Once in a while, when I am a good Dad, I'll read some family history stories to the kids at bedtime. Last night we choose to read out of Grandma Call's journal that she compiled in 1992.
There were a few good teaching opportunities in the two pages we read. I thought I would share some of them.
ONE TIME THE FOLKS WENT SOMEPLACE TO A FUNERAL OUT OF TOWN. THEY LEFT ME HOME TO CHORE AND TO TAKE CARE OF THE LITTLE KIDS. MADA, ELVA, BEN, AND CLAIR. I WAS TEN YEARS OLD. ALONG IN THE AFTERNOON SOME MAN CAME ALONG AND KNOCKED ON THE DOOR AND TOLD ONE OF THE LITTLE KIDS TO TELL PAPA THAT OUR COW HAD HAD A CALF UP IN THE FIELD AND HE BETTER GO GET IT BEFORE IT FELL INTO THE DITCH. THEN THE MAN LEFT. WELL WE WERE IN A PREDICAMENT. THE MAN HAD LEFT, WE HAD NO PHONES, WE WERE ALONE. I DIDN’T KNOW WHAT TO DO.
IT WAS RAINING QUITE HARD. I DIDN’T KNOW HOW I COULD DRIVE OR BRING A NEW BORN CALF HOME - SO I TOOK MADA (WHO WAS ABOUT SEVEN) AND LEFT ELVA WHO WAS ABOUT 5 TO TEND BEN AND CLAIR. WE WENT UP IN THE FIELD TO SEE WHAT WE COULD DO. JUST AS WE GOT CLOSE ENOUGH WE SAW THE NEW BORN CALF FALL INTO THE DITCH FULL OF WATER. IT DID NOT COME BACK UP SO I FIGURED IF I DIDN’T DO SOMETHING QUICK IT WOULD DROWN. SO I RAN FAST TO THE CALF, JUMPED INTO THE WATER AND HELD THE CALF’S NOSE UP OUT OF THE WATER. OOOOOOHHH IT WAS COLD.
I WAS IN THE FIFTH GRADE, AND THE WATER DID NOT QUITE COME UP TO MY SHOULDER TOPS, SO YOU CAN SEE HOW DEEP IT WAS. NOW --— WHAT TO DO, I COULD NOT LIFT THE CALF UP NOR PULL HIM OUT OF THE WATER, THE BEST THAT I COULD DO WAS TO HOLD THAT CALF'S NOSE UP OUT OF THE WATER. BUT I KNEW THE CALF WOULD DIE IF I COULD NOT GET HIM OUT OF THAT ICE COLD WATER AND INTO THE BARN WHERE I COULD RUB HIM DRY. WELL, MADA RAN UP THE ROAD TO SEE IF THERE WOULD BE SOMEONE THAT WOULD COME ALONG THAT SHE COULD FLAG DOWN SO THEY COULD HELP US OR GET HELP FOR US. THEN WE SAW A MAN OVER IN A FIELD ACROSS THE CANAL WORKING. SO SHE WENT TO SEE IF SHE COULD GET HIM TO COME AND HELP US. SHE HAD TO WALK OVER VERY NARROW FLUME BOARDS OVER THE CANAL. BUT FINALLY SHE GOT TO HIM AND HE CAME TO HELP US. IT WAS OLD MAN CURTIS, (REAL ELDERLY) .
HE HAD A ROPE, HE HAD ME TIE IT ONTO THE NECK OF THE CALF AND THEN WITH ALL THREE OF US WORKING, WE FINALLY PULLED IT OUT, AND GOT IT INTO THE BARN. MADA AND I THEN TOOK GUNNY SACKS AND WIPED AND WIPED THE CALF UNTIL IT WAS DRY. FINALLY WE GOT THROUGH AND WENT INTO THE HOUSE, BUT THE CALF LIVED AND PAPA WAS PROUD OF US AND THAT MADE IT WORTH IT. ALSO THE NIGHT HE WAS GONE WE HAD TWIN BABY COLTS BORN. WAS I EVER GLAD TO HAVE MY FOLKS HOME AGAIN.
THE YEAR I GRADUATED FROM SEMINARY I BOUGHT A SEMINARY PIN. I LOVED IT. IT WAS SO PRETTY AND I WAS SO PROUD OF IT. THEN ONE NIGHT WHEN I WAS DATING GERALD WE WENT TO THE SHOW ON A SUNDAY NIGHT. WHEN WE WERE ON OUR WAY HOME I FOUND MY PIN WAS GONE. I NEVER DID FIND IT, AND I ALWAYS FELT LIKE IF I HADN'T GONE TO THE SHOW ON SUNDAY I WOULDN’T HAVE LOST IT.
WE USED TO HATE TO GO TO THE TOILET ALONE, DON’T ASK ME WHY, BECAUSE I DON’T KNOW, I DOUBT IF I KNEW AT THE TIME. BERSHA AND I USUALLY WENT TO THE TOILET TOGETHER QUITE A BIT. OR ELSE I WOULD TRY TO COAX MADA OR ELVA TO GO WITH ME. IN THOSE DAYS WE DIDN'T HAVE TOILET PAPER TO USE. IT WAS CONSIDERED A LUXURY BY MOST FOLKS AROUND THERE. WE USED OLD MAGAZINES AND OLD CATALOGS. MOSTLY WE USED OLD SEARS ROEBUCK AND MONTGOMERY WARD CATALOGS.
MOST OF THE PAGES WERE ON SOFT PAPER OF BLACK AND WHITE, SIMILAR TO A NEWSPAPER. BUT SOME OF THEM WERE PAINTED AND SLICK AND I PRETTY SCRATCHY. ONE DAY BERSHA AND I WERE SITTING THERE TALKING AND DOING OUR 'JOB’, AND FOR SOME STUPID REASON THAT I DON’T KNOW WHY I DID, I TOLD HER I LIKED TO USE THE THICK PAINTED SHEETS I BEST. SHE HAD A FIT AND COULDN’T UNDERSTAND IT CAUSE MOST PEOPLE WOULD LIKE THE SOFTER PAGES BETTER. WELL, SHE MADE SUCH A FUSS ABOUT IT THAT I COULDN’T BACK DOWN AND TELL HER THAT I WAS FIBBING. I HAD TO SAVE FACE. SO WHENEVER WE WENT TO THE TOILET TOGETHER AFTER THAT I HAD TO GO ON FIBBING AND USE THE SLICK SHEETS AND TELL HER YES, THAT I STILL LIKED THEM BEST, WHEN IN REALITY I RATED THE SCRATCHY THINGS. I FOUND OUT IT BETTER TO TELL THE TRUTH.
