Memories

It seems as if people have better memories of their childhood than I do. That is kind of sad. So I'm going to write about a few that I do remember.

Toothless

When I was a wee one, I remember a neighbor of ours, an elderly woman I suppose, would come over for coffee and cookies and visit with my mom. I found her utterly fascinating because she had no teeth. Her mouth went up and down in a squishing-like movement and her lips stuck out as she chewed. When she talked, I could see her gums and her tongue would slip in and out of her mouth.

May Day

When May Day came in Kansas in the forties during WWII, it was a wonderful day. I made little baskets out of anything available and put little wild violets in it for flowers. Mom would make or buy little candies to put in the basket. I would sneak up to the door and put the basket down and knock. Then I would run like crazey for the nearest bush or tree to hide. It was fun to see the people look all around for the May Day basket deliverer.

Wet Pants

At the age that I was just being potty trained, I played a lot with my little neighbor friend, who also happened to be named Judy. I would get so far from home that I didn't always make it to the bathroom. I would take off my wet underware and hide them in a bush. Mom would start missing my underwear and go out and find them in the yard.

The Dog

We had a fairly big dog, big to me anyway. One day he got out the front door when I opened it and he ran out into the street. The son of our friends ran over him and he died.

Donuts

When my dad got home from the war, it was wonderful. I was about 3 years-old then. He would take my brother and me on a ride in the car. We always wanted to do the "donut." That was a fast trip around the end of a dirt road that ended in a circle. We would go round and round.

The Cow in Delphos

We lived on the edge of town in Delphos, KS when I was about 4. We had a milk cow. My mom was afraid of most big animals and that included our cow. One day the cow got out of its pen by the shed. I marched right out there and got her back in the pen, climbed up on the fence and fastened the gate.

Other Delphos Memories

Our neighbor had a horse and sleigh. He used to take all the neighbors for a ride in the snow.

Since Dad was working at the lumber yard, he had access to a round watering tank and would get one for the summer so that we had our own little swimming pool. The neighbor boy was always dunking my head under. One time I was sure I was going to die because he held me under for so long, I came up gasping for air.

We had a Boston Terrier female dog called Toby. Toby had puppies. One day we came home and couldn't find them. They had wandered into the closet and a couple of them crawled into a pair of boots and couldn't get out. They suffocated.

Stan fell down the long stairs that we had and got a concussion. That is why he is the way he is today!

King City

Grandma Stanley had a little pond in her back yard with gold fish in it. A few years ago we visited her house and the people who lived there wondered about the concrete edging in the back yard. We were able to tell them that it was the outside edge of a fish pond.

Grandma had a dog named Skipper. He was tall and white with curly hair. (not a poodle)

After she moved to the big old house, she had a little playhouse with dolls and doll dishes in it. I used to play there with Mary McCammon.

Grandma belonged to a group of older women called the "hoolie ladies." I'm sure that's probably not the way you spell it. They did all kinds of community projects and they had lunch at someone's house each month. Grandma would take me with her when I was there. I locked myself in the second floor rest room one time and someone had to get a ladder to recue me out of the window. Every one called grandma, "Stan."

When she was almost 65, she found she didn't have enough Soc. Sec. credits to get any retirement money. So she got a job in St. Joseph, MO at the YWCA as a cook to pick up the work credits. Not sure how long she worked, but she has a small apartment there and I used to go stay with her.

She and grandpa Stanley went to Minnesota fishing all the time. After he died, Grandma took my family fishing up there to Little Pelican Lake. Grandma put the worms on the hooks and I pulled in sunfish almost faster than she could bait the hooks. I saw a snake one time and I scared its baby snakes so much that they ran into their mother's mouth. I guess they are supposed to do that.

I think that she taught me to love to garden. She had beautiful roses and other flowers at every home that she had. She also had a vegetable garden and canned many of the vegetables.

Enough memories for today.