A gift

Today in our competitive, angry world, I wonder if you would like to hear a  simple story about kindness for a change. My sister Hazel liked this little story. She recounted this incident about an unusual response to what might have been an unpleasant night for two neighbors a long time ago.

When Mom and Dad were bringing up our large family, their ability to provide food and shelter was tested many times, especially through the winter. Yet through our family’s hard work, we always had enough… even in the hardest of months and the hardest of times. Continue reading “A gift”

A Ronald story

Ronald

I think this story is appropriate at a time of grief in my brother Ronald’s family.  It is a small story but Ronald’s actions helped all of us and our home stay safe. This happened the very day the attached picture of Ronald was taken. Perhaps he remembers. I did not. But David remembered, and this is what he told me. Continue reading “A Ronald story”

David and Brownie

David and Brownie around 1948

More stories about the farm dogs.

As Danny said, Brownie was a friendly dog, my favorite pet and I think Hazel’s favorite of all times. Dad’s half sister, our Aunt Lola, gave him to us. She told us he was a quarter Eskimo. And, yes, Brownie had a lot of hair. He was miserable in the hot summers. This was the time before there was a pond on the farm, so Brownie would go almost anywhere to find a body of water so he could wallow in it and cool off. Continue reading “David and Brownie”

Hazel and Brownie

Hazel with Brownie

A couple more farm dog stories The couple of stories below were told to me by Hazel during my stay with her in August, 2005, after she had had a bad fall. There was time to talk about things we remembered, and this included a couple of dog stories. I had forgotten that they had happened until she remembered and began to reminisce about Brownie one day. Continue reading “Hazel and Brownie”

A David story

Have you ever seen fox fire?  Do you know what it is?

One night probably in the early 1950’s, my brother David had gone over to Clarice and Aaron’s house to watch television.  My oldest sister Clarice and her husband Aaron were one of the first in the country to have a television set at that time.  Lots of people would invite themselves to spend an evening watching the new exciting entertainment. David went over pretty often.  Continue reading “A David story”

Thoughts on another birthday

When you were very young even before you started school, I bet you loved music. I did, too. We often listened to the Carter family on the radio. Their music made me feel happy. I wished I could play a guitar and make such wonderful sounds. We had a hair brush that was shaped somewhat like a guitar, so I would sit in the rocking chair in front of the sheet iron stove, playing my hair brush and singing Wildwood Flower and Keep on the Sunny Side. I made the guitar sounds, too. Continue reading “Thoughts on another birthday”

Sheep

Sheep at the farm

In the latter days of January each year, when the ground was still frozen hard and you could see your breath as you walked outdoors in the mornings, a crop of new lambs was born on the farm. Amazingly, most but not all of them survived.

Lambs were some of the cutest of all the farm animals. Like a lot of newborns, their legs always looked too tall for their bodies. It was fun to watch them, “baa-ing” after their mamas, bouncing around on their black hooves, and wiggling their tails when they nursed. I thought I would love to rub my hand over their woolly backs, but neither the lambs nor the ewes would let me get close enough to do that. Not to mention that I was afraid of the buck sheep. Continue reading “Sheep”