us up this morning, yet on this side of eternity; clothed in our right mind; the blood still running warm in our veins; have the activity of our limbs and a reasonable portion of health and strength. Father, we thank Thee for food, for clothing and for shelter; for we realize that You are our creator and our provider. Thou art God and above Thee there is no other. Heavenly Father, we know that You sit high and look low. You know all about us; you know what we need even before we ask . Father God, please come into our midst and bless us, bless each one of us. Bless us one by one, and give us those things You see we stand in need of, for both soul and body. Father, stand by us, rule, direct and guide us; hold us in the hollow of Your mighty hands. Dear Lord, go with us through the exercises of this day; front and ϔight our each and every battle; throw Your long arms of protection around us and keep us safe from all harm and danger. Lift us up on every leaning side. And Heavenly Father, when this warfare is over and we have gone in to come out no more, please give us a home in Thy kingdom where every day will be Sunday and Sabbath has no end. These blessings, we ask them all in Jesus’ name. Amen”

Barbara Mason stories of hard times unknown in my children’s lifetimes

I am a retired elementary school teacher. I have a husband, two

and stories of the good times money could never buy. An

grown sons and two grandchildren

understanding of the past and the people who forged it give

all of whom make my life very en-

our children and grandchildren knowledge and wisdom.

joyable. I would like to give them

This is the kind of understanding that has been nearly lost

something-something that can’t

with the dispersing of families from one coast to the other.

be bought or stolen...memories.

Our children need to know what their forebears have

I was born in Roswell, New Mexico

experienced, suﬀered, lost and celebrated. They need to

during WWII. My parents were native Oklahomans and

know us and how our country became what it is today.

met at the Army Air Corps base in Roswell. My mother was

They need to know their roots and how their families

a Rosie the Riveter type and my father a serviceman. Even

have developed and survived over the decades. Lastly

though I have lived many places during my life I con-

they need to know us as human beings whose personal

sider Claremore, Oklahoma the place where I “grew up”.

experiences have molded us into the parents, grandpar-

My father has always been interested in his family history

ents, friends, employees and citizens that we are today.

and has preserved so much of it through his writing and story telling. He has inspired me to continue his legacy with my own stories of growing up and older in America. My parents have lived the American Dream. Regardless of their humble beginnings as children on hardscrabble farms in the middle of the Great Depression and a severe drought, they persevered, followed their goals and are now enjoying a comfortable old age. My parents and I have stories to tell. There are

Barbara Mason 17

I Knew My Grandmother Loved Us When... I n the mid 70’s my parents lived in Claremore.

as they were readying to leave. We’d made the rounds with

Oklahoma. My family, was now living in Irving, Texas and

our hugs and were ready to wave goodby till next time.

my grandparents lived a two hour drive from Claremore

Before she stepped into the car my grandmother turned and

in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. Still independent, even though,

uncharacteristically looked deeply at each one of us as if she

now in their 80’s, they often drove up for family visits. My

were memorizing our faces.

grandmother had been having mild “heart trouble” as she

That was the last time I saw her. That evening as she

spoke of her angina and sometimes took medication for it.

turned to walk across her own living room she fell and broke

Nevertheless, she never let fear of her condition hold her

her hip. In those days a broken hip joint was a serious injury

back. Family came irst.

for an elderly woman since they would often succumb to the

On one particular occasion, I don’t remember what, we had all gathered at my parents’ house for a few days.

treatment. Surgery was too much for her heart which gave way a day or two after.

Times were good then with all of us making an eﬀort to be

Youth is such a foolish time. I didn’t expect her to go. So,

together: my cousins, my brother, aunts and uncles, my

I didn’t make the six hour trip from Texas to see her in the

parents and my grandparents. It was wonderful. Of course,

hospital. My last goodby was that day she looked into my eyes,

none of us knew that then. We just took it for granted.

and I was only confused as to her meaning.

When a visitor leaves it is our family custom to follow

Looking back at that poignant moment I know how much

the visitor to the door and wave as they drive away. This

my grandmother loved us all, and how lucky we were to have

time we had all gathered around my grandparent’s car

her in our lives. Luckier than we even knew for that was the 18

I Knew My Grandmother Loved Us When... beginning of the unraveling of my large, close family. A couple of years after her death, my very lonely grandfather passed away. My grandparents were the anchors to which our family was bound. Without them we all began to loat away from each other. My family and I had moved across the continent only to go “home” to my parents house once a year in the summer. Then there were deaths of uncles and aunts, divorces, estrangements among family members, older adults becoming the elderly as well as physical distance all of which weaken the ties holding families together. In time each family moved on, some building their families as our grandparents before us had, others loundering, never seeming to grow new roots. Some of us continue to gather Me, my Grandmother and my little brother

as an extended family, but it has never been the same as in the “old days”. In the look my grandmother gave us that day was a good-by, and with it, perhaps, the sad knowledge that nothing would ever be the same for any of us.

The Leopard In February 1950 all the radios in Oklahoma City were

would calm my fears. No matter that the zoo was way across

tuned in to stations broadcasting the news of a leopard

town from my neighborhood. Who knew how

which had escaped its grotto

fast a hungry, angry leopard could travel.

in the city zoo. Headlines

My parents, of course, saw my fear as utter

around the world depicted

foolishness. As parents will do they assumed

Oklahoma City as being in

I just needed to develop a little courage, and

mass confusion as authorities

their job was to see that I did. They decided

frantically searched for the

to nudge me toward bravery by forcing me

escapee. The leopard was only on

to walk to the neighborhood grocery store

the loose for three days, but for a

to buy a carton of Cokes. They

little neurotic kid like me it seemed

insisted my little brother

like three years.

accompany me. Maybe they

I was terri ied and listened

thought I would rise to the

intently to all radio reports as the media

occasion if I had someone to

announced each maneuver to capture this animal. I

protect? How naive parents

obsessed about that leopard, and where he might have

can be.

gone. I wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t play outside for fear that spotted monster

I skulked all the way to the store looking around

would jump out and scarf me up. No amount of reassurance

everywhere for the leopard. We arrived at the store, bought 20

The Leopard was every kid for herself that day.

our supplies, and headed home. As we hurried back looking

My parents had to retrieve my brother who had

every which way, I saw a boy riding like the wind on his bicycle. “Now why would a boy be riding a bicycle that fast for

surprisedly not been eaten by the leopard. I was in the

no reason at all,” I reasoned. I quickly came to the conclusion

doghouse for the rest of the day, and my little rother, for his

that any frightened six year old would make. That

trouble, received a nice, new T-shirt

boy was being stalked by the leopard, and that’s

with a picture of Leapy the Leopard

why he was racing down the street as if his life

who had become quite famous by then. The poor leopard didn’t fair any

depended on it.

better than I did. He was inally caught

My feet got the best of my head and leaving my little brother to fend for himself, I lew home.

after eating drugged horse meat and

By the time I arrived I was in a state, the cokes

died of an overdose the next day. I think

were broken and leaking down my legs. I was

at the time I didn’t care as long as he

yelling to my parents that the leopard was coming,

was no longer stalking little girls, and

but all they wanted to know was the location of

I was no longer a prisoner in my own

my little brother. I looked behind me-no little

home. It was a long three days.

brother. I did yell for him to hurry up

My brother wearing his leopard shirt

but didn’t take time to see if he had. It

A Safe Place Big overstuffed chair,

A porch swing

Smell of new leather,

Creaking rhythmically,

Creaking of body against fabric,

Symphony of nature,

Head lolling back,

Faint melody of wind chimes,

Book open but abandoned,

Fragrance of honeysuckle,

Sound of snoozing,

Tart sweetness of lemonade,

Velvety taste of hot, milky coffee,

Twilight enveloping the day,

A safe place for a husband

A safe place for me.

Sunlight sprinkling the walls,

Dusty old attic,

Posters coloring bright in the light,

Smell of lemon oil and old

Smell of dust and old sneakers,

wood,

Clothes strewn everywhere,

Furniture long since new,

Fizzy sweet of Coca Cola,

Quilt patched by loving hands,

Telephone ringing,

Feather bed, beckoning,

Music blaring,

Echo of childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s laughter,

A safe place for a son.

Recollection of homemade chocolate cake

Giant, Ď?luffy pillow,

Distant train whistle

Fireplace simmering,

Plaintively mourning goodbyes

Television murmuring,

A safe place for memories

Rain pattering on the roof, Paws twitching dreamily, Rawhide bone gnawed to a fragment, Beloved human smells, A safe place for a dog. 22

Miss Gristle One of my more memorable teachers was Miss Gristle.

calling each other to check information. “Did you get

She was famous, or infamous, perhaps, would be a more

number four? My answer for number two is...” She didn’t

accurate label. She was an old maid whose horned rimmed

seem to mind our little cheating ways as long as we gave it

glasses and teacher’s trademark bun led us to believe she was

a shot. Unfortunately, she often seemed to pick on certain

intelligent. If that didn’t do it she was very convincing in class.

people. The blue-eyed beauty whose math ability or interest

She taught math–geometry I to sophomores and higher math

was lacking cried a few tears in that class along with us

to upperclassmen who survived geometry.

sympathizers.

We all believed she was a communist. That is because

Lord help the poor student of ice workers who

when we had assemblies to which all teachers were required

interrupted her class to retrieve the attendance report

to attend, she did not stand for the Pledge of Allegiance as

which she often forgot to hang outside the door. They were

the rest of us but sat and graded papers through the entire

accustomed to being hit with chalkboard erasers as their

assembly, pledge, prayer and all. So, in our minds she had to

reward and didn’t seem to mind. They were upperclassmen.

be a communist.

They’d run the gamut of geometry I and had made it. They were the inner circle who understood Miss Gristle’s quirks.

Miss Gristle’s temper was widely acknowledged and feared. She was known to reduce beauty queens and jocks

It was once explained to me by an upperclassman who

alike to sweaty puddles. All were equally vulnerable to her

supposedly was “in the know” that Miss Gristle was a “woman

wrath. You came to class prepared and ready to do math or

scorned” which was the root of her bad humor. It was said

you were sorry you didn’t. Many of us spent our evenings

that she had had an aﬀair with the local undertaker in our 23

Miss Gristle little town.. No one knows for sure, but we did notice that

At the end of the year my little girlfriend and I were

after lunch, when our geometry class was held, her breath was

invited by Miss Gristle to take her Algebra II class. I

a little aromatic. We assumed she had to take a nip or two to

remember when she asked us. We both stared at our toes as

dull the pain of her unrequited love in order to face us math-

we hesitantly told her that we were going to take typing and

challenged sixteen year olds.

stenography. We expected outrage, but she was very nice

In all the years of Miss Gristle I don’t remember any

about it. We were shy girls, and even though she had always

student ever talking back to her. In this day and time that

been nice to us, we had had enough. What a shame that we

seems amazing. Perhaps someone did speak up and didn’t live

couldn’t see through the act and try another class with her

to tell about it, but I don’t remember any sudden, unexplained

because she was actually a very good math teacher. I learned

student deaths. It’s just that no one dared.

more in math that year than ever before. Whether it was

Miss Gristle left our school after a while to teach in a

her teaching or the fact that I was scared not to learn- who

girl’s school up north. She came back for a visit one time

knows.

and told us the rest of her story. It seems in the girl’s school

Forty years later a high school reunion committee sent a

she had become known as a bit of a softy. We were amazed.

questionnaire to the alumni. One of the questions asked us

Eventually, it was told that she gave up her old maid status

to name our most memorable teacher. Miss Gristle was at the

and married. Who knows if it was the man of her dreams, but

top of a very short list.

perhaps she decided to settle for a guy who could tolerate a high maintenance woman. 24

When I knew I Was a Not a Dancer... It was in the early 60’s. I had been studying ballet in

attention I was accustomed to receiving, I suddenly became “a

Tulsa with “artists in residence”, Moscylene Larkin and Roman

little ish in a big pool” and was given very little notice. That

Jasinski. At that time this couple who had been international

was ine with me. I had a lot to learn. At this time ballet was blossoming across the United

ballet stars in the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, a European traveling ballet company, retired in

States. Many small ballet companies

Tulsa to found a ballet studio and

were growing in the larger cities

The Tulsa Civic Ballet Company. Miss

and Tulsans were fortunate to

Larkin or Miss Mousia, as we called

have the Jasinskis to foster a new

her, was one of Oklahoma’s renowned

ballet company in their town . The

Indian ballerinas along with Maria

Ford Foundation was, at that time,

Tallchief, Marjorie Tallchief, Rosella

providing scholarships for serious

Hightower and Yvonne Chouteau.

young ballet students to study in the more elite schools from New York

My love had always been dance especially ballet dancing. I had begun taking ballet and other

City to London. The New York City Ballet Company, because

dance classes when I was 9 years old but had not trained in

of the association my instructors had with George Balanchine,

a “professional” school until my senior year in high school

the director of that company, would send emissaries to our

which was very late for a dancer to begin serious instruction.

school every so often to observe classes and possibly choose

Therefore, when I entered the school in Tulsa, contrary to the

students for scholarships. 25

When I knew I Was a Not a Dancer... say for the worse. I was no longer the unnoticed little girl.

At one point the famed Maria Tallchief who had been one of the stars of the New York City Ballet Company came to

I became the focus of my instructors. That is a formidable

Tulsa to perform in “Giselle”, a ballet our company was giving.

position for a student. On the one hand it was lattering and

During her visit she was to observe classes at our school.

on the other very challenging. I no longer had the luxury of dancing quietly in the back

After our usual Saturday morning class a special class was being given for Miss Tallchief, but as one of the less important

of the class. Every move I made was now being scrutinized.

students I had not been informed.

Kicks...higher, lines...longer, movement...bigger, turns...faster. It all came to a head one day during a rehearsal. Miss Mousia

Being a very shy girl I sucked up all the bravado I could manage and approached Mr. Jasinski, who was aﬀectionately

who had a iery temperament entered the room near the

called Jasha, to ask if I might attend the special class. He very

end of the rehearsal, and decided I was not dancing “hard”

kindly nodded yes. So, there I was dancing for Maria Tallchief

enough. She took the cane that was ordinarily used to tap out

along with many others.

rhythm to wildly beat the loor at my feet while I was dancing. This was her attempt to “inspire” me to dance harder. It was a

Luckily for me we were asked to perform individual grande jetes across the room as our inale. Grande jetes

humiliating experience for me, of course, and when rehearsal

were my forte. I loved the feeling of lying that you get with a

ended the embarrassment continued. The rehearsal was

really big grande jete. As I lew across the room I noticed Miss

Jasha’s and Miss Mousia had interrupted it to traumatize

Tallchief turn to Miss Larkin to make a comment. Later I was

one of his dancers who he felt had been dancing well. There

told that I was one of two girls who Miss Tallchief “liked”, and

ensued an argument to end all. Mr. Jasinski was Polish and

thereafter my life at the ballet studio took a turn. Some might

When I knew I Was a Not a Dancer... their arguments were always in Polish. The only word any of

dance her. I jumped higher, danced harder, and I did it with

us understood was “Barbara”. It went on and on with Barbara

purpose. I suppose it was a little mean and unappreciative,

this and Barbara that. I wished to crawl away and die. Instead

but I felt I was due a little revenge. Being the true ballerina

I held my head up, and when the performance

she was she ignored me. Ballerinas

came I danced harder than any student on that

don’t need to compete with upstarts.

stage.

My dancing career came to an

That inally won Miss Mousia’s respect.

end when I entered my senior year

She made an announcement the next class for

in college. It is said that if you’re not

everyone to hear that Barbara had strength

trained as a professional dancer by

of character and could take her knocks well.

the time you enter high school, you

Barbara just didn’t want her beating at her feet

will never attain the height needed for

again!

stardom. There is also the element

A couple of years later Miss Mousia was

of maturity. At eighteen I was starry-

preparing for a performance and was dancing

eyed and glory-bound. At twenty-

with us in class. By then I had learned much

one I was looking at the future and wondering about being independent. Reality began to set in.

from my tormentors aka instructors. I had become a pretty

A dancer’s life is a hard one. A little woman beating

good dancer. I found myself dancing next to Miss Mousia. She

the loor at your feet to make you dance harder is nothing

was now forty, and I was twenty, and I felt like I could out27

When I knew I Was a Not a Dancer... compared to the verbal and mental loggings and rejection a

I was not a dancer at heart and could not stay the course for

dancer must be prepared to take. The physical preparation

all the reasons that make a dancer propel themselves through

is as arduous as any professional athlete’s. Professional

that life. At that time I quit my formal dance training and turned to my future with other goals in tact.

dancers are to say the least “diﬀerent”

I have no regrets. I have a wonderful family

in their lifestyle and in their thinking. I had come to the realization

and for years a satisfying teaching career. All the

that, as much as I loved to dance, the

dedication and love I once had for ballet I threw

rigorous physical labor day after day

into my family and career. I never completely

all to culminate in a performance

gave up dance, however. Over the years I have

accompanied by the horror of stage

continued to take class from belly dancing to

fright was no way to spend my life. I

aerobics. Now as a matron in my sixties I enjoy

began to feel that if I had to do one

tap and jazz dancing at the local senior center.

more plie or one more develope at

While I ‘m tapping or jazzing I dream of Miss

the barre I would scream. And all of

Mousia rapping the loor at my feet or Jasha

this for what - applause at the end of a

looking approvingly, and I dance as hard as I can.

performance or the nod of approval of a choreographer. I knew that even though I may have had the basic talent and the correct physical proportions and the love of dance 28

Ellen Littleton

My Favorite Uncle I grew up without a father.

Writing my life history has been on my “bucket list” for sometime. I

Yes, I had a biological

father, but I only lived with he and my mother for short

thought “now that I am retired, I can

periods of time.

easily meet that goal”. But…days,

There was never the father-daughter

bond. Maybe early on I was special to him, since I was his

weeks, months and then years went by, and still no life history for

irst child, I don’t know. But the year after my birth, my

Ellen. It wasn’t until I joined the

brother was born and soon the family grew to include ive

“Jumpstart Your Life History” class, that I was inally able to begin the long delayed process of writing my life

children. Along the way, I began spending more time at my

story. It is an ongoing labor of love. A gift for my son

grandmother’s home. She was my mother’s mother and I

and three grandchildren. Gregg, Brittany, Brandon, and

was her irst grandchild.

Mason. Having a knowledgeable, kind, encouraging, and compassionate instructor like Enid Grigg is one reason

My grandmother and my aunt and uncle lived in

I attend the Life History class at GSC. Another impor-

my grandmother’s home. My grandfather passed away

tant reason I continue in the class, is because of the

the year before I was born. I never knew any of my

quality of individuals who also attend the class. There is such a tremendous atmosphere

grandfathers. My uncle was a very good man. He worked

of encouragement and acceptance

very hard and provided for the family. The family being

among the class members. Thank

my grandmother, my aunt, my uncle, my two cousins, and

you class! Just what I need to keep me on the path to completing my

myself. Of course, my grandmother and my aunt also

life history…my journey….my gift.

worked and helped with the inances. People have asked me if my uncle was like a father to me and my answer is

Ellen is a retired elementary teacher/school counselor 29

always no he was like an uncle to me. I do remember him

My Favorite Uncle getting us up every morning and cooking our breakfast before

She seemed to be always wringing her hands if one of us

we would go to school. There was no question that my aunt

children was riding a bike, climbing a tree, or just goo ing

ruled the family. So it was always my aunt’s rules that I would

oﬀ. She was not adventurous and never a risk taker.

have to follow, and my aunt’s criticism that I would have to

I guess it was a good thing she could not have children.

endure. My uncle was kind to agree to continue to take care

My uncle R. T., on the other hand, was full of life. He

of me after my grandmother passed away. But…there was

always seemed to be happy. I think he was the happiest

never a bond between us.

when he was ishing, hunting, or

For one year I lived with another aunt and uncle. They

having fun with the children in

both were kind and caring to me. I never felt that I was a

the family. Even though he was

burden in their home. They had one daughter and she and

a hunter, he seem to love animals.

I were good cousin friends. She was about 5 years younger

At one time, he had a pet raccoon.

than myself.

I remember him taking me out to

But….there was never a bond between this

uncle and myself.

the pen to watch the raccoon wash

I had another aunt and uncle who lived nearby and

his bread before eating it. He was a

had no children. My aunt Ruby was my mother’s sister

handsome man and I learned after

and could not have children. She was married to my uncle

his death that he had had a few brief Aunt Ruby and Uncle RT

R.T. (Richard Thomas) and there were never two people

aﬀairs with some of the ladies in

more diﬀerent. My aunt Ruby was a very nervous anxious person. Being around children made her extremely nervous.

the town. He loved life and always seem to be happy. He 30

did like his drinks, but unlike my dad who would become

My Favorite Uncle angry when he would have alcohol, my uncle R. T. would just

each other. They would try to see who could shoot the most

become happier. He was a very smart man, even though

colorful and the loudest ireworks. Who was the winner? I

not well educated. He held a very good job and rarely

think we, the children in the family were the winners. In

missed a dayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work. Unlike my own dad who allowed

researching my family history, I discovered maybe one reason

alcohol to rule his life.

that my uncle enjoyed Christmas so much. I learned that my

Christmas was always special to my uncle R. T. I

his birthday was Dec. 26.

remember at the family gatherings, it would be my uncle

I always believed that as a young child, I was special to

who would spike the eggnog and take all of us children

my uncle R.T. I was

outside to shoot ireworks. I can remember the other

my grandmotherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s irst

grownups getting upset with my uncle because he was being

grandchild and so the

a little too wild, but I bet they secretly enjoyed and admired

irst child in the family of

his risk taking behavior. He would spend a great deal of

uncles and aunts. Here

money on buying the biggest and best ireworks he could

is a photo of my uncle R.

ind. Every Christmas Eve at our family party, he would

T. with me in his left arm.

take all of us children in the backyard for the ireworks

My uncle loved

event. And it was an event! We could hardly contain our

children, and was

excitement. My uncle had an ongoing yearly contest with a

childlike in so many

friend of his who lived a couple of miles away. They would

ways.

take turns shooting the ireworks always trying to outdo

I think I was

Uncle RT holding me on the right

My Favorite Uncle his favorite for a short time. Then my cousin Marie became

memory of a visit to Cherokee, NC. My aunt and uncle were

his special child. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t remember ever feeling jealous, just

always early risers. I remember one morning we were at a

accepted the relationship and continued to ind joy in being

picnic area near a mountain stream. I can see my uncle now

around him.

standing out in the stream ishing. The air was cool and I could feel the spray from the water as it touched my bare

Looking at the photo of my uncle sitting on our front

arms and legs. I eagerly joined my uncle at the stream. It

porch reminds me of another story. I had a boyfriend when I was probably in the 3rd or 4th

was so much fun trying to balance myself on the

grade. My boyfriend would

rocks and feeling the cold water rippling over my

always whistle a certain

toes. There were picnic tables and lots of trees.

whistle when he came by our

As I remember we had the area all to ourselves

house. My uncle heard him

that early in the morning.

My aunt started a

one time and took delight in

ire on the small grill and soon we were eating

teasing me by imitating the

our breakfast of eggs, bacon, light bread, sliced

special whistle. I would be

tomatoes, and fried ish. The ish I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t fond of,

shy and cover a smile.

but everything else tasted delicious. Whenever I

My uncle loved to travel to

Uncle RT in our swing

have a chance to visit Cherokee these days and go

the Great Smoky Mts. Most of the time he would take one of

by the mountain stream, I am transported back in time - a

us children on vacation with he and my aunt. I think the fact

time with nature and a time of feeling special.

that he took me by myself made me feel special. I have a vivid

continued...

My Favorite Uncle meant there was a bear. My uncle and I would get out of the

Later as I grew into a teenager, my uncle began to spend more time with my younger cousin Marie. He even bought

car to see the bear, while my aunt stayed nervously in the car.

her a monkey. Of course, he kept it at his house, much to my

She missed out on so much fun. Not me and my uncle! It was my uncle who took me to get my Learner’s Permit

aunt’s disapproval. We had many evenings being entertained

for my driver’s license.

by that monkey. One of the last memories I have of my time with uncle

Sadly the next year in 1956, my uncle was killed in an

R.T. was the year before he passed away. He and my aunt

automobile accident. He had been out with his drinking

Ruby took me on another vacation to the mountains in the

friends and on the way home

summer of 1955. I remember we were in Gatlinburg and

and on a curve lost control of

there was a skylift going to the top of a small mountain.

his car.

We stopped to look at it and my aunt said she was going

had him in our life for many

down the street. My uncle said we would wait for her at

more years. He did leave

the skylift. My aunt’s last words were “you better not get

behind a gift to me…. joyful

I wish we could have

on that skylift”. Well, as soon as she was out of sight, guess

warm caring memories and most important…the gift of love!

what we did? It was so much fun, especially when my aunt

Oh how I wish my son and grandchildren could have known

came back and we were waving at her from the lift.

my favorite uncle. As I was writing this, I had an epiphany. As I looked at

Back in those days, you could occasionally see bears in the

the photos of me with my uncle and remembered that I was a

mountains. If you saw cars pulled over by the road, it usually

My Favorite Uncle teenager. But…. I was still special to my uncle…even as a teenager! I also had another epiphany. I was special and loved by someone…my uncle R.T. My uncle never said I love you and I don’t remember him ever hugging me. We never had the kind of relationship where I shared all my inner most feelings. What I had was a relationship where I always felt accepted and loved in his presence. There was never a feeling of anxiety or worry around my uncle.

Me on vacation in the Smoky Mts. with Uncle RT and Aunt Ruby

Gary Chapman wrote a book about the Five Love Languages. My uncle R.T. spoke two of the languages to me…the Acts of Service=giving of one’s time and energy and Quality time = giving undivided attention. What a gift I have given myself through remembering and writing about my favorite uncle!

My favorite Uncle 34

Entrepreneur For most of my childhood, my physical needs were met.

remember putting into practice.

Not my emotional needs, but… that is another story. My

My irst attempt to earn money was selling fudge. Since I

grandmother and later my aunt and uncle, made sure I was

was too young to cook the fudge, my grandmother prepared

well nourished, had adequate clothes to wear, and medical

the candy in her old iron skillet. The sweet smell of chocolate

care when needed. Of course, there were the times I spent

illed the kitchen. I can see her now, in her apron standing at

with my parents and would experience a shortage of food and

the old stove stirring the fudge, using a long wooden spoon.

basic care. As time went by, I went from spending weeks with

There was a stool that sat near the stove in front of a window.

Mother and Daddy, to never staying overnight with them, only

My seat as I anxiously waited to lick the pan. Occasionally

visiting them for short periods of time.

I would glance out at the bridal veil bush covered with so

Needless to say, I was not desperate to earn money in

many white blossoms. It truly did remind me of a bridal veil.

order to survive. But I seemed to have a creative drive to

Whenever I see a bridal veil bush today, I think of that bush.

earn my own money. I don’t remember trying to earn money

After cooking and cooling the fudge, my grandmother

in order to buy a speci ic toy or item. There were just these

would cut into squares and wrap each piece in wax paper. I

ideas loating around in my head. Creative money making

would put the fudge into my brother/cousin’s red wagon and

ideas. Being somewhat a dreamer, I would sit quietly in my

walk down the dirt road past the neighbor’s homes. If I saw

room or in my favorite place on the porch swing, and dream

someone outside, I would ask them if they wanted to buy

of ways to earn money. Although I had many ideas loating

some fudge. I can’t remember actually knocking on anyone’s

in and out of my brain, there were only three that I actually

door. Since I was very shy, I am surprised that I was even 35

Entrepreneur willing to become a saleslady – even for one day. I think I sold

advertisement in our weekly Grit newspaper for selling

each piece for 5 cents.

Cloverine Salve. I completed information and ordered a number of tins. The ad said you could earn money and

My next adventure with trying to earn money was having my own movie theater. We had a screened in porch which

prizes by selling tins of Cloverine

was great for sleeping and for showing movies. My uncle

Salve. All I had to do was send the

bought a ilm projector and a few movies. Cartoons as I

company their share of the pro its

remember. I made some signs and told all the kids in the

and I could keep the balance. I was

neighborhood about my movie theater. It was going to be

so excited and thought I could sell all

a double feature. They would see two movies for a nickel.

the tins to my family and friends. It

There were no snacks, since I didn’t have the money for

seemed most people I talked to were

popcorn and drink, not even Koolaid. The picture was

not interested, could not aﬀord, or

dif icult to see because the blinds blocked very little of the

already had some Cloverine Salve. As I remember, it was only

sunlight. Some of the children had never been to a movie,

25cents a tin. I think maybe I sold one or two tins where I

so this was still a treat to them. The earned money was

was paid up front, and that was to family members. Some of

important to me. But, I believe the most satisfaction came

my customers bought on credit and failed to pay me. I quickly

from the dream, the work, and the carrying out of my idea.

became discouraged. Soon other things took my attention and the Cloverine Salve was forgotten. After several months

My third and I think my last attempt to earn money

and a few written reminders, there came a threatening letter

was the selling of Cloverine Salve. There had been an 36

Entrepreneur our home. And no one was going to come and take me to jail.

addressed to me. The letter stated that the company was going to take legal action if I did not send the money or the tins back to the

Maybe they are still looking for me

company. The little money was gone and the tins were lost. Well….

…..or the return of their salve!!!!

legal action in my mind meant going to jail. And…my aunt – who when I had swallowed an orange seed at age 3 had told me that an orange tree would grow out of my mouth – reinforced my fears of going to jail by telling me that the Aiken County Sheriﬀ would probably be knocking on our door very soon. My thoughts were “I am a good girl, I meant to send the money, I meant to send the tins, but I thought I would be able to sell them, then I forgot.” I was so scared and could imagine myself being taken to the jail. The tears were beginning to low when I looked over at my brother and saw his tears, then the panic hit me as I ran to my room. I don’t know who was crying more, me or my brother. My aunt decided to tell us she was teasing and that no one was going to come and take me to jail. She had to reassure me and my brother that we were safe in

County Fair

Childhood Entertainment As I watch my grandchildren entertain themselves with

would swing the others around and yell freeze. The people

their techie equipment, I wonder…where is the creativity?

frozen had to stay frozen until the leader yelled “thaw”. If

If all their games suddenly stopped working, how would

a person was caught moving, that person would be out. The

they cope? Then my thoughts travel back in time.

last person frozen became the new leader. In the evenings, we would catch ire lies and put them

Growing up in the late 1940s and early 1950s, meant we

into a jar. When it was time to go to bed, we would let the

had to create our own entertainment. There was no xbox,

ire lies ly free in our bedroom. What fun it was to watch

ipod, wii, or videos. In fact, we did not own a t.v. until the

the little lights twinkling like stars above our bed.

mid ifties. Most of our games and entertainment was born

There were many hours spent building a “playhouse”.

out of our imagination.

Our playhouse was not an actual building. We would use

Growing up in South Carolina, meant we had long hot summers and very mild winters. Which meant that as

boards, bricks, or stones to outline our house. Then we

children we spent most of our waking hours outdoors. The

would search for all kinds of treasures in trashpiles, in

adults usually encouraged us to go outside. In fact, the exact

peoples’s yards, and in our own homes. Broken dishes

words that I often heard from parents, grandparents, and

became our ine china. We would make a table out of a

aunts and uncles were “go outside and play.”

cardboard box, chairs out of bricks, and beds out of straw. There would be a vase of wild lowers on the table. Our meal

I can still remember the feel of the cool sand when we would play “freeze”. (We were not allowed to go barefoot

sometimes would consist of beans from the mimosa tree

until the irst day of May.) One person would be “it” and

or china berries from the chinaberry tree. We also used 39

Childhood Entertainment the pretty pink lowers on the mimosa tree as our powder

a little lard inside, over the ire. Then we would add the

puﬀ. Today when I see a mimosa tree, I think of those powder

potatoes. As we would turn the potatoes, our mouths would

puﬀs and beans. Sometimes we would serve real food such

water just thinking of how the well done, soft, but crunchy

as koolaid and cookies. One of my favorite “playhouses” was

potato would taste. The most memorable part of this activity

under the warehouse where my uncle R.T. worked. It was

was the process of cooking the potato. But…the potatoes

hidden away and that was important because we did not take

really did taste so good. I still cook potatoes using this style,

lightly to anyone destroying our “playhouse”!

but now I cook them in my kitchen. It was very rare that we ever saw snow in the little town I

A favorite activity that my brother/cousin Jimmy and I shared was having a “potato fry”. We would have to beg

grew up in S.C. However, I do remember on several occasions

my Granny Gregg or Aunt Dot to allow us to partake of this

when it would snow and we would make snowcream. My

activity. The adult would peel irish potatoes and slice them

grandmother would send us outside with a bowl and direct us

potato chip style. Jimmy and I would go out into the back

to places that appeared to have a clean covering of snow. We

yard and make a small circle out of bricks or stones to contain

would gather a bowl of snow and take it to our grandmother.

the ire. Then we would gather bits and pieces of wood for

She would let us add some sugar, vanilla, and cream to the

the ire. I don’t remember if we were allowed to actually start

mixture. Then we would take turns stirring the snowcream

the ire or if the adult handled that task. But, I do remember

until well mixed. So good, that sweet melt in your mouth

spending some time poking the ire and adding more wood.

treat! I don’t know a name for this activity, but it was fun. We

After the ire was going, we would place an iron skillet, with 40

Childhood Entertainment would take tin cans and smash them horizontally, then punch

Our elementary school did not have any playground

a hole in both ends. Someone would ind an old rope and we

equipment. We had to create our own games. I remember

would put the rope through the holes and use the cans for

playing “jail” at recess time. Someone would designate an

walking around the yard.

area for a “jail”. Then the boys would chase the girls and put us in jail. After sometime, or maybe the next day, the girls

Most people have never heard of “joggle board”. It was a challenging game. A friend

would chase the boys and put them in “jail”. Another

and I would ind just the right size board and

game we played at recess was “red light, green light”.

balance it on bricks. Then we would take

Also “red rover”. On rare occasions, someone would

turns jumping. We would try to see how long

bring an old rope to school and we would jump rope. Our small church would sometimes have fun

we could stay on the board.

activities for the children. I especially remember the

Paper dolls was one of my favorite indoor activities. I would use the Sears catalog or

hayrides and weiner roast. We would ride on the back of

some other magazine and cut out pictures of people. Then

a wagon, sitting on hay, and singing as loud as we possibly

I would cut out clothes, cutting little tabs so I could put the

could. The teenagers sometimes would be cuddling and

clothes on the person. Sometimes I would glue the picture of

we (the younger ones) would be giggling and throwing hay

the person on a piece of cardboard so it would stand up. The

on the couple. Then once we reached our destination, we

most fun was when I would take paper and draw (design) my

would try to ind just the right stick to roast our wieners and

own out its for my paper dolls.

marshmallows on. Warm memory! The fun of eating charred 41

Childhood Entertainment wieners & burnt melted marshmallows while sitting around a

of the adults in our family smoke, we decided to give it a try.

camp ire!

We would go out into the ields and pick some rabbit tobacco. Someone (another child) taught us how to take brown paper

Birthday parties for teens meant playing games. There was the game “postof ice”. One

from old paper bags and cut it into strips. We would then put

person would be in the postof ice and would

the rabbit tobacco into the brown paper and roll it up making

chose another person to come in and they

a cigarette. If my memory serves me correctly, it didn’t taste

would have to kiss. There was a doorman

very good. I remember getting choked a few times. Just

that made sure the kiss was short. I

recently I was walking near some woods and smelled the

remember when a boy was in the postof ice that I didn’t ind

distinct smell of rabbit tobacco. Brought back memories. My grandmother dipped snuﬀ. So….we decided to make

attractive, I would think “please don’t let him say my name”. We also played “spin the bottle”. A person would spin the

our own snuﬀ. We mixed cocoa powder with sugar and then

bottle (I remember it being a Coca Cola bottle), and whoever

we would place the mixture inside our lower lip. That was

it stopped on the person had to kiss. There was usually

our “snuﬀ ”. The best thing about our “snuﬀ ” was we didn’t

some strong wishing going on in our heads during this time.

have to spit, we could enjoy the sweet taste as it melted in our

Especially wishing for the bottle to stop on our one and only

mouth. I spent many happy hours at the Catholic Center in our

heartthrob.

little town. We only had two churches in our town….a Baptist

Rabbit tobacco….if you grew up in the south, you know the

and a Catholic. The Catholic center provided many activities

smell of rabbit tobacco. Since we, as children watched most 42

Childhood Entertainment for the local children. There was a real swimming pool. In

still remember the sound of the squeaking door as the show

fact, the pool had been there for many years. I have old

began. We would all listen with great anticipation and move

photos of my mother and aunt at the pool. We would spend

down a little further under the covers. Our front porch swing. Oh, the memories I have about

many summer afternoons at the pool. The cost was 5 cents per person. I also attended Brownies and Girl Scouts at the

that swing. I remember sitting on the swing talking to my

center. The center would sometimes show movies outside.

friends. Sometimes we would have a “purple cow” as we

I remember seeing a religious movies there and it was one

sat swinging the afternoon away. A purple cow is vanilla

of my earliest movies. I had a favorite nun at the center.

ice cream with grape soda poured over it. The swing was a

Her name was Sister Bernadette. She will forever be in my

great place to sit and listen to the adults talk. I was all ears

memory. She was so kind and compassionate. The center

and didn’t want to miss a word. It was also a great place

also had a real playground with swings and a merry-go-round.

for me to have quiet time. I also enjoyed sitting in the swing

Fun memories!

alone to read. Many evenings after dinner the family would all gather on the front porch. And…the lucky people were

Since we did not have TV, radio was a favorite family form of entertainment. I remember at night, when we would

the ones who got the swing. There was always talking and

all be in bed. My aunt and uncle in one room and my two

listening going on in and around the swing. Sometimes

cousins and I in the other room. All the lights would be out

neighbors would come back and, as we say in the south,

and the radio would be on tuned to a mystery story. It was

would sit a spell. I have always longed to live again in a house

usually “The Inner Sanctum” or some other mystery show. I

with a front porch and a swing. Not yet! 43

Childhood Entertainment The lower Carolina Jasmine grew wild in S.C. It seemed to grow everywhere, especially on trees. A favorite activity of mine was to go out and pick a basket of lowers. I would then take a needle and thread and make necklaces and bracelets out of the lowers. Sometimes I would make a headpiece for myself and for my friends. My love for the sweet smell of the bright happy-looking lower continues today. I believe my love of reading began early as child. And…it was through comic books. I would read and then trade comic books. It was always fun to visit a friend and trade books. At some point, I began reading chapter books and I was really hooked on reading. Reading took me on adventures and introduced me to so many wonderful characters. I learned, through reading, that other people had emotions and that was o.k. At the time, I was in pure bliss when I was able to sit quietly and read with my favorite candy bar – Hershey – in hand. of joy found in childhood!

Oh, the bits and pieces

Linda Rollins My intention in taking the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Jump Start Your Lifeâ&#x20AC;? class with my 80-year-old mother, who has always enjoyed writing, was to encourage her to write about her life. To my surprise I have found that the class inspired me to gather my own thoughts about my past and write about my own life. It also rekindled enthusiasm for my scrapbooking projects and added a new dimension to my interest in storytelling.

I was born in the summer of 1949 in New Jersey to Norina and Ernest Lewis. I moved to the South in my

Writing in high school and college was always extremely

early twenties. My husband Walt and I have been married

painful, revising and revising, in order to obtain a decent

since 1980 and we have a young adult son. We have lived

grade. In this writing class all work is acceptable and

in the same home in Lilburn, Georgia for over 20 years.

all the participants share their stories. I am saddened or

I started teaching elementary school in 1975 in North

entertained by the stories of others and ind that their

Carolina and retired from Gwinnett County schools

memories have a connection to my own. It seems as if

a few years ago. Throughout my teaching career I

everyone has stories to tell and no story is without merit.

encouraged my students to write and share what they had written. Most of my own writing as a teacher consisted of notes to parents, reports and weekly newsletters. My personal writings were business letters and friendly notes to friends and acquaintances. Some of my present interests are learning to speak Spanish, keeping it through several exercise options, studying the Bible, becoming more pro icient with the computer, and teaching English as a second language to adults. My husband and I also like to travel and ski. 45

Beach Memories I’ve always enjoyed going to

We were within walking distance

the beach, every since I was a child.

of the beach. I remember the red and

Maybe it is because I have many

white beach umbrella that we carried.

wonderful memories of going to

We would have a blanket or two to sit

the Jersey shore when I was young.

on. We may have brought some snacks

We would rent a small cottage near

and drinks but I don’t really remember.

the beach for a week or two. My

I do remember the ice cream man who

father’s brother and his family would

would come by every day. Dad would

rent another cottage close by. The

always buy some ice cream. The ice

cottages had two bedrooms, one

cream man had a white uniform. He

bath, a kitchenette and a small living

had this big box that he carried on his

room. As I recall, the walls of the living area were a medium

shoulder with a strap. I knew the box was lined with dry ice

shade of wood paneling. Each cottage was on a small lot

because when he opened the box white “smoke” would escape

with enough space to park the car. There were many

from the box. The ice cream bars would be hard as rocks. You

streets going horizontally and vertically and most of the

didn’t have to wait long for them to soften since the beach was

cottages looked similar from the outside. I don’t think the

so hot. The sand on the New Jersey beach was very white and

cottages were air-conditioned. Air conditioning wasn’t very

looked so clean. I guess the people who owned the cottages

prevalent at that time. 46

Beach Memories maintained the beach. The

hole while the other people covered his body

temperature really heated up

entirely except for his head. We shouted with

as the day wore on. The water

glee that we had power over the person buried

was rather cold though, not like

in the sand. The person who was covered felt

the water in Florida. I think the

trapped and would do a lot of wiggling to get

temperature was in the 60s.

out. Sometimes he was buried deep enough that

We didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t mind though because

we had to assist him. When he inally emerged,

we just accepted that the ocean

he was covered in sand and he had to go into the

was that cold.

ocean to rinse it all oďŹ&#x20AC;. We would build a sand castle in the wet sand and then a

I loved jumping in the waves. We always enjoyed when the big ones came. We would shout with glee when we saw

big wave would come and

one coming. I still remember the taste of the salt water in my

knock it down. Sometimes

mouth. Sometimes the water would go up our noses and really

we would carry the heavy

sting. If a wave was really big, it would knock us down and we

wet sand up further up on

would go tumbling. The trick was to try to get close enough to

the beach in our pails and

the wave before it broke and then come riding in on its crest.

build a castle on the dry

We enjoyed playing in the sand. We would big a deep hole

sand. We would then use

using our hands and pails and someone would sit down in the

our pails and pour ocean 47

Beach Memories water into the moats we had dug out. It was amazing how

would collect them in our pails and bring our prizes back to

quickly the dry sand absorbed the water.

the blanket to share with the others.

When the waves came in we would watch the sand crabs

Since it was a private beach, lifeguards protected the

that would come up out of the sand. Then they would bury

swimmers. I remember that most of the lifeguards were

themselves deep in the sand as the water went back out. We

good-looking young guys but quite a bit older than I was. My

would dig furiously to try and get a sand crab before it could

cousin Nancy was older and she would make friends with the

bury itself all the way back into the sand. It didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t pinch you

lifeguards. I think that one year I had a crush on one of the

if you caught it but they would

lifeguards.

tickle your hand as it tried to

Being blonde with light skin I was always sensitive

get away.

to the sun. We had sun tan lotion back then but no

Sometimes we would walk

sunscreen. I guess that is why we had an umbrella, so we

on the beach and hunt for

would have some protection for part of the time on the

shells. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t ever remember

beach. I remember coming back to the cottage and taking

inding any really spectacular

a shower. It seemed that the sting and bright red color of

shells, mostly parts of shells

the sunburn would really show itself after the shower.

and dried up seaweed but it

At night we would get in the car and go to the

was a lot of fun looking. We

boardwalk at Seaside Park and Seaside Heights.

Beach Memories The boards of the boardwalk were gray, brown and

ocean at breakneck speed just as you thought you would

weathered. Some of the bolts and nails were sticking up

be thrust into the ocean depths it would make a quick turn

from the boards. It could be dangerous walking with bare

and go the other way. I would get chills thinking about what

feet. There were possibilities of splinters everywhere.

would happen if the car broke and continued out into the

There was a wood railing that separated the boardwalk

ocean.

from the beach. It seemed as if the boardwalk went on

I remember one summer in particular. I don’t know how

forever. I remember the smells of the boardwalk. There was

The Rescue

old I was at the time. My cousin Bea and I were swimming

the smell of the machine oil from the variety of fun rides.

in the ocean together. I was a pretty good swimmer since I

There was also the smell of fresh and stale cotton candy

had spent a lot of time in the water. For some reason I got

and popcorn. The smell I liked best was the smell of

a little too far out and

Italian sausages cooking with onions and peppers.

didn’t have the strength to swim back in against

At night it was spooky standing at the railing and looking out into the ocean in the dark and hearing the

the strength of the

waves pounding along the shore. I was quite daring back

current. I think my

then and used to ride The Wild Mouse with my father. It

cousin Bea was in shock

was similar to a roller coaster but it had an extra element

because she got out of the water and started walking back

of danger. The mouse car would head straight for the

to the blankets. She didn’t realize the danger that I was in. I

Beach Memories was treading water and never went under but I felt helpless about getting back onto the beach. I started waving one of my hands and yelling “help, help.” There were people in the water about 25 feet behind me but they didn’t seem to hear me or notice that I was having a problem. My parents, who always had their eye on me while I was in the water, reacted at once. Mom rushed to the edge of the water, tripped, and landed face irst in the water. Dad was out there in a lash, coming to my rescue even before the lifeguard could get there. He didn’t want anything to happen to his little girl.

Car Memories found another one just like ours. Nor did I ind another one with such an unusual color combination. People would tease us all the time about my Mom’s choice of colors but she would just smile. I guess she liked being diﬀerent and having her car as a conversation piece.

Driving a Car with a Manual Transmission Mom in her two-tone car

My Dad taught me to drive a car with a manual

Mom’s Unusual Car

transmission. I had already been driving cars with automatic

When I was a child my parents thought our car was

transmissions for a while so I felt somewhat secure about my

getting worn out and it was time to buy a new car. They liked

driving abilities. Mom didn’t learn to drive until cars were

Oldsmobiles and decided to buy one that could be painted

built with automatic transmissions so she deferred the lessons

two diﬀerent colors. My aunt and uncle also bought the same

to my Dad. He had purchased an old blue Mercedes with a

model and decided on white and red. My Dad decided he

stick shift from someone he knew. It was the car I would be

would be nice to my mother and let her pick the colors. Big

driving so it was important to me to learn how to drive it. I

mistake! My mother, always ready for the unusual, picked her

can tell you that I didn’t inherit my teaching abilities from my

colors, tomato red and light green. You could always tell when

father. He expected me to learn something immediately when

we were coming down the road. For many years I looked for

he explained it and yelled at me when I made a mistake, which

another Olds with the same color combination but I never

usually led to another mistake. Every night after a driving 51

Car Memories lesson I would return home in tears. Surprisingly I inally

time. I would sigh with relief when I inally made it past that

learned how to push in the clutch, change gears and then give

light. I know I always made it up the hill eventually because I

it the gas. I guess I knew that if I didn’t learn to drive the car, I

never had to call my parents to come and get me.

would be spending a lot of time at home.

Several years later I had an old van with a stick shift. I

I never totally perfected the skill of driving with a stick

had driven the van enough to know where the gears were

shift, especially on the hill. I remember this one steep hill I

but for some reason I had forgotten the position of irst gear.

had to drive up on my way home from my part time job. There

I moved the stick into third gear instead of irst to climb the

was a stoplight at the top and there were always a line of

hill. I was wondering why the transmission was straining so

cars waiting for the light. Fear would grip me and I started to

hard to get to the top of the hill. I realized what I had done

sweat as I approached this hill. I would have the brake and

after I was on level ground and continued to drive. It wasn’t

clutch pushed in as I waited for the light to change. As the

too long after that incident that the transmission started

light changed to green, I would let oﬀ the clutch while pushing

making noises and refused to change gears. Apparently I had

on the gas. I had to be careful that the car didn’t roll back as I

stripped the gears when I had forced the van to climb the hill

moved my foot from the brake to the gas. If you didn’t give it

in the incorrect gear.

enough gas or ease the clutch out at just the correct rate, the

I haven’t had a car with a manual transmission in years.

car would stall. Drivers behind me would honk impatiently.

I would probably be very hesitant about driving one now. I

Sometimes I would inally get the car going, and guess what,

think I will just continue driving a car with an automatic

the light would change back to red and I would have to wait

transmission.

for the next light and hope I would do it correctly the next 52

The Stone Mountain Adventure 2009 Faye, a lady I met at Bethesda Park senior water aerobics

white trail that brought us partway around Venable Lake.

class, and I started walking together at the park after

Faye looked at the lake and wondered where the end of the

aerobics. There is a 1 Â˝ mile trail right next to the pool, a

lake was. We were considering turning back if it was too far.

perfect addition to our aerobic workout. Over time a group of

We inally saw the end of it and decided to walk all the way around. The weather was cool, there was

other water exercisers also joined us.

a slight breeze, the sun was hidden behind

Two or three times a year the pool closes for a week so all of the aerobic

the clouds most of the time and the trees

addicts have to ind another way to

protected us. It was a perfect day for a walk.

exercise. Faye and I decided to get

Faye and I admitted earlier that day that

together that Friday, hike on some trails

we both had a terrible sense of direction.

at Stone Mountain, spend some time at

Me (L) and Faye

We soon discovered that was probably our undoing. After we had walked on the trails we decided it

the Yellow Daisy Festival, and then have lunch together.

might be easier to take the road since the trails had had many

We entered through the west gate of Stone Mountain and parked at Confederate Hall. It was a little before 9:00 so we

rocks and roots that were dif icult to traverse. That was our

waited for the doors to the hall to open, asked for some trail

irst mistake. Following the trails on the maps was easy but the direction of the roads was a little confusing.

maps, and discussed our options with the attendant on duty.

When we left the lake we both agreed to take a left turn.

We headed down Robert E. Lee Boulevard, took the

We had a long hill to climb so we put our mind and our feet to

connector to the Nature Garden Trail which connected to the 53

The Stone Mountain Adventure 2009 the task and started oﬀ. As we walked Faye said that the road

day with some friends and had broken her foot from all that

didn’t look familiar. Looking at the map, I noticed that the

walking. She had also indicated earlier while we were on the

road we were on was a 2 way street and the road we should

trails around the lake that she was getting tired. I certainly

have been on was a one-way street. I realized we had gone

didn’t want her to suﬀer any harm. We met a runner coming from the other direction. We

the wrong way when I saw the sign for the Songbird Habitat Trail Area. We looked on the map and saw that the habitat

asked how far Confederate Hall was. He said about 2 ½ hours

trail was on Stonewall Jackson Drive. We should have been

away. What! In the distance I saw a roundabout. I knew

on Robert E. Lee Boulevard. We hailed a car that was coming

where that was. It was by the gristmill. Oh, no. We had gone

toward us and the driver con irmed that we were on an

around the mountain in the wrong direction. About that time

incorrect road. So down the hill we went.

my husband, Walt, called me. He asked me what I was doing. I told him that we were walking at Stone Mountain. He said,

We were now on the intersection of Stonewall and Lee. There was a large sign with an arrow pointing to the right for

“I thought you did that his morning.” “Yes, we did,” I said,

Confederate Hall. Well, who wouldn’t believe the sign! What

“and we’re still walking.” I’ll tell you about it tonight.” We

we didn’t realize was that the sign was meant for drivers, not

looked at the map and decided to take a shortcut closer to

walkers. Since the road was one way that was the only way

the mountain instead of following the road. We went across

that drivers could go. It was the long way around!

the Laser Lawn and through Crossroads. There were shuttles taking people from the parking lot to the Yellow Daisy

We walked and walked. I was a little concerned about

Festival. We asked if they went to Confederate Hall. No, they

Faye. She told me that about ten years ago she had walked all 54

The Stone Mountain Adventure 2009

didn’t. We continued walking. We then intersected with Robert E. Lee. We met a man in a small park vehicle. We asked him how much farther we had to go to get to Confederate Hall. He told us that we had about ¾ of a mile to go. He oﬀered to take one person to get the car. Faye said that since we had come this far, we might as well go all the way. When we returned to the car, it was after 1:40. We had been walking for over 4 hours. We had taken less than 15 minutes for a break. We igured that we could have possibly walked up to 12 miles since it normally takes us 30 minutes to go 1½ miles at Bethesda Park. It sure felt good to get back in the car. We went to the village of Stone Mountain and ate in my favorite café. We sure did drink a lot of water with our meal! Even after all that we went back to Stone Mountain, and walked around at the Yellow Daisy Festival, believe it or not. Neither of us felt exhausted or tired the next day. Hopefully, if I attempt a walk on the roads at Stone Mountain again, I’ll remember the mistakes I made.

The Stone Mountain Adventure 2009

Rebecca Tallant Sahakian

LIFE In The THIRTIES Seventy something years ago growing up on a farm

I was born and lived in Forsyth County, Georgia until leaving to

was much diﬀerent as we grew most of our food. We either

attend college. I am a retired Real Estate Agent and now live with my

had to can or dry it or when we slaughtered a hog preserve it

husband Ed in Lawrenceville, Ga. I

in salt, and the weather had to be cold in order for the meat

enjoy gardening, spending time with

to have time to cure. This was during the depression and we

my children and grandchildren.

had very little money but we did have plenty of food. Most

These stories were written for my children and grandchildren

of the people around us didn’t have much money either so I

because of their importance in my life. My childhood

didn’t think of us as poor.

memories are so diﬀerent from theirs in that I had no

We would pick green beans and diﬀerent vegetables,

electricity, running water, telephone, and most of the modern conveniences we enjoy and take for granted today.

and can them when they were very fresh and at the peak

When my children are retired, and writing their life stories,

for harvesting. We would gather around in a cool spot on

I am sure the changes will be just as profound.

the porch or under a shade tree, whichever was cooler,

I have seen many happy times, and also dif iculties that most of us encounter during our lives. I am a very

snap the beans, peel and prepare the vegetables and fruits.

fortunate woman, and feel

Maybe sometimes we would stay in the house if it were cool

that God has truly blessed me. My hope and prayer is that my

enough. Then mother would get out the pressure cooker for

children and grandchildren

her canning process.

will feel the same way when

We would dry apples and peaches in order to have them

their stories are written.

for making pies all during the year. The fruit would be peeled, sliced, and spread on a piece of tin to stay in the sun 57

LIFE In The THIRTIES all day. At night we would bring the fruit inside, and the next

fruits were time consuming.

morning put it back in the sun and turn it so all sides would

Now we can buy fresh, frozen or canned items

dry.

(including biscuits and diďŹ&#x20AC;erent breads) which require very Also, we would go blackberry picking and gather

little preparation. We have a stove that you just turn a knob

blackberries for jams and preserves. One of the best places

to the desired temperature, a refrigerator to keep the food

to gather big berries was on a creek bank; however there was

cool or frozen, and a facet to turn and the water lows freely.

always the chance of running into snakes or getting chiggers.

Without thinking about it we ate very healthy with always

We would use apples and peaches for jelly and preserves

plenty of fruits and vegetables which was our main diet, and

which were easy to gather. Peach preserves

an abundance of exercise.

and apple jelly was great with hot biscuits

I remember a pool of spring

which mother made most every morning.

water at one end of our pasture

We never had loaf bread. Of all the things

under a big tree, and the beginning

we had canned or dried, I think one of my

of a stream which lowed down

favorites was canned pickle peaches.

through the pasture. The further

When I think how easy it is for us

from the spring the wider it become

to cook now than from the way my mother

as there was always an ample supply

prepared all her meals from scratch which included growing

of water for our cows to drink, and the trees and bushes along

it, gathering it from the garden, or picking it from fruit trees.

the edges to lourish. In the middle of the day the cows could

Drawing the water from the well to clean the vegetables and

ind shade and a cool place to graze. 58

LIFE In The THIRTIES Across the pasture was a ield we used to grow some of

with nothing else around it, which made it easy in the fall to

our crops. It could have been planted in cotton , corn, peas,

pick up the dark delicious fruit that had fallen to the ground.

wheat or any number of things. It was much quicker to

When I read the 23rd chapter of Psalm â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Lord is my

take a shortcut through the pasture than to use the road to

shepherd: I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green

work in that particular ield. Since I went barefooted during

pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth

the summer it was easy to cross the stream. I would try to

my soul,â&#x20AC;? I am reminded of that peaceful, still spring so many

jump from rock to rock but sometimes that was impossible,

years ago.

since over the years some of them had become very slick. As the pasture was surrounded by bobwire, we had to crawl under the wire without getting stuck by one of the sharp prongs sticking from the wire, or either go between the wires depending on the distance between them. At the edge of the pasture was a tall tree with muscadine vines winding around it. The tree was in a location 59

My Favorite Mother’s Day Many Mother’s Days have come and gone over my

were gone so long, and even then there was a limit to what

forty something years as a mother but nothing compares with

could be bought for two or three dollars. This was in the

the gift given to me when my children were about ive to nine

sixties and we were more trusting about our children going

years old.

into a store without an adult. The children looked and looked at diﬀerent items

Being divorced the children’s father always

to see what their money could buy. Finally, out came three

went shopping with them

smiling, happy children loaded down with bags. What

to buy me a gift for special

could they have chosen for that amount of money? K-Mart

occasions, but the children

was having a special on Marigolds and they spent all their

had a few dollars saved and

money on the beautiful yellow lowers. There were so many

Kimball, Alecia and Philip Hardin

Marigolds I thought I would never get them all planted.

wanted me to take them shopping for another gift that was

I have had many wonderful Mother’s Days but none

just from them. The store that best suited their budget was

more special than the day I received a yard full of Marigolds.

K-Mart. We arrived in the crowded parking lot the Saturday before Mother’s Day and the children hurried inside to make their big purchase. In the meantime, I was sitting in the parking lot crying as I thought about the love being shown by the children wanting to spend their own money on a gift for me. They 60

My Mother The person I respected the most and that had the

She was a strong willed, energetic, hard working woman who worked just as hard as my father did in the ields

most in luence on my life was my mother.

and around the farm. She was always the one pushing to

She was one of the most unsel ish people I have ever known and she always put

get things accomplished, as she

me, my brother, and my father

kept my father and the rest of the family moving. She did the

irst. Whatever was best for the family was what she wanted,

cooking, cleaning, the inside

regardless of her own desires.

chores, and helped my father with the farm.

I can remember how

She wanted me to go

she would stay up at night and open up the old Singer Sewing

to college so I would have an

Machine, although she had to be

easier life than her. She never

so tired from working all day, to

complained, and she did the very

make me a new dress. She would

best she could to help us have the

do her work whenever she could

best life possible. I remember

ind the time, as she had to be

My mother, Laila Tallant

one of my cousins saying that

in the ields or doing work around the farm. If it rained or

he remembered my mother always saying â&#x20AC;&#x153;if you canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t say

the weather was bad, she would be inside doing her inside

something good about someone not to say anything.â&#x20AC;?

work.

My Mother Mother was someone I could talk to about anything. Over the years and especially as I had children of my own, I would drive up to visit for an afternoon or day, and just talk about whatever was bothering me or any frustrations I had. On the way back home, I always felt like a mountain had been lifted oďŹ&#x20AC; my shoulders. I think now how those conversations must have troubled her and all the burdens I had placed on her. Mother was a deeply religious woman who prayed a lot for me, my children and the rest of her family. I think mother just prayed, did her best, and put her faith in God. Abraham Lincoln said â&#x20AC;&#x153;No man is poor who has had a Godly mother.â&#x20AC;? When it comes to mothers, I am a rich woman indeed.

Ezra and Laila Tallant

Anticipation One of the greatest joys in life has been the privilege of being a mother to three wonderful children. I am truly blessed and grateful to God for this honor. This is a poem I wrote about loving them even before they were born.

Anticipation Nine months seems so long at ﾏ進rst, Then the hours and days roll by, Without ever looking back To the time when it seemed so far, Each minute slowly passing Knowing the moment is near, With excitement constantly rising The long wait is almost over Time has somehow slipped away. The joy of the arrival is mounting Nearer to the long awaited event Anticipation is slowly peaking, A bundle of joy and life

Me in front of our house before my children were born

Makes the past fade away, Only remembering the special love Between a mother and a child.

Anticipation

Kimball , Alecia and Philip Hardin

Philip, Alecia and Kimball Hardin

Silvia B. Munger to the States to live and become an American citizen, an interim stay of over three years in the U.K.; all these events have marked me for whom I have become. My ive children and friends have suggested that I write a book about my life, but how and where to start? I happened to note a course listed in the Bethesda Senior Center literature about writing oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life history. This was it for me, and it continues to be a most rewarding project.

Mommy and Me

My father, Otto Johann Scharpf, a Swiss national, came to Shanghai to work in the silk trade. My mother, Berta Guenter, followed him from Zurich, Switzerland. Two children were born to them. My sister Helen appeared on June 12th, 1924, and I followed eighteen months later on February 17, 1926. Sino-Japanese hostilities, Pearl Harbor with its subsequent occupation of Shanghai by the Japanese, many summer vacations spent in either Japan or North China, uprooted and moved to Switzerland where I married, went 65

Introduction to Living History When I started writing about my past history, I realized

indicating safe ice-skating represented the hateful Japanese

that so many of the scenes that looded my mind were in some

occupation to me, feelings that I had evidently suppressed

way connected with war and the Sino-Japanese hostilities

for over twenty years. The thought struck me that if I felt

that aďŹ&#x20AC;ected my life from 1937 through Pearl Harbor to the

so strongly about seeing a Japanese lag, how much worse

end of World War II in the Paci ic in 1945 when the Japanese

would it be for a Chinese. The irony of it all was that actually

surrendered.

a Chinese family, the Cheos, lived in that very corner house by the lake and they were responsible for measuring the ice

We are branded by our past and this was clearly brought home to me when our family returned to the States after

and lying the red ball.

having spent three and one half years in the U.K.

I never asked them about the lag.

We moved to Kenilworth Road in Mountain Lakes, NJ, on Labor Day 1968 and on Sundays would walk past Wildwood Lake on our way to the Community Church near by. I learned that a lag, a red ball on a white background, would be raised whenever the ice on a speci ic lake was suf iciently thick and, therefore, safe enough for ice- skating. One cold day I noticed the Japanese lag blowing in the wind and it shocked me to the core when I felt such hatred

Silvia B. Munger

welling up from deep within me. The innocent red ball 66

Scharpf Family Christmas Eve Back from the park, we’d go straight upstairs to dress.

Scharpf Family

With a prickly golden garland encircling our head, Helen and I

Christmas Eve

felt like princesses.

At 219 West

When all was ready we were called downstairs into the

End Gardens

living room. What magic to see the candle-lit tree!

Off Yu Yuen Road

All four of us would sit on the sofa and sing Swiss and

Shanghai, China

German carols and admire the sight before our eyes. Gifts Our car in front of 219 West End Gardens

were exchanged followed by dinner. I don’t remember ever asking or being asked about

To this day, Christmas always brings back happy memories

Christmas wishes and thus I was always surprised and never

of Christmases past, especially the years when I was young.

disappointed. It was understood that the Christ Child (es

The Christmas trees we had in China had very prickly, wide

Chrischtchindli) dropped by on Christmas Eve to give us our

leaves with a sharp tip, so we were glad that my parents did

gifts; and because we could not give Him any gifts in return,

the decorating. The wax candles were only lit once when we

we gave presents to each other. Helen and I played with our

of icially celebrated on Christmas Eve.

new toys, and, as a special treat, we were allowed to stay up

In the afternoon of that great day my sister Helen and

for as long as we wished, which meant even after our parents

I would be sent to Jess ield Park with our amah, giving our

had gone to bed!

parents time to take care of last minute preparations. It was

I remember once playing with a small dollhouse that I

then when my father artistically draped the metallic garlands on the tree – the inishing touch.

had stowed out of the way under the curio cabinet; the top of 67

Scharpf Family Christmas Eve which Denise has in her home in Lenzburg and the matching

narthex to wish each other a merry Christmas. All was festive

base we use as a sofa table in the TV room in Loganville, GA.

yet hushed. By the time we had left the building all the bells

We were always fascinated with watching the candles on

were solemnly ringing away. I have loved hearing bells ever

the tree slowly burn out, causing their lickering shadows to

since. On Sundays at 6 p.m. (Sechsiluete) the church bells in

dance on the ceiling in ever changing patterns, and the room

Zurich would ring in the end of day. We were told that these

becoming completely dark. It de initely was a peaceful and

are coordinated among the churches to make a pleasing and

silent night.

beautiful sound all over the town. A record of these bells

As I grew older, my mother and I attended the Christmas

was available for sale. I listened to such a recording and

Eve service at the German Lutheran Church (Deutsche

was disappointed to

Evangelische Kirche) where I was later con irmed by my

hear the traf ic noise

beloved and admired Pastor Maas.

disrupt the beauty of the

A huge Christmas tree decorated the sanctuary. The

ringing bells. Nowadays,

myriads of white electric candles shone on the heavy bunches

techniques exist to fade

of lead tinsel that weighed down the branches â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a breath-

out such distracting

taking sight. The childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s choir was seated behind and

noise. I should ask

above the altar. The blond Aryan Germans dressed in white

my daughter, Denise,

looked most angelic.

to check whether a

At the very end of the service, the church bells would

better recording is now

slowly start to peel as the congregation gathered in the

available. 68

My father with Trixie. A garland of greens decorates the front door.

Soldiers I have come across soldiers of diﬀerent nationalities in my life.

smart dress uniforms and their guests, many of whom were Chinese ladies dressed in elegant cheong sams. The church

Chaplain Trump lived at the end of our lane in West End Gardens. He was chaplain attached to the U.S. Fourth Marine

music was played by the Marine brass band. After the service

Army Corps stationed in Shanghai. I remember once when

they would hold a concert that we enjoyed attending. I

our family was invited to his house

believe it is from that time

for lunch. I had on a green and

forth that I have a soft spot in

pink dress with a belt that was

my heart for brass bands. It was in the Roxy Theatre

fastened with a snap. This kept getting undone and as I continued

that we saw the movie “Gone

to eat I had to fasten the belt again

with the Wind.” This was

and again. I was embarrassed

quite an event because it was

because the unsnapping always

so long. There was a recess

made a noise.

in the middle of the show.

The Fourth Marines held

Japanese Marines in Jess ield Park. I am sitting on an of icer’s lap

All the movies were

church services in the Grand Theatre opposite the Race

American and started with a newsreel. After the Japanese

Course. To my delight in 1987 on our trip to China I saw

occupation, even though the movie houses would show

that the building was still standing. My mother and I would

American movies, the newsreels re lect pure Japanese

sometimes take the tram downtown to attend church there.

propaganda. The Chinese anthem would play and everyone

The front of the theatre was reserved for the Marines in their

had to stand. This made us seethe with anger. We did not 69

Soldiers dare remain seated for fear of reprisals.

and prodding on the ill-dressed and ragged American soldiers

The foreign newspapers were censored (the American

who had surrendered. How sad and ashamed we were to

‘Shanghai Evening Post’ and the British ‘North China Daily

witness this degrading sight. These soldiers might have

News.’) When the Japanese demanded all short-wave radios

been the very marines who had been billeted in Shanghai

be given up, the Swiss were able to make arrangements

prior to the war. I often wondered about Chaplain Trump’s

for their radios to be sealed and stored in the garage of the

fate. Did he have to go to the Philippines with the Fourth

Swiss Consulate on Avenue Joﬀre. Only the consulates of the

Marines? Later on, when the Americans arrived in Shanghai

‘friendly enemies’ of the Japanese were allowed to retain their

after Japan’s surrender, we learned that Benjamin Howard,

short-wave radios and they were not supposed to pass on

an American soldier who married my sister, had escaped

any information they heard. I do know that Leila, daughter

a similar fate due to the illness of his father. He had been

of the Finnish Consul, did pass on some of the good news to

serving in the Philippines but was given compassionate leave

her boyfriend. We heard all sorts of rumors and discredited

to return home.

by at least a half any gains made by the Japanese and the Axis

Before World War II the East Surrey Regiment was

partners as reported in the censored papers.

stationed in barracks near the zoo at the other end of Jess ield

The loss of Hong-Kong and Singapore was big and

Park. The of icers with their swagger sticks would walk

unbelievable news, of course, and then came the terrible

smartly along the paths on their way to their barracks. When

news of the Bataan Death March in the Philippines. This last

we saw one of them coming we would run up to him and ask

caught us oﬀ guard on one occasion when we were at the

him for cards. The cigarettes came in tins and each tin had a

movies. The newsreel showed Japanese soldiers guarding

card of a fairy in it. These were collectables like baseball cards 70

Soldiers Aside from thinking about how much hurt and damage

are in the States. Not all the soldiers stopped for us. We were

must have been done during these centuries with regard

thrilled when they did and handed us a card. I don’t know but assume that it was this regiment’s

to changes in what was pronounced right or wrong by the

marching band that would sometimes parade up and down

church fathers, I was struck to see the dusty banner of the

a big ield in Jess ield Park. I always enjoyed watching them

East Surrey Regiment hanging in the rafters among many

perform. A tiger skin would be draped over the shoulder and

other military ones, the very same regiment whom we had

across the front of those playing the big drums. The other

seen in Shanghai.

drummers would lift their sticks to their upper lip (horizontal

Sometime during the Second World War we had to

to the ground) whenever there was a pause in the music, and

evacuate our school building in Shanghai to accommodate

it was this tradition I was surprised to see again by one of the

British soldiers who were bivouacked in our school prior

bands this New Year’s Day at the Rose Parade in California

to being sent elsewhere, perhaps Hong-Kong or Singapore.

and on TV in a program showing marching Indian soldier

During that time we attended school in a huge private home;

musicians who retained this practice even after India’s

later on we were allowed the use the American School

liberation from British colonial rule.

facilities in the afternoon. It was in the latter that I was irst introduced to true/false questions seen on scraps of school

Our family lived in the U.K. in Kingston-upon-Thames in the county of Surrey from 1965-1968. In the center of

paper lying about. In our school we always had to write

town stood an old, stone Romanesque church with its proud

sentences or paragraphs to any questions. True/false seemed

inscription stating ‘Continuous church services held since the

too easy.

tenth century.’ 71

Soldiers I had children, they would wear the glengarry and sporran as

I also remember watching a battalion of Scottish Seaforth

part of their Hallowe’en costume.

Highlanders, all spic and span in their kilts, white belts and

At a Chinahand reunion in the ‘90s I spoke with a fellow

spats, etc., march along Great Western Road towards the Bund where they must have

about the glengarry with

embarked for war. The swaying

its SVC metallic badge

kilts fascinated me.

pinned onto it and the sporran, and he made

In anticipation of trouble, young foreigners were

arrangements to have the

organized into the Shanghai

cap sent to a museum in

Volunteer Corps, or SVC as it

Scotland. I was glad it

was called. My friend, Richard

found an appropriate and

Knox, was one of a Scottish

honorable home.

group. A kilt, glengarry and sporran were part of his

Japanese soilders at a railway crossing checkpoint. I am at the right and Pupa de Beauclair, our neighbor, is in the center. Note the Japanese flag.

The day after Pearl Harbor we began to

uniform. These volunteers were to protect the foreign

see Japanese soldiers around town. They guarded all roads

nationals in case of trouble. When Richard was interned by

leading from the French Concession and the International

the Japanese occupation forces, together with other members

Settlement out into the countryside. I had to descend

of the allied countries, he gave me his kilt, cap and sporran. I

from my bicycle and show my pass to the Japanese sentry

made a skirt using the thickly woven kilt fabric and later, when

before I could ride on. The Swiss referred to them as “Aﬀen” 72

Soldiers (monkeys) when they spoke on the phone. Indeed, most had

very much like some of the irecrackers the Chinese played

bowlegs due to their custom of being carried in a sling on

with as part of their New Year celebrations. The irst U.S. soldiers I encountered after the war were

their mother’s backs. When we saw women with bowlegs in the tram we knew they were Japanese even though they were

the few who were billeted at the Swiss Consulate on Avenue

dressed as Chinese. We were rather good, or so we thought,

Joﬀre. They wore leather airmen jackets. Attached to the

in distinguishing Japanese faces from those of the Chinese.

backs were large squares of white cotton fabric upon which the Chinese could read in black characters that these were

On the whole the Japanese soldiers were decent. Once, when my sister and I had cycled outside of town, we were

Americans, friends of the Chinese. Rewards would be given

stopped by a couple of soldiers who wanted to know what we

for their safety. We gawked at the soldiers through the tall

had in the basket attached to the handlebar of our bikes. We

wrought iron gates. Later on we got to know a few of the ‘weather men,’ the

had picked up some ri le bullets. They took a few, showed us how to separate the tip of the bullet from the case and then

30-Day Wonder lieutenants who were taken out of college

poured the gunpowder in a line on the ground. They lit the

and trained as meteorologists. Johnny Anderson from New

powder and we watched with interest how rapidly the ire

Mexico, Howie Baetzhold from Illinois and Eugene “Mac”

snaked along the line. Needless to say, I tried out what I had

MacLaren from Troy (now living in Poestenkill, N.Y.) were

learned at home. To detach the bullet head from the casing I

some of these young men. It was only a few months ago that

pressed it against the latch of our wrought iron garden gate,

Peter and I met up with Mac for lunch. Talking to him and

emptying the gunpowder in a thin, ine line on our path, just

asking him questions over lunch got his son curious about his

like I had seen the soldiers do. When lit, the lame looked

dad’s past. Paul MacLaren wants to know more now. 73

Soldiers My sister Helen, my Swiss friend Margot Fischer and I

These three lieutenants returned home on the same troop

had good times with these American soldiers. I remember

ship, the USS General M.C.Meigs that had brought my mother

one Easter brunch when many were at our house on Avenue

and me to San Francisco from Shanghai. (We departed

JoďŹ&#x20AC;re. They could often borrow an army jeep

Shanghai on July 4th, 1946.) From there we

from the base. The jeep came to be known

traveled across the United States to arrive

as the Scharpf taxi. Gasoline was still at a

in New York on Labor Day. The stevedores

premium for the inhabitants of Shanghai so

were on strike and we could not continue our

the jeep proved most useful.

journey to Switzerland till October when we

On transit via the States to Switzerland

boarded the USS Marine Shark (one of the

my mother and I visited Howieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother at

Liberty ships) bound for Genoa, Italy. It was

his home. It was a pity that Howie could not

in that harbor where I irst encountered the

be there, too. John Anderson and his wife

damage done by the war in Europe. So many

visited Peter and me in New Jersey once, and we saw Mac in St. Louis when he was studying

My Swiss friend, Margot Fischer, 1st Lt. Howie Baetzhold, and me wearing a white woolen sweater I had knitted.

for his Ph.D. at Washington University.

vessels were capsized or half sunk in the water. Genoa, too, showed the scars of artillery ire and bombing. My mother and I changed trains

My mother always had a soft spot in her heart for Mac and

at the Swiss border station of Chiasso where I saw my irst

it was mutual. I had not remembered that he had once visited

Swiss soldiers in uniform, carrying their ri le and speaking

my mother in Zurich when he was a Fulbright Scholar at the

Italian. At the August irst celebrations at the Consulate in

Max Plank Institute in Germany.

Shanghai the Swiss Consul, Mr. Fontanelle, would address the 74

Soldiers assembled Swiss with the words “Mes chers compatriotes.”

It is quite understandable for young men who have been

I thought of his words as I looked at the young men and

cooped up in tight quarters to let themselves go when they

realized that they were indeed my fellow

inally get shore leave.

Swiss even though I could not understand a

A couple of U.S. sailors who were on shore

word they were saying.

leave in Tsingtao, North China, were having

Once, while on vacation in Japan, we saw

a great time on the beach. They had rented

school children gathered together at the train

bicycles and, aiming at the ocean, they cycled

station and waving Japanese lags as signs

like mad to see how far into the water they

of farewell to soldiers on the train who were

could get.

oﬀ to war in China or Manchuria. My mother

Then there was the sailor who made the

commented on how all soldiers, be they friend

rickshaw coolie sit in the seat while he pulled

or foe, had mothers, wives, sweethearts,

the rickshaw. Or the drunken sailor returning

siblings. The soldiers were only doing their duty to their country and we were not to judge

U.S. 1st. Lt. Johnny Anderson is on the right.

to his ship, his pal propping him up as he climbed up the ladder on the side of the ship to

them. She did, however, add that a man became incognito

the deck. His friend straightened his cap, told him to salute

once he donned a military uniform and thought he could

the of icer of the deck and gave him a last shove. The drunken

behave diﬀerently than when in civilian clothing.

sailor made it past the of icer and was thus safe.

Other memories come to mind, especially of American sailors for whom I have a weakness. The exuberance of youth! 75

Latin Latin is a deadly tongue,

History, two subjects that I didn’t enjoy. These were the tests

As dead as dead can be.

that we had to write in duplicate so that one set of answers

At ϐirst it killed the Romans

could be sent to the U.K. by ship via Suez and the second by train via Siberia for grading. We later learned that in spite of

And now it’s killing me.

I learned this doggerel in Shanghai when I was about ten

World War II at least one set had arrived safely. Paul had a tendency to leave his homework for the last

years old and then my older son, Paul, learned it when taking Latin in Kingston Grammar School in Kingston-upon-Thames,

minute and I remember drilling him on his Latin declensions

U.K. That was quite a few years later.

and conjugations while driving in the car on our Sunday family outings. My mother was with us on a visit from

Latin and I never got along well with each other. In the Public School for Girls on Yuyuen Road in Shanghai we had

Switzerland when Paul was learning the declension of the

Mrs. Close as our Latin teacher. We would have small tests of

word for war:

ive sentences in Latin. If everything were perfect our grade

Bellum

Bella

would be ive out of ive. Well, dear Mrs. Close would always

Bellum

Bella

deduct one point from my work because of bad writing. This

Belli

Bellorum

made me very mad and I thought it unfair as I didn’t write

Bello

Bellis

sloppily and no other teacher had ever commented on my

Bello

Bellis

handwriting. My mother laughed because it sounded so much like

On the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor I was in the midst

blum, blum, bli, blo, blo, etc. She realized that this noun was

of my school-leaving Cambridge examinations of Latin and 76

Latin Coming from the British school I found the French to

the root of our word belligerent.

be diﬀerent. A former Irish man was the gym instructor

After inishing Sixth Form at PSG, I went to the Ecole Municipale Française to the Classe de la Seconde for two years

at the French school. We once played soccer and a French

to learn French. I sat in the classroom while the students

girl complained that she wanted to be center forward. At

had their Latin class. I nearly burst out laughing when I irst

PSG nothing like that would ever have happened. The gym

heard them pronounce Latin with a distinctly French accent.

mistress would place you in a certain position and that was

Their Latin didn’t sound anything like the Latin we read in our

that. We were not allowed to comment about or groan when

school. This was an eye-opener for me.

having a particular girl on our team even though we knew her to be slow and clumsy and would hold back our team. That

And I’d like to add here that I also took History and learned that the French regarded James the Sixth of Scotland

was not sportsmanship. May the better man win, etc., etc.

who became James I of England as a slobbering idiot whereas

To this day I cannot see that at High School football games the

in the British curriculum we read that James was the “wisest

respective teams sit on opposing sides. Why not intermingle?

fool in Christendom.” It all depended on one’s point of view…. And talking about Latin, I was very impressed to hear the son of the Italian Consul tell us that when he couldn’t understand the language a priest was speaking, the two of them conversed in Latin. For me, at the time, I was in awe and found it dif icult to comprehend that Latin was still a living language.

The Seasons Thinking of speci ic experiences of nature I have

Disabling heat in Brentwood, MO: The disbelief and horror

had still invokes in me a feeling of awe and wonder

of feeling perspiration dripping down from the backs of my

at the beauty of it all. Nature can de initely heal.

knees while quietly sitting on the sofa. I had only shortly come

Spring

from Switzerland. During this same period the bathroom tiles

I love to lie on the ground on my back and look

felt warm to the touch. Only then did I realize that they were only plastic tiles. Driving through St. Louis with the windows

at the ever-changing cloud formations in the sky. Feeling the sun’s warmth on the

down, I held my hand out of the window and found the air

skin after a long, cold winter.

just as hot as it was in the car that had no air conditioning. The utter physical exhaustion after a game

The wonderfully blue sky in Loganville keeps on

of tennis in Shanghai’s hot summer.

delighting me. It reminds me of the clear air in the Alps and Swiss artist Segantini’s use of blue paint.

Returning late from a hike in the Alps and seeing the

The treasure hunt in the garden to discover the

stars re lected in the perfectly still waters of a small lake. The magic of walking along the beach at

irst signs of green daﬀodil sprouts peeping out.

night with Peter and watching the moon’s path

Watching cherry blossom petals

always pointing toward where we were.

loat down like snow lakes.

Summer

Walking into our air conditioned home after a hot outing is such wonderful relief.

The smell of the irst rain drops on

The delightful sensation of walking barefoot

the hot asphalt pavement. The wonderful smell of cut grass.

along a path, luxuriating in burying my toes in

The Seasons

Winter

the deep, warm, powdery layer of dirt. The maddening sound of the cicadas

Slippery snow.

disturbing my afternoon siesta.

Scintillating diamonds in the snow when the sun shone. The pleasing rhythm of walking to the

Autumn

Tourne on cross-country skis.

As I lay in bed on the irst night we moved into our house

Looking at the twinkling stars in the black night sky and

on Pate Ridge Drive I looked out of the window and saw

breathing in the pure, cold air on a winter vacation in the Alps.

the constellation of Orion reclining on his back. Incredible.

Admiring the ice lowers on the windowpanes as I walked

This was before we had any drapes for the windows.

up and down the stairs in our home on Avenue JoďŹ&#x20AC;re. (The

The green scent of cut chrysanthemum stems.

Japanese had demolished the railways lines that should have

The joy of walking through a pile

transported anthracite coal to heat the houses in Shanghai.)

of crackling autumn leaves.

The beauty of hoar frost on trees and plants.

Looking at the wonderfully blue sky through a yellow-

Going for a brisk walk in the cold and knowing

leafed maple tree. Opposite colors on the color wheel.

I had on appropriate warm clothing.

The various glorious colors of leaves in a New England autumn. Their last hurrah before winter came. Smelling and feeling the irst hint of autumn in the air always made me sad. 79

Hikerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Vision

Weary, along a dark, unlit road a vision appears. Pristine stars reflected in the glassy, still waters of a lake. 80

Terrace Arnetta Fagan Mitchell computer classes at the senior center, genealogy research,

A native of Plymouth, North Carolina, Arnetta as

scrapbooking and enjoying the many events that Atlanta

she is best known by her

has to oﬀer. In addition to her other interests, she has a passionate

high school and college

Arnetta (Terri ) 4 years old

classmates received a

relationship with her alma mater. She is a life-time member

Bachelor of Science Degree

of the National Alumnae Association of Bennett College

from Bennett College in

for Women and a charter member of the 1926 Society. Her

1959. She earned a Master

love for Bennett College is evident by her commitment of

of Science Degree in Home

time and service to the Metro Atlanta Chapter. She has just

Economics Education from N.Y. State University at

completed her second term as the chapter’s historian. She

Plattsburg. She is the middle child of the late Lancelot

has worked tirelessly in the chapter’s fundraising eﬀorts;

and Terrace Gilliam Fagan.

and is the chairperson for the membership committee.

Her teaching career began in upstate Hudson,

She was selected

New York. In 1963, she moved to Riverhead, New York where she taught Home Economics in the Middle

by the Metro Atlanta

School. While working in Riverhead, she was an active

Bennett College Alumnae

member of First Baptist Church. Her other activities

Chapter as this year’s

included membership in the National Council of Negro

“Unsung Heroine” for her

Women and the Long Island Minority Educators.

outstanding service to the organization. The certi icate

In February 1992, she married Rudolph E. Mitchell and in December, she retired from a teaching career

of recognition was awarded

that spanned 33 years. Upon her husband’s retirement

at the All Bennett Banquet

in 1995, they moved to Lawrenceville, Georgia. Even

during the commencement

in retirement she has kept busy; taking and coaching

weekend. 81

My Wedding Day It was a brisk wintery day and my home was full of

to take the wedding party to church for the service at eleven. I was determined not to have my guests waiting for

family members who had come to share the joy on my special

the ceremony to start. The lorist

day. Aunt Dell and my cousin Diane had arrived in the wee hour of the

had delivered the lowers to the

morning from Washington, DC. Once

church, when we arrived, pinning

I got them settled, I was oďŹ&#x20AC; to bed.

the corsages and boutonnieres was all that was left to be done before

I awoke early to be the irst in the bathroom to get showered

the ceremony. At 11:05, the organist

and begin my day. Beverly, my

began to play the wedding march

beautician had given me an eight

and Uncle Rossie took my arm

oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;clock appointment so that my

to begin my walk down the aisle,

hair would look extra special for

many thoughts rushed through my

my wedding day. Not only did she

mind. I thought of how we met,

open the salon early for me, she did

Terri and Rudolph Mitchell , Febuary 15, 1992

and I felt that it was meant to be. I was invited to a cook-out on

my hair gratis as my wedding gift.

the Saturday before we met and I declined the invitation

An hour and a half later, I returned home to get dressed for the arrival of the photographer at 10 a.m. Diane

because I had been out late the night before, celebrating

helped me get dressed because my sister Lorraine had not

the end of the school year. My friend, Evelyn decided

arrived yet. We took lots of photos with me and my family.

to invite Mitch (my husband to be) and me, along with

The photo shoot went well; and now the limo was arriving

another couple for dinner on Sunday. Evelyn had to run

My Wedding Day to the store for a last minute item, and I was left to greet

tradition, instead of throwing the bridal bouquet; I chose to

the guests if they arrived before she returned. They did

present the bouquet to Evelyn, my friend who introduced me

arrive before she got back from the store. I answered the

to Mitch. We had great time and now it is time to leave and it

doorbell and in walked Roy, Nancy and Mitch. I greeted my

had begun to rain. While we were completing our inancial

friends Roy and Nancy with a kiss and decided quickly why

responsibilities with the Inn, everyone had left except the

not greet Mitch with a kiss also. Thus, this was the start

disc jockey, including the best man whose job it was to be our

of a wonderful relationship. As I walked down the aisle, I

transportation home. We had let the limo driver go after he

could see all my friends, co-workers and church members;

had taken us to the reception. It is now raining very hard,

and it was like a ray of sunshine on a cold winter day.

and I go to the coat room to get my fur stole; only to ind that it was not there. Not only did we not have a ride home but I

The ceremony was simple and beautiful. The scripture reading was from 1 Corinthinians 12: 4 -5 and our

had no coat to put on for the trip. We got a ride home with the

wedding song was â&#x20AC;&#x153;Here and Nowâ&#x20AC;? by Luther Vandross. I

disc jockey. Mitch gave me his jacket to keep warm. When we

can still see Pastor Coverdale standing in front of us with

got to the house, we found a house full of family and friends.

his eyes closed soaking in the lyrics as the soloist sang the

We entertained for an hour or so before leaving to spend

song. After taking Holy Communion, I became Mrs. Rudolph

the night at a hotel

Mitchell. We greeted our guests for the irst time as Mr. and

near the airport. We

Mrs. Rudolph E. Mitchell in the vestibule of the church.

had an early morning light to Jamaica for

The limousine was waiting to take us to the reception

our honeymoon.

at the Soundview Inn in Greenport, NY. Upon arrival the wedding party was introduced and we got the party started. After the meal was served, I made a change in the bridal

Honeymooning in Jamaica

A Lasting Friendship Nannie Hughes and I met at Bennett College. We were

their own dining hall. On our day oﬀ we would visit relatives

freshman together and I got to know her because we were

in New York City. We soon adjusted to the camp routine and

both Home Economics majors and had many classes together.

accepted the job for the next summer. After graduation, we both took a job at Bennett as

During our junior year at Bennett, we took summer jobs as cooks for the Brownies at a Girl

freshmen dormitory directors. She was

Scout camp in Bear Mountain, NY.

assigned to Merner Hall and I was assigned

Bear Mountain was in a beautiful

the Jones Hall. Our relationship grew closer

state park nestled in the Hudson

during this time. The job was con ining;

Valley near Suﬀern, NY. Suﬀern

we had very little time for a personal life.

was about an hour by bus from

Each week we had one day oﬀ. My day oﬀ

New York City. Since neither of us

was on Thursday and it began at 10:00

owned a car, we had to travel by

a.m. and I had to be back on duty by 11:00

bus to Suﬀern and the camp nurse

Nannie and Terri at 50th class reunion

p.m. Nannie’s day oﬀ was on Friday and

her hours were the same. We never had a day oﬀ together.

or director would pick us up to go to the park.

When my day oﬀ came around, I would go downtown to shop,

This was an adventure in itself. We had no idea what camp life was like, and therefore, were not prepared for what

and after shopping I would return to campus and hang out

was in store for us. I had taken a radio that had to be plugged

in Nannie’s room. The next day, when it was her day oﬀ she

into an electrical outlet. Where do you ind an outlet if you

would stay in my room. This provided us with some place to

are sleeping in a tent? Our job was to plan menus and cook

be away from the constraints of the job. We had one weekend

three meals per day for 25 children. The older scouts had

A Lasting Friendship oﬀ a month, but never a weekend oﬀ together. When we had

Nannie returned to her home town of Cheraw of SC. We were

a weekend oﬀ we had to relinquish our day oﬀ. Our salary

each other’s support system. We eventually found work. I worked as a salesperson in

was $2,800.00 per year and out of that we had to pay $60.00

fur storage at Gimbels’ Department Store on 34th Street in

per month for room and board.

New York City. Nannie got a job as a Home Extension Agent

On one of my shopping treks, I stopped in Woolworths to get a few things before returning to campus. I noticed Black

in SC. She eventually got married to a service man and they

students sitting at the lunch counter. I thought to myself,

were stationed in Kalamazoo, MI. We kept in touch for a

“When did they start serving Blacks at Woolworths?” That

while. In January of 1961, I was hired as a substitute teacher in

same evening while watching the news, I learned what I had witnessed earlier was the student protest in downtown

Hudson, NY temporarily replacing my sister, who taught home

Greensboro.

economics at NY Training School for girls, while she attended Cornell University to complete her Master’s Degree. Upon

After working at Bennett, we both decided there must be a better way to earn a living. We wrote letters tendering

earning her degree she returned to Hudson. I was hired as a

our resignation at the end of the school year. I had applied

permanent teacher at the branch of NY State Training School

for a teaching position in North Carolina, but to no avail. I

in Wynantskill, NY. This training school specialized in the

did some substitute teaching in my hometown of Plymouth.

rehabilitation of incorrigible girls from New York City schools.

I later decided to go to New York to seek work. While

These girls had been kicked out of school and were sentenced

searching for work I lived with my aunt and grandmother.

by a judge for given period of time depending on the oﬀense. 85

A Lasting Friendship They lived in cottages on campus with house parents and

not see the need to do them at home. We spent time together

were required to attend classes.

shopping for bargains in tax free New Jersey. When I told Nannie of my upcoming marriage to Mitch,

Being on separate career paths we would write to each other occasionally, especially on birthdays and Christmas.

she was so excited for me. She and her husband Verlon came

When Nannie moved to New Jersey, I was now living in

to the wedding to help celebrate our marriage. We moved to Lawrenceville, GA in 1995

Riverhead, New York; teaching at the middle school. We were able to visit

and again there was distance between us.

more often. We even went to summer

We shared recipes and phone conversations.

school together at Montclair State in

Nannieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s daughter Verlette made a career

New Jersey and I stayed at her home

move to Georgia. When her parents came to

during that time. We attended social

visit her, we had dinner together. In May of 2009, Nannie and I celebrated

functions together and would return to

our 50th year reunion as graduates of

Bennett for our class reunions. Nannie was a true home economics

Bennett College for Women.

person. She loved baking, canning, and sewing for her family. I was just the opposite. Even though I would teach all those things, as a single person I did 86

Norina Smith Lewis I was born on October 15, 1928 to Gordon and Viola Smith. Both my parents were born in the United States. My mother’s father was born in England, her mother in British Canada. My father’s mother was born in Sweden. His father was a Yankee from Massachusetts. My grandmother came from Sweden at a young age and always spoke English. Our family consisted of my parents, who were together since they married at age 19. I have an older brother, Gordon and a sister, Darlene. We were all educated in Ridgewood. My siblings are both alive at ages 86 and 84. I worked for the telephone company on and oﬀ. They bridged my service so I retired after 20 years with the company. I was 55. I married Ernest Lewis also born in the United States. Both his parents spoke English, however his mother was born in Germany moving here at a young age. I graduated from high school in June 1946 in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Ernie and I were married in 1948. We bought a house in Saddle Brook, New Jersey where we raised our children. We lived there for 35 years. My husband was the tenth child out of eleven. He had to go to work before he inished high school because they were rather poor. His father drank their way into poverty. Ernie and

his 2 brothers started a printing business after WW II. He

authoress. I never imagined that my life history could make

stayed in the business until he retired at age 64.

a good story until I joined the “Jump Start Your Life History”

When our children were grown, they moved to the

class.

South. We stayed in New Jersey where we kept busy with many activities, even learned how to dance which gave us lots of pleasure. We did some traveling including 6 cruises. We saw a lot of the Caribbean, Puerto Rico, Mexico and some countries in Central America. We visited England, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany and Holland. We also lew to California, Texas and Hawaii. We also took many trips to Florida. Since both of our children lived in Georgia, we decided it was the best place to retire. We’ve been here for 25 years. I’m now widow. Ernie passed away just 44 days short of our 60th wedding anniversary. I continue to live in Georgia where we bought our home. My daughter lives nearby and gave me a grandson, Robert, now 26 years old. My son, who lives with me, has 2 daughters. One I never see anymore, probably due to the hostility of the irst wife. His other daughter, April is 26. She has provided me with 2

Me on roller skates

great granddaughters. As a young person I always said I wanted to be an

Life With Ernie Sometimes you forget that so many good things

apples. I managed to make one pie from those apples. We had a sidewalk that ran up to the front porch.

happened in your lifetime. Sometimes I pause and remember how things were. I am amazed that so much

When we inally had a driveway put in, we changed the

went on in my life that it would take a very large books to

sidewalk to come up on the side of the front porch. Ernie

record it all.

installed a split rail fence around the whole front yard. He then got all diďŹ&#x20AC;erent colored roses bushes and planted

When Ernie, Linda, our 18 month old daughter, and

them on the fence. Most of them were climbers. He made

I moved into our house in Saddle Brook, a whole new life

a few mistakes and some of them didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t

started for me.

climb the fence but we did have loads of

Ernie, being a city boy,

roses.

enjoyed having a yard at last.

Some of the neighborhood men teased

We had a birch tree on the front lawn and a maple tree

him about his roses, telling him each time

on the curb. We all had those

they passed our yard they would start

maple trees- after all we were

sneezing. We had built a garage in the backyard.

living on Maple Avenue.

There were only four garages on the block. (It was a

Ernie really loved roses and he always wanted a red maple tree that I gave him for his birthday. We had an

selling point when we did sell the house.) Ernie also made

apple tree in the backyard but it really didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t produce many

a bedroom for Linda on the second loor when Scott was 89

Life With Ernie born. He did most of the work himself. Our kitchen was quite small and I suggested we enlarge it 3 feet to the driveway and update the cabinets. Ernie had a builder come in and start it and he did the rest of the work. We inally had some room between the kitchen table and the refrigerator. We retired and moved to Georgia. Ernie had put so much work into improving the house; it was hard for him to leave. He also planted tomatoes in the yard and believe me there is nothing as good as a Jersey tomato. He also had tomatoes growing in our yard here in Georgia. The plants grew very tall but the tomatoes werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t up to par.

Kitty On March 11, 2005 I had my 13 year old cat

She would limp into the kitchen and sit near me. When

euthanized by our vet, Dr. Reese. It broke my heart as I really

I was using my computer in my bedroom, she would rest at

loved Kitty, but she had an ugly tumor on her left back foot.

my feet. When the sun shone in my husbandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s room, she

She was too old for amputation and there was no cure. I

would sit in the warmth of the sun, moving whenever the sun

knew her time was limited but I never gave up hope that she

did.

would last long and surprise everyone. Her appetite slowed

She had a way of looking at us with those beautiful

down to nothing but a bite here and there but she drank lots

expressive eyes of hers that would make us melt. She barely

of water. My 18 pound cat was now losing weight, her back bone protruded and you could see her skin under her fur. Only her tail stayed full and bushy. Her sweet face and bright eyes still appeared alert. The tumor got more ugly and it had an unpleasant odor. I got old pillows for her to sleep on. I put towels and old pillowcases on them and changed them often because the tumor was creating a sticky, bloody stain. She limped to the

complained but I saw her left leg tremble from time to

litter box regularly sometimes urinating on the heavy cluster

time. She only meowed occasionally when she wanted our

of newspaper I had put around the box.

attention. 91

Kitty Though I knew her time was nearly up, I still hesitated

Dr. Reece gave her something to put her to sleep. Then

and put oﬀ the euthanasia. Tearfully I stayed awake one night

he gently put her on the sheet we brought and put the needle

and decided I must make an appointment with Dr. Reese. I

in. She didn’t move. He told us when her heart stopped and

bought a throw away camera and took pictures of Kitty,

we gently petted her fur. We left at that point.

especially of her face, avoiding pictures of the tumor.

My tears had stopped when we came home. I cleaned

My husband and I put her in the car in her carrier box

up the litter box and the papers, threw out the pillows and left

on a pillow and covered her with a sheet (She liked to climb

over food, and vacuumed the loor. I was tearful most of the

under sheets). I did not have to close the carrier top as she

day and found it hard to talk about her.

made no eﬀort to get out. She threw-up a bit which was

This cat has a history and I will tell you about it.

normal because she usually got car sick. My husband held

Kitty in 1996

onto the carrier and talked to her. When we arrived at the vet, I took her inside. The girls

Our daughter-in-law, Vicki, was a groundskeeper at an

in the of ice asked my name but I was too choked up to reply.

apartment complex. People would abandon their animals,

They understood and brought us to Dr. Reece’s examining

cats and dogs, on the grounds. Kitty had a sister and they

room. He knew why we were there and assured us we were

wandered around the complex, trying to hide and trying to

doing the right thing and that we had given her wonderful

avoid contact with people while hunting for food. Kitty, who

care. He was kind and explained what he would do. He

Vicki named Bitsy, has some kittens but they were killed by

assured us that if she could talk she would thank us.

the animals running loose. Vicki, being a “soft touch”, brought 92

Kitty Kitty and her sister into her apartment. Kitty seemed to like

seizures so Dr. Reece said to increase it to ½ tablet twice a day.

it there while her sister did not. Kitty was very shy around

It worked. The seizures stopped. She became very friendly and was no longer afraid of

people and would occasionally run outside. However, she

other people and would even let children pet her. Everyone

would always come back.

who came to the house remarked how handsome she was and

Our son and Vicki moved in with us temporarily for

what beautiful markings she had.

9 months and asked if they could bring their cat. I talked

She found she could climb up on my bed and I would

my husband into letting her come since she reminded me of family cats we had in the past. She ran away from us once. I

ind her cuddled up against or under my covers or pillow on

decided to make her into a house cat. I had her spayed and

cold days or nights. She always came to me when I sorted the

her front claws were removed. At this point she became my

laundry and I piled clothes on top of her. Sometimes she would

cat and I named her “Kitty” although people laughed at that

go to sleep under the pile. She liked to wrestle with me. She

name for an 18 pound cat.

could nip me but she couldn’t scratch me. I never helped her down, so when she got tired, she could just walk away.

Kitty had an accident in the living room so we put up

Her tumor started as a purple bump and got worse. I

gates to keep her out. She had use of the rest of the house and we had a LARGE litter box (She was a big cat!) I took Kitty

guess I thought she would stay with us forever but it just

on regular visits to the vet especially when we found she had

wasn’t meant to be. I don’t know if she can ever be replaced.

a problem. She had small seizures and some urine would

However, I hope someday to have another cat. She must be

expel when she had one. Dr. Reece put her on 1/4 tablet

female and have beautiful expressive eyes.

of phenobarbital twice a day. It didn’t always control the

Kitty

I AM I AM

I AM

A Defender of the State of New Jersey. I don’t like anyone

A person who panics easily. If I can’t ind something I

making fun of New Jersey. I had 55 great years there.

need, I go crazy and teary trying to ind things.

I AM

Cat person. Of course I have a preference, a female with

A Dreamer. In my mind I always imagine people as being

four white paws.

very good looking and smart.

I AM

Nice to people. I care about and worry about others with

Proud. I look at my daughter and son and consider them

problems.

to be my best accomplishment.

I AM

Loyal. You can depend on me to stick up for you. I was

Forgiving. It comes naturally.

especially loyal to my husband who dealt with a birthmark.

I AM

A Defender, especially of people who get picked on.

Honest. I never could lie to people, but I don’t try to say

I AM

hurtful things.

Frugal. I watch my money carefully as I don’t want to

I AM

depend on anyone helping me inancially.

One who likes to remember the good times. Writing about

I AM

them is new to me but I’m amazed at how many things come back to me.

Generous. When I hear of a need, I get out the checkbook. 95

I AM I AM

I AM

Sentimental and weepy. No wonder every time I get

A Discoverer. I’ve discovered peace and friendship in my church and in my prayers.

teary-eyed my nose runs. I AM

I AM

An Anticipator. I need something special to look forward

Not a good housekeeper, but I’ve seen worse!

to, to keep going. I AM One with a weight problem. On the scale I can range anywhere from 130-210 pounds. I AM Frequently a last minute Lizzie. However, I’ve improved with age but if I’m late, I don’t like people to notice. I AM One who has a hard time accepting compliments but I am I AM

convinced I enjoy being nice.

Norina Smith Lewis

I AM With an opinion on big issues; illegal aliens, taxes, health issues, crime, and the way crimes are classi ied. 96