tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-141688372024-03-13T08:20:32.818-05:00Woodsong NotesThis blog is a diary-type journal telling of daily happenings on the farm with family and friends. Feel free to join us at Woodsong if you are interested in rural life, writing, reading, grandkids, ducks, and other such everyday joys.Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.comBlogger771125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-68186586021513994172017-11-27T17:16:00.000-06:002017-12-11T19:35:52.342-06:00Lots of BlessingsThe first thing that happened to me on Thanksgiving morning was a
surprise presentation of gorgeous flowers by Gerald for my birthday!
It was so nice to start the day calmly with beautiful flowers. Two
of our three great grandsons were already outside, and I quickly put
on some bacon to bake for when they showed up at the kitchen table.
After I ate my egg and toast, I started looking at my small to-do
list.
<br />
<br />
The Freeport Eilers were going to eat with their church family
this year. Their church provides a community dinner for anyone who
will come much like Herrin does. Last year Jeannie had a cold and
had to stay home and the rest of the family came without her. This
year they were staying home; and when Cecelie called me with birthday
wishes, they were on their way to their feast, and I assume to pitch
in to help. Jeannie and Rick's daughter Leslie and husband Mike
were in Ohio to be with Mike's family. Geri Ann in Oregon and Sam
in Waco were both going to a friend's home for dinner since they are
tied up until Christmas break. Erin and baby Caroline down in Texas
were having Josh's parents to be with them from Oregon or Minnesota
--they live both places, so I am not sure of their current location.
I liked knowing that Josh knew his folks were there to celebrate with
his wife and daughter, and I was pleased that Gerald brought up and
placed with our group the 8 by l0 photo of Josh holding two-week-old
baby Caroline before he had to return to South Korea. Josh stays in
our thoughts and prayers.
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<br />
We have had a lot of excitement crammed into little more than a
week's time! Last Saturday we drove over and took flowers to
Katherine who was in the hospital at Carbondale. Before we left the
house, we were shocked to hear that Gerry, our son who had just gone
to Auburn University as associate softball coach two months ago, had
accepted head coach at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and
that it would be announced at press conference on Monday.
<br />
<br />
Gerry invited us down; of course, Gerald and our daughter Mary
Ellen wanted to be there. Me too, but since doctors warned me to not
travel without resting every two hours or so after a pulmonary
embolism several years ago, I knew that would be out of the question
with the race down there. Mary Ellen double checked that Gerry
really wanted them there despite how busy as he would be. She had a
terrible coughing cold, and Gerald woke up somewhat weak on Sunday
morning, but they went anyhow. They were making good time until they
hit a couple of very long traffic delays, so their 8 pm arrival time
stretched out till 11 pm.<br />
<br />
Ready to fall into their beds in their
reserved room, they could not locate the room for their key. They
went back to the desk, and found that motel with their very expensive
room had no night clerk! She left evidently as soon as she
gave them their key and no directions. After a continued search,
they finally gave up and went elsewhere and got to bed at 1 am. and
were up shortly after 5 for Monday's exciting activities starting
with a tour of facilities and meetings before the 11 o'clock press
conference . All the fun and pleasure of hearing Gerry's career
praised gave them adrenaline, and the many hugs and laughter
provided serotonin and endorphins to get through the day happily and
wide awake feeling good. They were back home by 11 that night after
the second 630 mile trip in two days. (Yes, they received an apology
and no charge at first motel. Evidently there were two buildings and
the night clerk in her hurry to leave failed to properly explain.)
<br />
<br />
Gerry's wife Vickie cares for baby Caroline during the week while
Erin teaches, so she had used Erin's break to go to Normal here in
Illinois to see the Archibald family--Tara and Bryan and her three
grandsons. Suddenly she had to shorten her visit and fly down to
Lafayette. Yet she looked rested and beautiful in her red dress
that perfectly matched the bouquet they gave her. (Vermilion is the
school color, and I had to google it to discover that bright red or
scarlet is close enough. I suspect I will be doing quite a bit of
googling to learn about Lafayette and the Ragin' Cajuns.) I was at
home, but I was able to see much of the festivities with all the
videos on Facebook and spent most of the day doing so, although I was
aware it was three days till Thanksgiving.<br />
<br />
It was difficult to think with all the excitement, but
fortunately I had the pumpkin pies that Gerry loves all baked and in
the freezer and an angel food cake and one pie made without sugar
for Gerald. and a large frozen pecan pie someone had brought once
upon a time that did not get eaten. Gerald had bought our frozen
almost 22-pound turkey and it was thawing in the garage fridge. I
figured I would make the dressing and fry the okra, and I had
ingredients and assignments for everyone else to put a simple holiday
meal on the buffet. I was disappointed that now Gerry would not be
with us as planned, but I was glad he would at least have a day to
get some sleep. Mary Ellen had wanted to do the dining room table,
and I was relieved to let her. I went to my physical therapy Tuesday
afternoon, and then I ran by Katherine's house as she had just come
home from the hospital the night before.
<br />
<br />
On Wednesday. Gerald helped and we cut the plastic wrapping off
the thawed turkey and made it ready for him to put it in the oven
early the next morning. Oh yes, I set the oven's self cleaning
mechanism to take care of some pumpkin pie batter I'd spilled the
week before. Later while I was at Katherine's and then running by the
store for last minute items, Gerald cleared out the smokey air from
the burned-up oven gunk. When I got home, things were in full swing
with the great grandsons having arrived. Vickie had flown back to
Normal from Louisiana and came down for Thanksgiving with the
Archibalds as originally planned. Aidan, our oldest great grandson
had to play in two basketball games on Tuesday night, so they could
not come sooner. But it did not take long after they arrived for the
three boys to be outside doing all the things they do on the farm.
As soon as I was back at the farm and after hugs and greetings, I
put away those last minute items and then swiped out the coating of
white ash left in the oven; our grandson-in-law Bryan reached the
back of the oven for me. We all had a party to go to!<br />
<br />
The Archibalds had invited both sides (Johnson and Glasco) to an
early birthday party at Pirate Pete's. That was what Maddux wanted
for his and his cousin Kinsley's birthdays. I had never been to
Pirate Pete's but knew where it was. In our day, Tara and our other
grand-kids would lure us to Chuckie Cheese's in Paducah. So going to
Pirate Pete's was an adventure, and we quickly understood why the
kids loved it. Gma Shirley and I and other adults too staid to
participate as some did in a laser fight were comfortable in a quiet
dining area. We enjoyed visiting until the kids (and adult kids) wore
down and joined us for pizza and opening gifts. The blow guns the
boys chose with the tickets they won provided soft padded “bullets” flying through the air the rest of our holiday. I liked that and
hearing them fiddling with the piano in this sometimes too quiet
adult household. The boys are extremely kind and well mannered, and
I love watching them grow up.
<br />
<br />
After Mary Ellen and Brianna arrived Thanksgiving morning, Mary
Ellen added to the table decorations she had started on Wednesday.
She had new yellow clothes for the dining table and adjoining
kitchen table, and she had made a tan burlap runner and placed red
candles inside two large glass vases with the candles held up by
harvested soybeans. All was quite lovely and symbolic, but Thursday
she added bows on the vases and a centerpiece between them. Come to
find out, that centerpiece was a gift wreath from Jeannie for my
birthday, and in the middle of it was a chocolate pecan pie with two
chocolate candles announcing I was 84.
<br />
In addition to my assigned tasks for a simple menu, Mary Ellen and
Brianna carried in a potato casserole and creamed corn, and Vickie
made her deviled eggs that we all love. So our buffet was full with
a a variety of foods. I really make giblet gravy for Gerry as I am
not sure others eat it, but I decided to go ahead and make it in case
someone did want it. Mary Ellen had emphasized we needed to eat on
time for hungry kids' sake, but she had also brought sausage/cheese
balls and dip to keep people from starving.
<br />
<br />
Gerald had gone to town to drive Katherine and her wonderful aide
out to the farm in her van, so Bryan took over getting the heavy
turkey out of the oven and then carving it, which Gerry used to
always do. My dressing was not getting done since it was such a big
pan. As usual, we really did not make the 12 noon deadline, but
everyone was there and laughing and talking. Katherine had seen baby
Caroline's photos that decorate our kitchen thanks to Gerald's photography hobby, and she was back to her spot for her wheelchair at the table. Food was prepared and placed. Brian and Trent had joined us, and we
had congratulated Trent on SIUC's success in a cyber security
tournament. The two college students had seated themselves with the
three boys at their table. We were almost ready for Gerald to thank
God for our blessings when there was an uproar in the kitchen. The
kitchen door slammed, and suddenly there was Gerry who had driven
from Louisiana to be with us after all. Suddenly we had even more
blessing for Gerald to express thanks for.
<br />
<br />
After a meal of fellowship, Mary Ellen and Vickie put away the
food and did the enormous kitchen clean up while I visited and
enjoyed my birthday. (They did leave that difficult dressing pan for
me.) Katherine was getting very tired and her aide had another
dinner to go to. Gerry and Vickie and the Archibalds also had yet
another to go to that night with the Johnson family at Terry and
Sheila's. Brianna had come home from Murray with great relief from
turning in her senior thesis--and yes it was excellent her professor
said--and she wanted to celebrate with a movie with her family. So
the house quieted a bit until Gerry and Vickie and the Archibalds
returned, and everyone needed to get to bed.<br />
<br />
Although the Archibalds left early Friday morning (for another
Thanksgiving celebration with Bryan's family), the boys had kayaked
and created a neat tunnel in the lime pile and ridden on all the
things with wheels that they love. Bryan had already washed and put
the kayaks back on their storage ropes. Gerry and Vickie left soon
after with the bird dogs Gerald had been feeding for Gerry. They were
headed to Erin's house where Gerry would be able to cuddle baby
Caroline—the perfect ending for his brief break. Gerald and I went
back into the empty house.<br />
<br />
Saturday was a catch-up day.Gerald fixed a faucet in the downstairs bathroom, and I boiled the turkey carcass and
put bags of broth into the freezer, which will make good soup to go
with our sandwiches on cold winter nights ahead. On Sunday we
worshiped grateful for our abundant blessings and asking God to
help us with our heartaches. Today there is casserole in the oven
from left-over turkey. Attractive green pods have burst into bloom
adding orange lilies to the other beautiful colors of my birthday
bouquet gracing our living room. Brianna will be defending her thesis
in front of four professors this week, and I must think about
boxed-up Christmas trees stored in closets.Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-17141305686156225762017-11-14T00:21:00.000-06:002017-11-14T00:21:59.362-06:00Fianlly Fall Coloration <div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Although I had admired a lovely large
tree across our lake with yellow leaves for a couple of weeks, I kept
wanting to see some reds and bright orange colors. Other trees in our
yard and those across the fields were mostly still green. I remember
when we used to be able to count on bright-hued leaves by the middle
of October, and I noticed the last couple of years that was no longer
true. I thought maybe it was just our region, and then I read that
autumn coloration is arriving later elsewhere also. But finally a
week ago, I looked out the kitchen patio door towards the lake to see
the maple Gerald planted in the yard when we moved here, and it was
at last a brilliant red. On beyond the maple was a Bradford pear
tree Gerald planted that was now lovely with deep wine leaves.
Rains and winds came, and the maple looks all snaggly now with half
its red leaves on the ground, but it had brought me a proper measure
of pleasure before that happened. I drove through that blinding rain
to Katherine's one night; and driving home later after the rain
stopped, the blacktop road glistened with red and orange fallen
leaves shining in my headlights. Even better, a breeze would ever so
often blow more leaves down to shower me with additional loveliness
in my car lights.</div>
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Although the maple is worst for the
wind's wear, the pear tree with its crown of wine leaves is still
there to please my eyes. The trees in the woods across hills and
meadows surrounding us have gradually turned from green to mostly
brown. If we were able to walk under them, I expect there might be
some brown leaves to shuffle through; but like our pear, these trees
seem to be clinging onto their leaves for a bit longer. As much as
I enjoy the coloration, I am also fond of the beauty of bare stark
branches, which I've always associated with November. Maybe now with
global warming, those bare branches will wait to decorate the sky
until the latter part of November.
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Our son-in-law finished his harvest
over a week ago before that heavy rain came, and we are grateful for
his good crops and a completed harvest. With memories of the
fortunately rare years when weather made harvest impossible until
after Thanksgiving or even Christmas, there is always a certain
anxiety until the crops are in. Perhaps our worst year was the one
when Gerald was still combining in late February after he had made a
trip to northern Michigan to buy tracks for the combine. Horror
stories of farmers' combines stuck in mad that year stick in our
memories making an early harvest that much sweeter.
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My summer was full of tests that
mostly turned out good. (A false positive on a sonogram necessitated
an angiogram, so I was grateful for that good report.) Now I am
finally able to have time to start physical therapy tomorrow to
improve my balance. One morning last summer I woke up to find that
the arthritis and other problems in my right knee were joined by
arthritis and tendinitis in my left foot, and that day I had to
start using a cane to walk safely. Those pains have mostly subsided
on their own, but I still need that cane when I am away from the
house. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to walking better yet
after physical therapy.
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I also tire easily, and it has been
necessary for me to realize that I cannot go to town and complete
four or five errands in a half day as I have done all my life. Such
adjustments do not come easy for me. Gerald helps me more than he
ever needed to in the past when he was working 12 hour days or
longer. I think his gardening is over for this year; we ate the last
tomato from the fridge two days ago. I failed to wrap up any green
ones in newspaper to use on Thanksgiving Day as I often have in the
past. Yet now he is busy doing such things as replacing 16-year-old
faucets or putting back up the large wire shelf in the garage, which
I've used for a clothes line when clothes come out of the drier. (We
learned there is a limit to how much weight that long wire shelf
could take when he washed and dried a summer-full of shirts worn for
only an hour or two, and I suggested hanging them there temporarily
before they went back in the closet. When Gerald walked out the next
morning, the shelf was down and the shirts were on the garage floor.
So I have now taken off that wire shelf the antique shoe last that
belonged to my father. Daddy used to have it secured on a stand in
our basement in Jonesboro, and he sometimes put half soles on our
shoes when they wore out. I like to think he inherited the last from
his father, but I don't know that. It is small to fit inside the shoe, but very heavy since it is made of iron. I like seeing it and holding it
and thinking of my father, but I think it is probably time to give it
to a local museum.)
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Gerald received a phone call from his
Union County friend Irma Dell Eudy Elkins telling him of yet another
death of a high school classmate. I had a small grade school class,
and five of my closest friends have been dead for a few years now.
They did not live close enough to see them often, but I miss knowing
they are out there with their minds holding many of the same memories
I have. And I miss not hearing from them at Christmas--or at all. I
do not consider death the end, but losing people from your life here
on earth is a natural part of growing older. Frequent deaths are to
be expected at our age just as leaves fall off trees as winter
approaches. What happened in Las Vegas and Sutherland Springs,
Texas, is not a normal or expected occurrence, and we Americans must
determine to put an end to it. Such massacres are not occurring in
Japan or European countries, and we have a responsibility to stop
them here. I liked seeing a post from one of Katherine's friends
down in Nashville. Her photo showed a handful of postal card messages
to congress. That is a small action any of us could do.
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-87877184730028061402017-10-28T16:06:00.000-05:002017-10-31T11:06:50.202-05:00Social Life Slowed by our Age<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Aging brings frequent doctor
checkups—teeth, eyes, hearing aids, heart, INRs for blood
thickness, etc. etc. Then add the fact that doing the minimum of
what needs doing takes forever, and we get slower every year we age. At least some of us do. The result is that our social life has
slowed down considerably. We do not get out much in the community any
more, and we hesitate to invite people over for a specific date since
we might be called into town to help take care of Katherine on that
date if an aide fails to show up. My dad used to say if people
invite you over and do not set a definite time, they may not mean it.
I think he was only partly correct. We love it when people drop in
and find us home. We have enjoyed some social life this month and are
grateful. It does us good to be around others and hear their stories
and experiences. It makes our limited life less limited!</div>
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An unexpected family reunion was our
first event this month! My mother-in-law's maiden name was Godwin,
but her father died soon after she was married. Gerald is not even
sure if he actually remembers Nathaniel Godwin or maybe his one
memory is just of a photograph of him as a little boy sitting on his
grandfather's lap. Mom Glasco talked about her family and cousins,
and I remember meeting one cousin decades ago.
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We also were briefly in contact with
some Godwin relatives that Gerald's sister Ernestine found online in
Saint Louis. That is how we found his great grandparents' graves in
the Creal Springs cemetery several years ago. We were surprised since
the Godwins we knew about had lived at Pomona. Since we live so close
to Route 166, I invited these Saint Louis folk to come by the next
time they visited the cemetery, but they never did. However, Gerald's
cousin Irma Fay (Wenger) Brown met a Godwin relative at a funeral
visitation recently. He turned out to be a custodian at the school
across from my childhood home in Jonesboro. That meeting resulted in
an invitation to their annual Godwin reunion. So on a recent
Saturday, we took off for the Devil's Backbone park in Grand Tower on
the banks of the Mississippi River. Although very windy, it was a
beautiful day, and the drive through the hills and farm lands was
beautiful. We stopped at Kentucky Fried Chicken in Murphysboro to
obtain our contribution to the pot luck, so it was a work-free outing
for me, which was good since I was having some leg pain. We were able
to see all of Gerald's Wenger cousins, and we met lots of nice folks
there and learned a little more Godwin history. I wish I could hear
better in crowds, and I might have learned more!</div>
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Last weekend we were delighted to hear
that Jeannie was planning on coming down since she had not been able
to come in August. She brought lots of school work with her despite
working late Friday night. But I always enjoy visiting with her as
she sits handling her kids' art work helping them get ready for their
next step—the current project is making sketch books. Since she has
over 500 students (K-5) at two different schools and is expected in
some cases to teach from a cart, it sounds to me that it is an
impossible job that reflects the lack of respect too many have for
the value of the arts. Nevertheless, when I hear her talk and see the
kids' work, I am positive her students are learning more than she
can guess. In talking with the kids about books, she found they knew
the word “spine,” but since the kids are computer literate, she
was surprised they did not know about fonts. She took back a arm
full of old magazines from our house to help her students discover
different fonts.
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Before Jeannie arrived on Saturday,
Gerald invited me to go with him and our birthday granddaughter
Brianna and her mother to Carterville. Gerald had been planning for
some weeks that he wanted to buy her a new Bible for her birthday.
He had recently met a knowledgeable clerk at the book store there who helped him buy two new Bibles, so he wanted Brianna to meet this
clerk and have his advice. Brianna is by nature a thoughtful person,
so she listened and considered carefully before we left
with her new Bible. Mary Ellen made some Christmas gift purchases,
and I knew I was getting old because I resisted buying a single book.
(Every time I was tempted, I remembered the pile of half read books
awaiting me in our living room and told myself not to add until I
finished some of them.) After lunch at a nearby family restaurant,
we returned Bri and her mom to their house as Brianna had plans to
dress for Halloween parading with her brother Trent in Carbondale.
(They went as Dexter and Dee Dee in memory of their childhood when
Trent was always involved with some scientific project and Bri was
the annoying little sister.) We went home to anticipate Jeannie's
arrival.</div>
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On Sunday, Mary Ellen and Brian invited
us to celebrate Bri's birthday by having lunch at Kay's Sugar Creek
restaurant in Creal Springs. Many years ago when Gerald and I used
to go down for Sunday lunch or Friday supper at a little cafe on the
opposite side of the street, Kay's was closed and seemed at that time
mostly open for noon-day meals for seniors. I had not even realized
they were open again on Sundays. (And for all I know, they may have
been for years.) It had been several decades since we ate at Kay's—I
only remember one Sunday dinner there with a favorite pastor and his
wife way back then. So last Sunday, we walked in to the typical
country-style cafe with a cozy friendly atmosphere and only a few
tables occupied. A blackboard told us that Sunday dinners gave you a
choice of fried chicken or chicken and dumplings with two sides. I
debated and ordered the dumplings, which surprised me by being served
in a bowl, more like a soup than the usual dumplings. But the down
home ambiance was charming; we had not been there long when a fellow
Crab Orchard school alum walked in, and Jeannie and Mary Ellen
enjoyed a brief visit with someone they'd not seen for years. The
best part, however, was lingering after we'd eaten. Jeannie asked
her daddy some good questions that brought out some family facts and
stories I'd never heard. Our sweet waitress was more than patient;
and with plenty of other tables for those arriving after us, we felt
no need to hurry and depart. I've always been fascinated with the
history of Creal Springs, where Gerald's grandfather Ben Glasco
attended the Academy to earn his teacher's license and where my
grandmother Sidney Martin attended a church assembly that was held
there in the 1920s, I think. (Gpa Ben chose not to use his teacher's
license since farm hands earned a larger salary! So not valuing
education has been with us a long time. Nevertheless, I understand
that Gpa Ben would have neighbors gathering in since he took a daily
paper and was able to read it and keep up with the news the others
wanted to know in those days without even radios. He also was
considered an excellent mathematician and ready to help figure
interest and other farm sums. I always admired this trait in
Gerald's dad also.)</div>
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Jeannie left us Monday morning, but we
had an evening to look forward to. Gerald's high school class of 16
no longer has planned reunions, but when their Wolf Lake class
valedictorian and his wife come down from Peoria, we are grateful
that Irma Dell Eudy Elkins gives Gerald a phone call and an
invitation to meet other classmates or relatives who get the word and
have dinner with Harold and Jean Stark at Anna's Mexican restaurant.
The service team there is so kind and attentive and they have a great
reserved room for us. Even in our separate room, I have a great deal
of trouble hearing. Since others there had the same problem, I did
not feel out-of-place as I sometimes do when I have to keep asking
for repetitions. I always enjoy catching up with Shirley Miller to
ask her about their small church in the village of Reynoldsville.
Houses on the west side of highway have been torn down long ago and
their property absorbed into one large farm. With that area in a
flood plain, no new houses can be built on the east side either. So
the once thriving small village church of decades ago has seen young
people move away and older people die off. But a local dozen or so
residents still faithfully attend, and I love to hear all about their
worship and mission activities. For example, they bought 22 pairs of
tennis shoes for local school children who needed them. They are
prompt with needed food or errands if they see a need. If you are
going to have car trouble on Route 3, try to have it near
Reynoldsville. Their congregation stands able and willing to help
those with misfortune on the highway. This tiny congregation is not
made up of highly moneyed people, but Shirley says they have no
problem paying light and heating bills and for a young man gaining
experience preaching for them. I have heard of small churches having
difficulty securing a pianist, but Shirley prevented that problem
years ago when she and her husband gave their daughter piano lessons
as a child. She has no idea when the congregation will no longer be
there, but she is enjoying the present time, and I enjoy it
vicariously.
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Gerald's special social outlet has
always been “breakfast with the boys.” And so this morning, he
made time to drive down to Union County to eat breakfast with his one
remaining brother and his nephews and who ever shows up for breakfast
at wherever the current gathering place is. Getting to see little
Jentra in her spurs preparing for the horse show at their arena this
afternoon was a special treat for him today. As usual, I slept late,
and he brought the family news home to me</div>
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Despite aging problems, we have enjoyed
the social life we have been blessed with this month. We are
grateful to have the energy to visit with others and hear their
news—if we keep our hearing aid batteries changed and if we sit
close with enough concentration!</div>
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-80125774161875446182017-10-02T19:11:00.000-05:002017-12-11T19:50:27.268-06:00Harvest in the Autumn of Life<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Gerald and I deserted other work and
went to the 25<sup>th</sup> annual BSU Reunion wondering as probably
many of us were if this would be the last one we would be able to
attend. After visiting in the large lobby at Giant City State Park
Lodge, we entered the reserved dining room and were greeted by
attractive tables with theme-related decorations and lovely program
booklets with Ecclesiastes 3:1 on the cover: To everything there is
a season and a time to every purpose under heaven.</div>
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For younger readers and non-Baptist
readers, I should explain that BSU stood for Baptist Student Union,
and the BSU at Southern Illinois University Carbondale was very
important to many students for decades. When Helen Green Gallaway
was still alive and leading our reunion, she liked to tell of their
BSU bus taking students to Ridgecrest, NC, and stopping for a motel.
The owner there sniffed at the sign on their bus and declared those
college kids did not even know how to spell “bus.”</div>
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I had already been blessed in the lobby
by conversation with Pat Abney of Anchorage, Alaska, who was present
with her brother Sam of Galatia. I remembered Pat's name from my
last year at Johnson Hall, but I had not seen her since. As she
answered questions about her life's work, she told us about 28 years
teaching biology, her political activities, her 10 years operating
a Bed and Breakfast, and on and on. Hearing her story, I was
immediately inspired and very grateful I had come. What Pat did not
tell me and I found by googling her was she had been named
Outstanding Biology Teacher of Alaska, Alaska Woman of the Year, and
other such honors.
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When I opened my booklet to discover
the evening's program, I found Galatians 6:9: Let us not become
weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if
we do not give up. As Gerald and I became acquainted with our table
of eight, it seemed those people could have been an illustration for
that verse. I have known Jane Walker Sims and her sister-in-law
Beverly Walker for a long time, and knew they had served others
well.
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On the far side of the large table were
Dr. Robert and Marilyn Parks of Mt, Vernon, who would have to exit
early because the doctor would be leaving home at 6:30 the next
morning on his rounds of 14 nursing homes. From the snatches of
conversation I could hear in that noisy room filled with excited
once-a-year visiting, I heard enough to know the Parks are using the
very special buildings on their farm to serve special needs kids,
senior citizens, and many others who come for events they host. If
that was not enough activity, Marilyn rose to tell us of the college
classes she and her brother, Dr. Curt Scarborough, want to have there
on the farm. Most of us probably remembered Curt from our SIUC days,
but few of us may have known that after 21 years as a pastor, he
joined a non-profit called FreeWay Foundation in 1975 and became
president in 1985 after establishing a college as part of their
organization. Retiring after 41 years there, he still has the energy
to want to establish CrossFire Christian College with his sister
Marilyn on Crescent Lake Farm. You can google to find out more about
opportunities there where it declares you can audit classes free if
you are not studying for a diploma.</div>
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I was very fortunate to be seated next
to Don Donley and wife Esther from Kankakee. Just like Pat Abney,
they've had a full life and are still going strong. Don explained
after SIU graduation, he first became a hospital administrator. Then
because of talking with lawyers for the hospital, he studied law so
he could speak their language. Later he used that law degree in a
bank in downtown Chicago.
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Because he wanted to do volunteer
overseas mission work in retirement, he spent a year in seminary
studies as required by the Southern Baptists at that time. Esther
was not only a trained elementary teacher but also had studied and
became a school librarian, so they had many talents between them to
share. They actually ended up going to both Ghana and Kenya in
association with the Wycliffe translation group but Don did not
regret the seminary classes. First Esther worked in a school
library, and then she was needed in another nation as a first grade
teacher. Don worked in administration and at one school keeping 25
computers going and so forth. I loved best when they told of
individual students they helped continue in school. In one country,
local schools were sometimes staffed by teachers with high school
diplomas and not much beyond that. So although the young woman was near
the top of her class, she was ineligible for university work until
she took remedial classes, which she did with the Donleys'
encouragement. And another young woman was able to have a bedroom in
their stateside home after Don helped her get a job in the bank to
work her way through college. (And a car to get to that job.) I noted
their three children are all involved in careers helping others. The
daughter, Kathy Donley, and her husband, Jim Wilkerson, graduated from Southern
Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. Kathy is now pastor
of Emmanuel Baptist Church in the inner city—just one block from
the Capitol in Albany,New York. Not only are the Donleys not growing
weary doing good, but the next generation is doing good also.</div>
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It would not be a BSU meeting without
lots of group singing and musical presentations. Thanks to Doris
McCoy, Ray Purnell, Charlene Purnell, Bob Barrow, Carol Smith,
Charlie Baker, and Jim Cox, our master of ceremonies, we had both
Friday night. Nor would it be reminiscent of our fun in BSU days to
not have laughter, and that was provided by Bob and Oleta Barrow's
enlisting Tom Gwalney, Sharon Reynolds, Barbara Highsmith, and Bill
Sielschott to play the Liars Game.</div>
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Cal Reynolds ended the evening with the
first of his very practical and encouraging
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messages on our theme of “Harvest in
the Autumn of Life.” He started with “God's Care in the
Springtime of Life...A Time of Preparation.”</div>
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After final chatter and visiting, some
from far away stayed in the cabins at the park; others of us went
home or elsewhere until the 9 am time to reassemble on Friday morning.
Jim Cox woke us up with some fun with his guitar followed by “Moment
by Moment” sung by Bob Barrow and Charlie Baker accompanied by
Carol Smith Then we were treated to another challenging sermon by
Cal: “God's Care in Life's Summertime...A Time of Propagation.”</div>
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In past years, we have had a large
choir under talented leaders in remembrance of Chapel Singers that so
many BSU students sang in. As our numbers have gone down, this year
we had a double quartet to practice and sing for us. Thank you to Bob
Barrow, Dee Gwaltney, Harlan Highsmaith, Becky Searle, Jim Cox, Nada
Fuqua, Cal Reynolds, and Ginger Wells accompanied by Carol Smith for
beautiful music. The traditional memorial service for those who died
last year was provided by Carol Smith and Dee Gwaltney.
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I was inspired next by Jim Cox's
“Remembrance of a Friend” as he told the story of his pastor's
part in persuading him to go to college. As the oldest of five kids
in a family where no one had gone to college, he had not prepared to
do so. His pastor urged that he try one semester and then took him
to Carbondale, secured him a basement bedroom and a job, and Jim
found out how well equipped he was for advanced education even though
he had not taken college prep courses. He has blessed many with his
radio career and his musical leadership. In his early career at
Channel 3 in Harrisburg, I looked forward to his original program
“The Hour” live each weekday. Jim and his interesting guests
provided me, an isolated farm wife, with mental and social
stimulation, and I also enjoyed when he once came to direct the choir
in our village church during special services.
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One of Jim's most valuable
contributions in life may have been his friendship with Al Fasol and
leading him to the Lord. Al returned this year to share with us
from his book <i>Humor with a
Halo</i>
and was introduced by Jim. Al had a career as a seminary professor
teaching effective sermon preparation. <i>
</i>As we were discovering from Cal Reynolds' sermons, Al did
a good job. I think our group gave both Al and his student Cal very
high marks. Gerald got the publisher's name from Al to order this
humor book of actual happenings. I decided to check it out on
Amazon, and thus found Al's other more serious books. Partly because
I have so many writers as friends, I have a difficult time not
spending more than I probably should on books. But as a history
buff, there was a book I knew I had to have: a book telling of
significant Baptist preachers in the South from 1670 to 1975. A new
volume was way too expensive for me, but I have a second-hand copy
coming for less than $15--postage and all. I am very eager to start
reading it!</div>
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The morning ended with a reminder that
October 31 will be the 500<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the
Reformation. After Carol Smith accompanied by Lora Blackwell-Kern
led us in singing “A Mighty Fortress,” Carol shared a
presentation with help from Dr. Fasol reading scriptures in German
and Jerry Upchurch following in English. Carol will also give the
presentation on this important historical event at her church.
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Before the blessing on our lunch time
out in the main dining room, Ken Cannon invited anyone who wants to
help with next year's reunion to let the committee know. Reinforcing
what Cal had told us, we read in our programs by unknown authors:
(1) Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds
you plant. (2) If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit.
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After lunch, we had more singing
together, and Cal spoke on “God's Care in Autumn's Harvest: a time
of Production and Consummation.” And we celebrated by singing “The
King is Coming.” Before Marc McCoy led our benediction, we sang
once more “Spirit of BSU' written by two men familiar to many of
us—Bob Entrekin and Archie Moseley.</div>
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Cal's messages gave our age group some
very good advice. He urged us to listen to our bodies but not to
waste away too much time in our recliners listening to TV. We need
to be willing to interact with others than our church family—the
drug users, the prostitutes, the followers of Isis, and any others
needing concern and love. Throughout his messages, he emphasized the
importance of planting seeds with the young ones who will soon be
replacing us. That is why his wife Sharon has to frequently answer
their doorbell when a little kid asks: “Can Mr. Cal come out and
play?” In a neighborhood where many parents are in military
service, Mr. Cal can provide a listening ear, someone to pitch a ball
to, and sometimes a parent substitute.
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As good as Cal's encouragement to us
was and as much as I enjoyed interacting with so many senior adults
who had lived interesting and valuable lives, oddly it was sharing of
problems that may have helped me most. I heard people speak of
heart attacks, “he almost drove me nuts,” a friend whose daughter
had to have heart surgery, a son in prison, a child whose life was
destroyed by LSD, the death of a wife leaving three young sons,
someone who was not there because of myesthenia gravis, and cancer,
cancer, cancer. (As I read the letters from those who could not
attend, I was saddened that Roger Deppe's wife who I so enjoyed
meeting and visiting with last year could not come because of her
cancer treatments.) The hardships reminded me of what I already knew:
it is silly to ask why me when troubles come. Life on earth does
not guarantee carefree retirements, and we should not expect that no
matter how well we plan. Difficulties and challenges are to be
expected during all phases of life, but the help of caring friends,
the teachings of Jesus, the comfort of the Holy Spirit, and the
promises of God can make life's challenges easier. Or as the unknown
writer quoted at the end of our program booklet said: You're going
into a season when you are about to experience breakthrough after
breakthrough because what you went through didn't break you.</div>
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Thank you Ken and JoNell Cannon, Cal
and Sharon Reynolds, Lora Blackwell-Kern, Bob and Oleta Barrow, and
Marc and Doris McCoy for all the work you did preparing this
gathering for us.</div>
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-92129289417236104052017-09-29T22:44:00.000-05:002017-09-29T22:44:28.087-05:00Comings and Goings at Woodsong<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Our three great grandsons were at the
farm for the first time in a long time last weekend. About l0
Saturday morning, they had left their tearful grandmother and their
little cousin Caroline who had come over to say that final goodbye in
College Station. Bryan had stopped to feed the boys as needed and
they had fallen asleep before they arrived at Woodsong about l0:30
that night, where they quickly tumbled into bed.</div>
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The next morning, however, they were up
earlier than Gerald, which is no small feat. Since Tara, their
mother, had a game to coach that afternoon, the plan was to visit
here and let tbe boys run off energy before the trek upstate. After
caring for their dog Duke and letting him out of his cage in the
shop, they were fishing, driving the Kubota, playing football in the
front yard, and for the first time getting to try out the kayaks that
Gerald had prepared for them. I am not sure who had the most
fun—Gerald or the boys. I was to go to Katherine's that morning,
but I did get hugs and visits as they came and went to the breakfast
table where Gerald bought toaster strudel pastries to add to my
collection of cereals. I think Bryan was as delighted as his sons
because these had been one of his favorite breakfasts as a boy. I
don't think any of them wanted one of my 30-second eggs in the
microwave but perhaps did eat a slice of bacon.
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Early in the afternoon I met them at
Cracker Barrel, where Bryan insisted on buying our dinner. I went
to the farm for a break before I went back to Katherine's. The men
folk all went by to visit her briefly and let her see the boys before
they came back to load their stuff and Duke. They would get to see
Tara that evening and stay at the hotel until the moving van arrived
with their furniture the next morning. Tara had already enrolled the
boys in school, and Aidan would start that same day. Maddux and
Payton would meet their teachers that afternoon and start on Tuesday.
I am sure their Sunday ended happily with that family reunion. Mine
not so much.
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Do you know what happens when you drop
your phone in a full coffee cup and find it there later? I know.
Cause I did just that. When I left Katherine's Sunday night, I
consciously put my new cell phone (that replaced a very old one I
dropped and broke a while back) in my pocket. Usually I keep it on
the car seat or the middle cup holder where I can grab it easily if I
hit a deer and have to call and wake up Gerald to come and help me.
But for some reason, that night I decided I was not going to hit a
deer. Putting the phone in my pocket would insure I did not forget
to carry it into the house. But I had barely backed out of
Katherine's driveway, which requires some concentration because of
park traffic, when I noticed an amber warning light was on. What did
that tiny wrench mean?
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We had recently had a screw in a tire,
and I knew from that experience that an amber warning light could be
serious. So I decided I better call Gerald before he went to bed and
ask advice. He did not know what the amber wrench symbol meant
either, but the car seemed to be running well, so he said to come on
home. Relieved, I dropped my new phone into the cup holder beside
me. I had no trouble getting home and took the phone out only to
discover I had forgotten I'd left a cup of coffee in that holder when
I drove in to town.
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I dried it off the best I could, but it
would no longer charge or come to life. I got down the container
with rice that I had used for a grand kid's phone that fell in the
lake once. But two days stored in the rice did not help. So Tuesday
afternoon I took it where we bought it, and the competent young man
ruefully showed me tiny drops of coffee when he took the phone apart.
I replaced it with the cheapest one I could get there. He asked if I
wanted to insure it, but I assured him I did not plan to drop it in
coffee again. The good news was he was able to save all my phone
numbers, and I like it.
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The next morning we had to go to
Carbondale for an appointment to get our hearing aids checked out,
so we ate lunch at Denny's, a sentimental spot from our college days
and since then. After lunch, we went by Gerald's favorite hardware
store where he found a couple of small pulleys for his newest
project, which he promptly went to work on back at the farm although
he did first phone our son-in-law Brian and helped him out by
picking him up to take him someplace else in the field.
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We have just now returned from our
annual reunion of friends from BSU at Southern Illinois University,
and it was a good two days. But I will have to write about that
later, because Gerald is in the shop finishing up his project to load
and store the kayaks neatly and efficiently between grandchildren
visits, and I want to go see how that is coming along.</div>
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-86461478072659823082017-09-22T11:24:00.000-05:002017-09-22T15:08:41.423-05:00Changing Seasons<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The corn fields are brown and soy beans
are yellow. Our son-in-law Brian is already harvesting, and that
means Mary Ellen too is busier than ever trying to help out as she
keeps working hard at her own job. I will worry knowing their sleep
will be shorter than ever.</div>
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Everything seems to be changing during
this season. At the first of the month, we learned that our
granddaughter Tara and family are moving back to Illinois as she
became pitching coach at Illinois State up at Normal. This will
place their family closer to her husband Bryan's parents too, so I'm
sure they are happy as we are. (And Bryan will be closer to his
firm's headquarters.)
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For Gerry and Vickie, Tara's move wll
take away the close geographic association with those three Archibald
grandsons. That will be a tough adjustment, but it probably helps
that they are overly busy themselves adjusting to changes of their
own.
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Our month started with Gerry and
Vickie's quick visit over Labor Day weekend coming up for the
surprise 80<sup>th</sup> birthday party for Vickie's mother. Gerry
also needed to pick up some dogs he had bought in northern Illinois.
Aidan and Payton both had baseball games, but since Maddux's fall
soccer had not yet started, he was able to come with them. They
drove all night to get here for a few hours sleep before the party.
There was time, however, for Maddux and me to have a long grown-up
conversation at the late breakfast table about their family's
upcoming move. And besides getting to play with his Johnson family
cousins, there was time for him to drive the Kubota and to play in
the lime pile Gerald provides for the great grandsons' diggings.
Since Nelly, the Boykin spaniel, was also with them, we enjoyed a
couple of demonstrations of Nelly's enthusiastic expertise diving
into the lake to swim and restrieve the ball she loved having Maddux
throw out for her. Gerald went with Gerry to get the dogs upstate,
and Vickie had the opportunity to visit again with her mother before
another all-night drive back to College Station, where Gerry had to
be on the softball field at A&M on Labor Day.</div>
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That Wednesday night Tara arrived after
the long drive from Texas, and we had a brief visit before we all
fell into bed. In her honor, I set my alarm to be sure I was up in
time to make the morning smell good with cooked bacon for our
breakfast before she left for the drive up to Illinois State's ball
field and to start her search for housing for their family. The
university was furnishing her a room until Bryan and the boys can
join her this weekend.
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We were still adjusting to that big
family change when we got the word this week that Gerry had accepted
a new job as hitting coach and recruiter down at Auburn University in
Alabama. So he is in the process of moving dog stuff, trailers, and
such to various destinations on the way down to Auburn after a quick
visit with Vickie, Erin, and Caroline in Belton. Vickie will keep
her plans to care for Caroline while Erin teaches, so I am sure this
year will be filled with lots of trips between Belton and Auburn.
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Our adult children are not the only
ones who have been busy. Gerald continues bringing in garden
produce, and he had his second cataract surgery last week. Mary Ellen
wanted to be with us and drive us home, so we had a good visit and
after-surgery breakfast with her at the neatest restaurant up at
Thompsonville. It was good to hear how excited Brianna is with an
observation class for young children learning to speak English. She
will be student teaching next semester. Fortunately, Gerald's eye is
healing faster than the first one, which gave us some concerns. (The
optomist kept assuring him the eye was alright and that his meds may
have caused the slowness.) He is down to two eyedrops a day again on
this second recuperation.
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However, during all this busyness with
eye drops and garden produce, Gerald also had a big exciting project
going. In order to get better Internet reception, he bought and
assembled a 70-foot tower out by his shop. Roy Walker's crew came
with a boom truck to set the tower up on the concrete pad. We sat and
cheered as the machine took it skyward. Our neighbor Scott even came
over to admire that event. For Gerald perhaps the best part of this
project was visits with his friend Roy where they talked and talked
about their youthful days in Wolf Lake down in Union County. Both
their fathers were in Woodman of the World Insurance Fratenity, and
they shared many memories and old photographs of long ago
acquaintances.</div>
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Katherine was pleased this week to see
the letter from Sam's summer intern supervisor that came to her
house–a very long letter critiquing in detail his successful first
teaching experience this summer in Austin. It will be forwarded to
Sam, but I made her a copy. As a former teacher of inner-city kids,
Katherine understood just how valuable his work had been. Sam's girl
friend had also phoned her about starting her student teaching this
semester, so Katherine gets to stay involved as these two young
adults change from the teens that used to hang out at her house into
professionals prepared to make the lives of young people better. As a
third generation teacher myself, I am pleased to see yet another
generation preparing for this important work.
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So the season is changing, and our
lives are also changing in many ways . And that is way it is
supposed to be.
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-47648833097697121622017-08-26T19:39:00.000-05:002017-08-26T19:39:02.172-05:00A Full August<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Grand kids, cantaloupe, watermelon,
tomatoes, okra, cataract eye drops, guests, eclipse, dirt dobbers,
national softball championship! Our house and lives did not stay
empty long after baby Caroline's departure—partly because of the
continued sweet photos of her on Facebook, which Gerald prints out
for us but also because of other summer events and endings.
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Erin still has time for photos and
videos for Josh in South Korea even though her school year has
started in Texas. As much as she is going to miss full-time with
Caroline, she will not be worried about her because her mother Vickie
will be Caroline's week-day caregiver. I wish every working mother
had it so good!!
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School starts early these times, so
like Erin, the other grand kids and great grandsons are already back
in school again after the end of their summer jobs and activities.Tara no longer teaches except softball there at the sports complex, but those three sons' school schedules are probably as difficult to keep up with as their summer ball games. Grandson Elijah is the only one whose school starts after Labor Day,
but he is already working in his Chicago classroom preparing for his
second year of teaching kids with vision impairment. He was down to
catch up with other cousins, and I was able to hear a bit about his
last eight weeks of teaching one mainstream class of writing to 8<sup>th</sup>
graders, which happened by accident and won't be part of this year's
duties to my disappointment.
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Sam was also at Woodsong briefly since
he had finished his summer internship located at the University of
Texas, where he too taught language arts with a junior high age group
in a special program. He loved teaching and delighted his mother by
having some of his students call her. He was able to go with his
cousin Brianna and her brother Trent to the Saint Louis airport to
meet Rachel, Trent's lovely red-headed girl friend from New Jersey.
They managed to stick in a Cardinals baseball game before they came
back to the Taylors. Next, after Elijah came down, they were off to
visit Brianna in her apartment at Murray, where she has already
started her senior classes. From there they were off to Nashville,
where our granddaughter Leslie was featured as a soloist at a
festival there. Then they were back to the Taylors in time for the
eclipse mania here.
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We did get a very brief visit from Geri Ann when she was here to be in a friend's wedding this summer, but she is already at work at her new job with autistic children out in Portland, Oregon. I have yet to have a summer-end visit
from our youngest grandchild Cecelie who spent a month in India
helping with children—so I still have something special to look
forward to. She has started college already at the community college
near Freeport. Rachel had to return home the day after the eclipse,
so I was very glad Trent brought her over while we were watching
Gerry's Scrap Yard Dogs in the finals of the National Professional
Fast Pitch (NPF) softball final tournament. This was not televised,
and we had to watch on Gerald's computer screen, so his office was
crowded with us, Trent and Rachel, and our eclipse guests Bob and
Sylvia Mountz from Arizona.
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We had watched Thursday and Friday as
the Dawgs won the semi-finals against Akron Racers. Then rain delay
made the first game of the finals against Florida's Pride quite late,
and sadly we lost 5-0. After church on Sunday, we were soon again
glued to the computer watching Monica Abbot lead the Dawgs to a 2-0
victory in 125 degree heat. Although Monica Abbott is considered the
best softball pitcher in the world, no one could imagine being able
to pitch another complete game in that heat to win the final. Megan
Wiggins' lead off home run certainly was not a good beginning. Yet
the lead went back forth between these two great teams, and we won
5-2. There was much celebrating at Woodsong. Let me include a quote
a sports writer used from Gerry about Monica Abbott:</div>
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<div style="line-height: 0.23in; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: #1a1919;"><span style="font-family: BentonSans, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">"You
can follow softball for the next 30, 40, 50 years, and I don't think
you'll see another performance equal to her performance here this
week," Scrap Yard coach Gerry Glasco said. "The heart and
the guts she showed, the tenacity on the mound in the heat, in the
humidity, weather delays. It's a phenomenal performance, and, I
think, one of the greatest performances in the history of softball."</span></span></span>
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The next day was the much anticipated
total eclipse, which our area experienced for the longest period of
totality. Naturally there has been great ado about it here with
Southern Illinois University Carbondale opening facilities to NASA.
Visiting public were welcomed to their stadium and even to a large
high-rise dorm that is due to be torn down. Other area towns and
campgrounds were packed. Locals were warned that some grocery
shelves might be empty and highways crowded. The first was true for
me when I shopped before the crowds were supposed to come. Area folk
had been stoking up. However, since people came to the area over a
period of days, the roads stayed clear—until everyone left at the
same time.
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Our favorite thing about the eclipse
was that we were going to have a visit from Bob and Sylvia. Sylvia
had spent her early childhood at the State Forest Preserve west of
Jonesboro where her father Ralph Fisher started the tree nursery
there. The Fisher children went to the same country school that
Gerald and siblings went to. Mrs. Fisher would volunteer in the
classroom to identify trees in a wonderful project where the children
brought in leaves and bark and nuts for a huge display. (That school
was treated to teaching by a young woman, who later taught at SIUC,
and was the object of much admiring email conversation by former
students from little Miller Pond School and some from Anna Junior
High.) The Fisher family lived in a big house on the hill by the
park, and I vaguely remember Mabel Norris taking some of us down to
play with the Fisher children one day. One of my few memories of the
Fishers in Southern Illinois was a huge bill board with the painting
of a beautiful stallion that Mr. Fisher owned. But Gerald's family
were next door to the Forest Preserve, and the two fathers coon
hunted together and worked together on many projects, often with kids
along.
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Soon after my mother-in-law died, we
took Dad Glasco down to see Ralph and Catherine Fisher, who at that
time were living in retirement village at Belle Vista, Arkansas. The
first thing I saw when I walked into their living room was a very
large photograph over their fireplace of the nine Fisher children.
For a long time, we've enjoyed Christmas letters from Fenna Lee, the
oldest of the daughters, as well as from Sylvia and Bob, and Mr.
Fisher himself used to write long letters to Gerald telling of their
children's educational and other achievements. With the great
letters and two or so visits from Bob and Sylvia down through the
years, we have felt close to them, so nothing could have pleased us
more than to have them visit us to enjoy the eclipse together. And
we did.</div>
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In preparation, I had found the chairs
for the deck in the garage, and they were full of hardened dirt
dobber nests and debris, so I was glad I did this job a couple of
days earlier. My first plan was to have a picnic set up on the deck
since this two-hour eclipse experience would be during the noon hour.
Then as realism hit, I remembered why we have never eaten as many
meals on the deck as I thought we would. It is hot out there at noon
day! So we had our picnic on the air-conditioned side of the doors to
the deck. We were going in and out with our eclipse glasses and
watching the black area grow on the bright orb. It was fascinating
to watch. We experimented with punching a pin hole in a piece of
paper to watch the image on the paper below. And with a colander. I
was amazed at how much bright light the sun gave even when almost
covered. Then the temperature began to noticeably go down, and then
things begin to be slightly less bright. Although at night the deer
are often around our lake and even in the garden, usually during the
day they stay far away from us. Gerald and Bob saw a buck cross the
dam at tne end of the lake, and later a baby deer appeared going
into our nearby woods where its mother must have been.
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As the two minutes, forty-two seconds
of totality was soon to arrive, it was now quite comfortable to sit
on the deck. And then the predicted total eclipse came. Because of
the word “totality,” I really expected it to be pitch dark. It
was not. It was beautifully and eerily dusk. The lake and the
clouds above the lake became a lovely soft gray and the frogs were
singing to us. It was a couple of magical moments until the moon
began to move on.
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Bob and Sylvia went on to visit other
friends in Union County, and Gerald went back to harvesting garden
produce for us and others he gifted with it. He is celebrating that
finally he now only has to put drops in his eyes twice a day. On
Tuesday, students went back to their college classes that had been
canceled for the eclipse. As the crowds left the area, life returned
to normal except for the multitude of photographs appearing
everywhere of the moon's trip past the sun. People in our area are
excited, however, because in 2024, when the path is from the
northeast to the south, our exact area will again be given a total
eclipse.
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Gerald is continuing to fight the dirt
dobbers in our garage as Sylvia saw him doing. She was delighted
when he gave her a ball cap with one of their dirt nests firmly
attached on it. This was her souvenir to take back and wear to show
off to her retirement coffee gang. “We need the laugh,” she
proudly explained.
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-17209966919192329312017-08-04T18:09:00.000-05:002017-08-04T18:09:10.422-05:00Caroline's at the Farm!<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Our first great granddaughter,
two-month old Caroline Simons, arrived at the farm Tuesday afternoon
with her entourage (Mama Erin and Gma Vickie) in tow. Soon our
living room was filled with not only us but her Great Grandmother
Shirley, Great Aunt Mary Ellen, Great Aunt Chris, and her first
cousin once removed Brianna. Everyone cooed and awed over Caroline
and took a turn holding her.</div>
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A tiny little thing, she is definitely
adorable, and I think one of the most active babies I've known. Her
little legs and arms are in constant motion Her eyes too are always
on the move following all her loving admirers and their noises used
to attract her. She likes to be held against your chest looking
outward, so she can see everything around her. I do not dare try to
walk with her, but she seems quite comfortable on my lap watching all
going on. Gpa Gerald is completely captivated even though her mother
has not yet agreed that Caroline needs to be out riding the Kubota or
tractor with him.
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If not for Caroline's visit, Gerald
would be the object of most attention around here because he had his
first cataract surgery yesterday. (Another is scheduled in
September.) So even though it took almost all day with hours of
waiting for his turn to see the surgeon, our sympathy and concern for
him was probably diluted by enjoying Caroline's presence and
commiserating with her when she needed to burp or her tummy hurt her
as it frequently does. We go back to see another eye doctor this
afternoon and hopefully she will assure that all is well whether he
got much attention or not. With Caroline in the house, it has
definitely been easier for Gerald to follow doctor's orders to stay
in and not be outside working as he usually is.
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We had expected to be home yesterday by
noon, and it was probably four before we were able to have a lunch,
which, of course, was Gerald's first meal of the day. I did not
have to cook because our Texan visitors had gone over to Gma
Shirley's for supper Wednesday for her chicken pot pie, and Shirley
sent home a meal of it for Gerald and me. Oh, yes, and zucchini
bread! (Katherine got to enjoy that pot pie too since I took a
serving to her.) Because they went last night for Gma Shirley's
yummy meat loaf, there is now a meat loaf waiting for us in our
fridge.
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Of course, we have played the who does
Caroline look like game and agreed she looks very much like Josh, her
daddy. but with Erin's eyes. I am so glad modern technology allows
her to see her daddy over there in South Korea and talk to him as she
did this morning. Are there any sounds any sweeter than those a baby
makes when looking at you and talking back answering your baby talk?
I have gloried with her breaking into smiles during our
conversations.
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Once they survived getting up at 3 a.m.
and arriving at and through the air port Caroline handled her first
airplane ride here very well because she slept. In the morning, our
three visitors will get back in the rental car to drive to Saint
Louis for their flight home; I hope that flight is just as good. Here
at Woodsong, our house will seem too quiet and empty for a few days
as we adjust to her absence.
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-44219074533404051442017-07-24T15:05:00.000-05:002017-07-24T15:05:28.616-05:00July Blessings at Woodsong<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Our month started with gratefulness for
the safe arrival of our grandaughter Brianna from her month of
required study in Spain. Trent was home for the Independess holiday
weekend, so he and Bri's parents drove to Chicago to meet her plane.
Her cousin Elijah was there to join them while they were in town.
They drove home in time to invite us to celebrate the Fourth with
them and with Brian's mother Dot. Brian's grilled steaks and sweet
corn and Mary Ellen's side dishes were good, but being with their
family to hear about June's activities was even better. That gang
went onto see the fireworks in Marion; and in deference to our age,
Gerald and I went home to go to bed.</div>
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(Brian's mother Dorothy is here with
him and Mary Ellen not only to escape the hot Arizona summer but to
visit her Illinois family and pursue her camping enthusiam. Dot has
a small camper behind her car that she sets up herself. I find that
very impressive, and she has camped in most national and many state
parks. When she is not away camping this summer, she is comfortably
encounced in the Taylors' air-conditioned larger home-away-from home
camper in their back yard. I have not yet seen her as much as I'd
liked with all her camping activity, but we did enjoy that holiday
feast.)
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Mid-month Jeannie and Rick made an
unexpected trip down because of a college friend's funeral. That
gave us an opportunity to catch up a bit with them. Jeannie was
working on plans and painting a huge wall decoration out in our
driveway for a women's conference at their church the next weekend,
and I enjoyed hearing about that. Of course, she did some bycyling
while here.
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One Saturday afternoon on a “just to
get out of thehouse” car ride, Gerald took me up and down country
roads skirted now with July's deep green trees and shrubbery. Some
of these roads were familiar, but some I had never been on before.
Gerald remembered them from childhood trips from their farm on the
edge of the Mississippi bottom area up to the very hilly roads where
his relatives lived in the same county. Most of these roads had begun
long ago by early pioneers getting to their farm homes that were
beloved even with the lack of electricty or an in-house water source.
Now the few homes that remain are lovely and lived in by people who
work in town but like being close to nature. Despite the roads'
narrowness, they were all in good shape in this 21<sup>st</sup>
Century. On the rare occasions that we met another car, it only
seemed as if there might not be room for two cars to pass. We always
made it.</div>
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Another pleasure this summer has been
watching a mama goose and her growing babies, which are now almost as
large as she is. At the beginning, there was no male goose with the
family, which was unusal. We wondered if he had been killed since
male geese are very diligent fathers. Later in the summer, she has
been joined by a male, so we had to conjecture how that has happened.
When they are not swimming in the lake, they are gorging in the
middle of our neighbor's soybeans across the lane. Much like the deer
we frequently see, if they are on one side of the lane when our car
approaches, they seem to think they will be safer on the opposite
side. So we have to slow down to let them cross.</div>
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Seeing deer is so common that it is not
as big a thrill as it used to be. However, I love this summer's
memory of seeing a mother doe on the road to Katherine's house one
evening. She was followed by her young triplet fawns.
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When I cut through the country to go to
town, there is a small piece of shaded road through a swampy area
just west of New Dennison. (New Dennison used to be a railroad
destination with a general store but is now a cluster of houses and
a church building built by early German farmers and much later used
by Baptists and now called Living Stone Community Church. The
country doctor who delivered babies in this rural area lived opposite
that church house, but his home has since burned near the end of his
daughter Marguerite Lashly's life. Dr. Burns would meet the
Presbyterian minister who came on the train from Carbondale and drive
him with his family in his buggy to Shed Church. After Sunday dinner
with the doctor's family, the minister would catch the train back to
Carbondale.) But I digress.
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This rural road west of the village has
trees that meet over head, and I love driving through there. This
road is sometimes closed after heavy rains with a creek going under
it and thick woods and swamp area bordering it. Marylea Burnham told
me how bad the mosquitoes used to be when she'd ride her horse down
that road. However, now I frequently wave at dog walkers there. New
lanes off the road lead to a couple houses and one lot preparing for
a new house, so I hope the mosquito population is less. It seems like
the perfect place for deer, but in all the years that I've gone
through there, only once did I have a deer cross in front of my car.
Recently, however, I saw a fawn way ahead crossing at the far end of
the road by the stop sign joining the Old Creal Springs Road, so I
now remind myself to stay alert as I drive through. What I did see
one late night coming home from Katherine's was four tiny animals
crossing single file to get to the north side of that swampy woods.
I have no idea what kind of animals they were, but I now own an
indelible mental photograph that I enjoy while I hope to see them
again sometime.
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Garden produce has also been a summer
pleasure. Gerald brings in zuchinni and blackberries and now big
round red tomatoes. Three zuchinni plants produce way too much for
us, but if Gerald had planted only one or two, they might have died
and we'd had none. So we are kept busy shredding them for the freezer
to make zuchinni bread next winter or giving the away. Gerald came
home from his latest breakfast with Union County family with a huge
container of sweet corn from his brother Garry, who carries on their
father's tradition of growing give-away vegetables. Garry also sent a
supply for Gerald to give to our sister-in-law Opal, and that visit
resulted in a large crock pot full of her garden's abundant supply of
green beans at our house. Some of those went into the freezer.
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Because refinishing the outdoor
furniture on our front porch and then the door has not been enough to
keep Gerald busy despite all the grass mowing he does, Gerald husked
all the corn Garry sent us and has become an expert on shredding
zuchini. I am grateful for his help and glad these two activities
kept him out of the extreme heat we have been experiencing at least
for a little while. He also spends considerable time following the
Scrapyard Dawgs softball team by reading about their games and Monica
Abbot's piching and discussing this with Gerry. And we both follow
photos and bits of information about our new great grandchild
Caroline, who is scheduled to come for a visit next week.
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Mary Ellen has been able to see
Caroline before us. At Erin's baby shower here last spring, Vickie's
high school friends Connie Dahmer and Joan Mangan met up with her.
Together with Connie's younger sister Brenda and Mary Ellen, they
plotted for the group to visit Vickie in Texas. That happened this
week and resulted with many photographs on the Internet. Bill and
Beth Jordan were in Houston at this time, and so this Crab Orchard
gang were able to attend one of Gerry's Scrapyard Dawgs softball games.
We have enjoyed their trip vicariously, but it will be more fun as
they come home today and we get to debrief Mary Ellen on these Crab
Orchard adventurists.
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We have loved hearing about Brianna's
Spain journey and seeing all her really gorgeous photographs gathered
in a photo book, which she is pleased has room for many more travels.
She took these photos with her phone, which just goes to show that
exponential progress in technology that Thomas Friedman wrote about.
When I told her and her mom about my Internet friend Anne Born's walk
through Spain, they started exclaiming because they had just been
talking about that walk that Brianna would like to do someday.
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Yesterday we picked up Brianna to go to
worship with us, and it is always a joy to sit in a church service
with a grandchild. At dinner afterwards, Brianna asked questions,
and Gerald recounted for her some of our adventures and hardships
getting started farming. One of his professors had told him it would
be impossible to start farming without $10,000 capitol; and though he
had saved well during his four years in the Air Force, that was much
more than Gerald's savings. It was also commonly said in those days,
as it is today, that you needed to inherit a farm to make it farming.
Gerald proved all the naysayers wrong, and I bet there are some young
farmers out there today also proving negative folk wrong.
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It is indeed a blessing to receive
phone calls and hear about our grand-kids' and great grandkids'
activites. It is also a blessing to have them ask about our
histories because we know how almost everyone requets when it is too
late to ask loved ones about their lives.
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Well, it has been a good July so far,
but I need to stop now and go upstairs and fix some of those garden
veggies for our lunch.
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-43102628165147906992017-06-30T17:46:00.003-05:002017-07-08T15:51:22.531-05:00Time Is Flying and Brings Many Changes!When
I look out our kitchen window each morning, I feel as if the
neighbor's corn plot just on the other side of Gerald's neat garden
has grown a foot over night! Next Gerald's garden takes my eye and
absorbs my mind. I drink in the beauty there. Such a variety of
plants of various heights with nary a weed in their midst is truly as
beautiful and fascinating as a painting.
<br />
<br />
Gerald
is starting to bring in a handful of blackberries each day and laying
them on our kitchen table. A short row of staked berry plants
defines the south end of his garden for the first time. Loaded with
red berries, this new crop will soon need to be put in cobblers or
the freezer.
<br />
<br />
We
have almost used up the excess okra put in the freezer in 2014, so
Gerald planted a row of that vegetable this year. I will be happy to
restock the one vegetable that I know our grand-kids all like. They
even like the way I frequently burn it a bit when I fry it and the
cornmeal crust gets crunchy and brown.
<br />
Watermelon
and cantaloupe vines hug the ground like patches of lacy green, and
further behind are staked tomatoes with ripening fruit I am eagerly
anticipating. At my urging, Gerald is trying to cut down the size of
his garden although he has always enjoying giving away its bounty. We
have needed to admit our age and cut back on many things. There is
not longer time to do all the things we used to enjoy and also keep
all the dental, eye, hearing, and other doctor appointments now
required.
<br />
<br />
I
always bragged about the weeds back in the day when I gardened.
Gerald never complained, but I knew he was offended. They definitely
were not pretty; but despite them, I raised plentiful crops and the
weeds represented hours I did not spend hoeing and weeding. I did
everything with a hoe as I was not one to learn to use riding
equipment in a garden, although Gerald probably would have liked the
excuse to provide it if I had wanted it. He has never met anything
on four wheels that he does not enjoy. That is why our lawn just
keeps getting larger every year.<br />
<br />
Gerald
got back his tractor this week—with all new parts wherever the fire
did damage before he valiantly ran up our lane to get a bucket to put
out the fire. We were certainly grateful for insurance that covered
the thousands and thousands beyond the first thousand deductible. He
always carried a fire extinguisher in a combine, but he had never had
a bird nest start a fire on a tractor before. Now he is carrying a
fire extinguisher on the tractor too. He enjoyed using the larger
tractor the insurance provided for him while ours was being repaired, but he admits he
does not need that size any more. That is a difficult admission for
any farmer to make.<br />
<br />
I
have always heard folks say that life seems to speed up as one ages,
and that feels true. I have trouble admitting all the advanced ages
of our grandchildren and that great grandchildren are now bringing
memories the previous generation used to make. However, I have just
finished Thomas L. Friedman 's latest book <i>Thanks
for Being Late. </i>I
heard him promoting it and asked Gerald to give it to me for
Christmas. It has taken me this long to finish it 461 pages, and I
must admit that it was only the last part of the book that talks
about things I understand. Remember: I liked to garden with a hoe.
And though I really love computers, changing the ribbon on a
typewriter is what I understood. Computers are way above my pay
scale, so Friedman is absolutely correct that life has accelerated
way beyond my comfort zone. Nevertheless, he is an optimist and
gives me hope that this acceleration will bring answers to many
worrisome problems that maybe we do not need to be worrying about
since fortunately there are great educated minds out there working on
those problems right now!<br />
<br />
The
last part of his book was more understandable to me, and I found it
very important. He reviewed the values he grew up with in Minnesota.
I have spent little time in Minnesota, but I recognized the values
that Friedman valued as the same ones I knew in small town and rural
Southern Illinois. I suspect many Americans recognize these human
values he grew up with.
<br />
<br />
We
need to see people and help one another feel that we are all part of
the human group or as he worded it, “people embedded in a
community.” People need to be “protected, respected, and
connected.” We must listen to one another, include one another,
and eventually learn to trust one another. In other words, follow
the Golden Rule and recognize that we are all God's children.
<br />
<br />
Friedman
praised the emphasis on good schools in his childhood community that
outgrew its previous prejudice against Jewish families such as his
family and then provided outstanding teachers that have produced many
present-day successes now serving society. We need to embrace one
another to reap the benefits of other groups than our own. If we
really value education, we must be willing to embrace life-long
learning, so I am now beginning to re-read the first part of his
book that was difficult for me. Now I am beginning to understand the
consequences of the word “exponential” and I know what Joe Biden
was talking about recently when he mentioned Moore's Law. Yes,
everything is accelerating and time is flying and things are
changing. But that is not necessarily a bad thing, and we can
embrace the speed and changes.
<br />
<br />
For
example, before I finished this column, I went up to the kitchen and
found not a handful of blackberries but a bucket with enough for a
cobbler. That is definitely a good thing!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-700465268361970272017-06-14T20:17:00.002-05:002017-06-14T20:20:58.051-05:00Troubles Abound But So Do Joys!Photos of
beautiful baby Caroline, our first great granddaughter are all over
our house. Vickie is again helping Erin today during this difficult
time. It is still a wonderful time but also a difficult time because
the military leave for Caroline's father has ended. Today Josh
returns to base for re-deployment to South Korea. So much sadness in
the world because of hate and evil! My breakfast was ruined as I
learned of the horrible shooting of our Republican congressmen while
they were practicing for the traditional ball game tomorrow night
that raises money for charity. I also know from Internet headlines
that there has been a shooting and deaths in San Francisco; and as I
write this, I am avoiding facing that knowledge until later.
<br />
<br />
One of the
scariest things about such shootings is that a single crazed
individual can wreak such terrible harm while the majority of
Americans works so hard to make things better in the world. Finding
out the shooter was from Belleville in our area of Illinois was
further upsetting. An acquaintance of his was taped saying he was
not an evil man. I think I understood what that acquaintance
meant—that he had not previously done such horrific acts to warn us
of how dangerous he was. But with Steve Scalise's life and another victim's life in critical
condition, we know this so-called ordinary man did a very evil thing.
And we have to determine to live as happily as we can with danger
just as previous generations had to do as they faced dire problems
and many dangers. So Congress says the baseball game will go on
tomorrow night.<br />
<br />
We were pleased
that both “our” women's college softball teams were in the final
eight who went to Oklahoma City for the national play-offs. Our
granddaughter Geri Ann, who will be graduating Sunday from the
University of Oregon, was a student coach this season for the Ducks,
and we were pleased to see them go into the semifinals although our
son's Texas A&M team was done on Elimination Saturday. We wanted
in the worst way to go to the tournament, but common sense prevailed
and we stayed home and watched on television.
<br />
<br />
Although Gerry
managed quick visits to love on baby Caroline on his way both to and
from Oklahoma City, he had to hurry on to Houston where practice for
the Scrap Yard Dawgs was well underway. This is the second season
for this new professional fastpitch women's softball team, and Gerry
is coaching them this summer. Since those games are not on television
or our computer, Gerald is following the Scrap Yard Dogs by phoning
Gerry and by checking their website. I follow them through Gerald's
reports, but may find more time to read about them soon.
<br />
<br />
I am spending a
lot of time looking at photographs of places in Spain. Our
granddaughter Brianna and her friends, who are studying there, are
taking and posting astonishingly beautiful photos of places and
colorful events in Grenada and Seville. The rich ornamentation on the
centuries' old buildings and the lovely elaborate gardens are
fantastic. I did not realize Spain was so full of loveliness, and I
am enjoying it all vicariously.
<br />
<br />
Such great beauty
in the world reminds us of the good that has abounded in past
generations along with all the wars and evil deeds. Talking to a
far-away cousin's daughter this week, I heard her explain that as a
retired RN with their four children reared, she now spends her time
volunteering in her church's food pantry and soup kitchen and other
such community projects. I see Susan Geisler's postings about jobs
available in her area and know she is trying tohelp those needing
employment. I read the long article she posted about the sad problem
we have in our nation with infant mortality, and know she is trying
her best to improve that problem. I see my college debate colleague's
post encouraging parents to read to their children. Now retired from
a life in educational theater, I can tell she still cares about other
people's kids and wants to spread any information she can to help.
We have choices to make in life. We can be negative and despair
because of the evil that exists or we can strive to be a part of
those who work to create beauty and improvement in the lives of
others.
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-51426313293058517692017-05-29T01:12:00.000-05:002017-05-29T01:16:25.420-05:00Strawberry and Softball SeasonWe have been
eating strawberries often lately. This is the second year that
Gerald's garden has produced all the strawberries we can eat. He
grew them and picked them and sometimes even burred them; but unlike
the little red hen, he shares them willingly with me. Once again we
have several bags in the freezer for next winter.<br />
<br />
I make strawberry
shortcake the way Gerald's mother taught me. Instead of using pie
crust or the little sponge cakes from the store, she always used
crackers in her shortcake. I started out using pie crust or the
little cakes, and once I even make the plate-sized shortcake from my
bridal cookbook. But I found I liked Mom Glasco's best of all, and
that is what I still do today. Except now instead of sugar, I use
Apriva and I use wheat crackers which weren't available when I
began. I did use sugar for the shortcake that I fed granddaughter
Leslie when she and Mike dropped in briefly on their way home from
Cecelie's high school graduation. The beautiful Mother's Day plant
that they brought me from Jeannie is definitely the highlight on our
front porch.<br />
<br />
This is the first
year for the asparagus that Gerald planted in his garden, and he
brings in a cutting of it almost every other day. It tastes so good
and fresh. After I wash it, I stand it upright in a narrow pitcher
with water in it just the way Mom Glasco taught me years ago. We eat
it sparingly,however, because the Vitamin K interferes with our
blood thinner meds, so I've put many meaks' worth in the freezer.<br />
<br />
As always, we have
watched a lot of college softball this season usually on the
computers in Gerald's office. We watched on his bigger screen but
turned off the sound of the announcers. That was so we could hear
the radio announcers on his other computer because our granddaughter
Erin was one of them. The two programs were not always in sync, but
we did not care because we liked hearing Erin's sweet voice and
laugh. Our thoughts are with her and Josh because in the morning,
baby Caroline is to be born.<br />
<br />
For the last three
days, we were able to leave the computers behind and watch softball
on the television screen. Texas A&M played Tennessee in the super
regionals at Knoxville with fourteen other teams battling it out in
their supers across the nation. The winners of two out of three
games advance to the Nationals in Oklahoma City starting Thursday.
<br />
<br />
Friday evening's
game was a big disappointment because A&M played poorly and
lost.8-1, a lopsided score that should not happen in the super
regionals. Then we thought we had lost again yesterday when Tennessee
got ahead early. But seeing A&M come back and win that second
game 6-5 set the table for an exciting game today.<br />
<br />
I tried not to be
too optimistic lest I be disappointed; and when Tennessee quickly got
ahead again this afternoon, it looked like this would be our last
game of the season. Then the Aggies came alive and pulled ahead.
Then behind. Then ahead. There was one rain delay and there were the
frequent delays that Coach Karen Weekly is known for. Katherine and I
watched together in her bedroom. With the rest of the entire
softball nation, we could not help but marvel and be inspired by
A&M's pitcher Trinity Harrington, who had missed their regional
tourney to spend the last days with her father as he lost his battle
with cancer. Her team had rallied the best they could to show her
support last week, and they knew how she wanted to win this one for
her father, who had been a great supporter of her softball career.
And with the help of her teammates, she did. The camera frequently
flashed to her mother in the stands, and it was hard to stay dry
eyed.
<br />
<br />
When Tennessee
made their last out, the A&M tears were tears of happiness as
they became one of the eight teams heading to the Women's College
World Series, something little girls playing softball grow up
dreaming about.Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-10310828337181040312017-05-20T17:06:00.000-05:002017-05-20T17:06:17.781-05:00Busy Times for Farmers and Grandkids!Dust is flying in the fields as farmers
here hurry to get seed in the ground. They often have to be on the
roads as they go from field to field or farm to farm. Although I
usually cut through the country, the other day coming home from
Katherine's after I had filled my gas tank, I took the highway. There
I slowly drove a long way behind a tractor. I reminded myself, “If
you like to eat, be grateful for farmers.”<br />
<br />
Mary Ellen and Brian are not only super
busy in the field and with their kitchen redoing, but they somehow
managed over last weekend to move two kids out of their apartments as
their school year ended.
<br />
I was only away from home last Saturday
morning less than an hour running in to do an errand at Katherine's
house. Yet I missed all the excitement here. Gerald was down at the
end of the lake mowing the bank there when he realized his tractor
was on fire!
<br />
<br />
He had to jump off and hurry up our
long lane to get to his shop for a bucket. Riding his utility
vehicle<b> </b>back down, he was able to dip lake water and put out
the fire. Scott Cully, our good next door neighbor, came and helped
when he realized what was going on. Brandon White was going by a
little later and saw something amiss from the road and ran up fearful
for Gerald. By then Gerald had things under control, but Brandon
stayed until he was sure all was well.
<br />
<br />
A bird had built a nest inside the
tractor and caused the fire with considerable damage to wiring. Scott
and Sonja were here again that afternoon helping, and the repair
folks brought down a replacement tractor this week when they took
ours to be repaired. Gerald was amazed as he had never had such an
occurrence before, but he has since learned that this happens more
than we were aware. I used to have to lay down on the garage floor
and coax out kittens from the inside of the car engine before I drove
the car, but I did not know you need to check tractors for birds'
nests.<br />
<br />
Grandkids' summer plans no longer allow
coming to the farm first to attend Vacation Bible School when they
were very young and then in later years to help out with VBS in our
village. This summer their plans are diverse and exciting. Trent
was the first to begin work. Brianna and Mary Ellen drove with him
to Kansas City to get him settled in a sweet little loft apartment in
someone's home, and yesterday Trent began an internship at the AMC
Theater Support Center, as their
new headquarters building is called.
<br />
<br />
Brianna has a few
days yet to get packed and ready for a hot summer in Grenada, Spain,
where she will be immersed in Spanish at classes at the university
there. (This trip is to fulfill a requirement for TESOL students at
Murray.)<br />
<br />
Sam is temporarily
here from Waco and was able to with his mother on Mother's Day. He
will be interning this summer teaching motivated kids from the inner
city at a program in Austin. His group will be meeting at the
University of Texas, so he is pleased about that.<br />
<br />
Elijah is
finishing his first year of teaching, and he will be supervising the
Illinois Normal interns just as he did last summer. This is the
program he participated in two summers ago which led him to teaching
in Chicago.<br />
Cecelie, his
younger sister and our youngest granddaughter, will be graduating
from high school in a few days and will be going the furthest this
summer. She felt called to go on a mission trip to help in an
orphanage in Kolkota, India. (I did not even know Calcutta was now
called Kolkota.)<br />
<br />
Her older sister
Leslie is busy developing her new dual business—going rogue, Leslie
calls it. http://leslieeilerthompson.com/marketinghome/ She free
lances in both marketing and music work. One most recent client is
her dad, for whom she created a website to promote “Mr. E's Bees.”
She continues to perform as she has all her life (even as a a
toddler when her mother said she always acted everything out instead
of talking) and now she uses her university training to work as a
music copyist.<br />
<br />
Because the
University of Oregon is on a term system rather than semesters, Geri
Ann does not graduate until June 18 on Father's Day. She made the
decision not to play pro ball again this summer, and I am hoping she
gets a little time to rest up before she joins the work force. I
know she is coming this way to be in a friend's wedding, and I am
excited about that.<br />
<br />
Tara, our oldest
granddaughter, will continue what she does all the time—getting
three boys to their ball games and cheering them on while also
working full time at the new sports field house she has been involved
in for the two years it was built. Fortunately, she has lots of
help from her husband and also her mother, who lives near by.<br />
<br />
However, Vickie
may be busy elsewhere this summer although I an sure she will attend
plenty of boys' games. I am saving the best for the last!
Granddaughter Erin will be having her baby girl very shortly now, and
I am hoping she will have a wonderfully busy and happy summer ahead
of her bonding with Caroline Marie Simons before she has to adjust to
going back to her teaching job.
<br />
<br />
Oh, I forgot to
include Sam's girl friend Anna, who is planning a trip to see a
friend in Germany, after a summer of employment caring for six
children during the day. As I have anticipated the grandkids'
summers, I have had to study up on my geography and look at maps to
see where they are all going to be. I look forward to hearing their
reports to enliven my quiet elderly stay-at-home life style. And I
look forward to holding that first great granddaughter!<br />
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-58061246174734305112017-05-02T22:47:00.000-05:002017-05-03T14:05:57.110-05:00"Oh, Didn't It Rain"Our family celebrations are much
smaller these days with most of our family no longer in our community
But we did have a pleasant Easter with the Taylor family. Trent and
Brianna were both home from college and died beautiful eggs for us.
After worship, we six gathered for dinner at the farm, and later I
took plates into Katherine and her aide and visited there. Grandson
Sam had surprised us oldsters by flying home for his birthday
weekend, so he showed up at the farm coming and going while spreading
himself thin to see both sides of his family. Getting to see her son
unexpectedly definitely made Katherine's holiday. Sam did not
surprise his cousins because they all keep in close touch thanks to
cell phones.
<br />
<br />
Last Wednesday was Katherine's
bithday, so I made her a cake I sometimes made her years ago—an
angel food with a bouquet of real flowers with the vase hidden in the
center hole of the cake. We took chicken and dumpling dinners from a
local restaurant and had birthday dinner in her bedroom with the help
of her excellent aide. As I had not been organized enough to know
the time to send to Mary Ellen with Brian in the field, they dropped
in later to sing “Happy Birthday” with us when we cut the cake.
With gifts to open, a call from Sam and others, and all the cards in
the mail and Facebook greetings, that was the best we could do, and
Katherine was smiling and appreciative.
<br />
<br />
The Taylors are without a kitchen
right now as they are replacing floor and cabinets and doing other
rehab work. When Gerry came through here on his way to a softball
weekend at Lexington, Mary Ellen came over to see him and brought
Fifi to enjoy a bit of country life running in the fields since her
life has been torn up too by all the workmen in the house with her.
Before Gerry and Gerald took off in his rented pickup carrying the
team's pitching machines, there was a demonstration of bird dogs brought
up to the farm from Knoxville. Mary Ellen and I had to laugh to
notice that Fifi was not intimidated by those big dogs. She marked
her territory to let them know this was her farm. Gerry brought in
four quail eggs for Mary Ellen to fry for Brian, which she laughingly
and graciously accepted although she had never served such before.
Then she remembered she had no kitchen—so I am saving them for her.<br />
<br />
I listened to Friday night game
on the computer and was pleased with the A&M's victory over
Kentucky, and someone put a photo of Gerald at the game on Facebook.
But weekend began going downhill when I learned that our Jeannie and
husband Rick were driving home from Rochester and they would be going
back Sunday afternoon to have same-day surgery yesterday morning to
repair a problem caused by the port left in after her chemo. Jeannie
kept emphasizing it was “not a big deal,” but I did not believe
her for a minute. So when it stormed all night, I felt as I often
do that nature was upset as I was. I do not know how much it rained
because our rain gauge was run over at five inches when I emptied it
the next morning.
<br />
<br />
We are on a hill side, so we do
not worry about flooding. I was grateful that my diligent husband
had noticed and made a point on Thursday to repair the very tiny
“wanna be a gully I grow up” on the side of the slope on our lane. He also
cleared the debris off the filter on the emergency overflow pipe on
the far end of our lake. The first thing he asked when I told him
about the rain storm was whether the water went over the dam. And I
was able to tell him the overflow had worked perfectly thanks to his
work.
<br />
<br />
But many people in our area as
well as other areas of the nation did not fare so well. Lakes formed
beside many roads here, and some roads became lakes. Our homeless shelter
and many other homes were flooded. The Catholic church opened for
those needing shelter, and the Red Cross came in with emergency
shelter. And people are still hurting and coping.<br />
<br />
Katherine had one aide out sick
and another who had a car wreck, so I took the highway into her house
to avoid the closed roads. We listened to the A&M-Kentucky game
together on her TV screen, and we felt together the pain of defeat.
Of course, we assumed we'd win again on Sunday, but we didn't.
<br />
<br />
I went back to town through light
rain that evening to give Katherine night pills, but then drove home
through torrential rain. I knew then I would stay home the next day
and not venture out unless necessary. I slept very late and poured
out another over five inches of rain from the gauge. Fortunately
Katherine's aide was back, and I had the restful Sunday I needed. I
prayed for Jeannie's surgery coming up, ate up left-overs in the
fridge, found a play-by-play game account on Kentucky's website that
let me follow the game, and looked forward to seeing Gerald and Gerry
when they arrived that evening from Lexington.<br />
<br />
Despite a fall the
night before from catching his foot on a stob in an unofficial
walkway between the outdoor pizza place and their motel, Gerald was
in a good mood. With his hand he had bandaged up very professionally
after he picked the gravel out, he and Gerry had me laughing during
snacks at the kitchen table as they told of their misadventures.
(Gerald had a regular doctor appointment today, and the doctor said
his hand looked good.) I am sure Gerry was exhausted because he went
straight to bed after his shower instead of running over to visit a
friend as he wanted to do, and I think he and Gerald slept as good as
I did the night before.<br />
<br />
Yesterday after we saw Gerry off
for Texas, I was focused on waiting for Rick's call that Jeannie's
surgery had gone well. The good call came, and I relaxed. They stayed
at their motel in Rochester last night, and today they were on their
way home. I thank God for that. Gerry and the pitching machines are back
on campus today, and he is cheerful on Facebook. Gerald has picked
the asparagus in his garden and cleaned out the overflow filter
again. He is ready for the next deluge.
Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-38349162307883180162017-04-15T22:24:00.000-05:002017-04-15T22:34:59.546-05:00Enjoying Spring's BeautyLeaving behind the twittering martins
swooping over our lake and the many resting on the telephone line up
our lane, Gerald took us on a springtime ride to visit a
cousin-in-law and his daughter before they headed back to North
Carolina. He deliberately chose roads we don't usually travel to get
there.
<br />
<br />
Seeing the roadside platform placed to
view the geese brought memories of a long ago stop there with my
visiting cousin Doug and a grandson sitting in back in his car seat
with his sister buckled beside him. Somehow unbeknownst to us when
we got back in the car, an insect mnaaged to get under the grandson's
little leg. We could not figure out why he was crying although we
kept trying to correct any problem. When we finally arrived at the
family cemetery where we were headed and got him out of the seat, we
saw the terrible red bump on the under side of his leg and the
squashed insect. Other memories of that day are more pleasant,
including explaining to his not much older sister why she could
enjoy but not pick the pretty flower arrangements off the graves.
That wildlife viewing platform reminds me of the sad little story
that tore this grandmother up. Fortunately, the grandson survived
just fine and is now teaching in Chicago, but I don't think we ever
stopped again.<br />
<br />
Soon we were crossing the highway over
the eastern end of Crab Orchard Lake. Fluffy white clouds in the
blue sky rounded down to the edge of the lake, and I inhaled the
beauty and the peaceful change from the earlier sorry memory.
Springtime beauty kept increasing as we drove through the many hills
and hollows with roads now lined with the silver-green leaves of the
autumn olives.(Or were those shrubs Russian olives? I don't know
the difference.) Behind these short pretty little trees which are now
deemed invasive, were the tall dark trees left over from winter with
only a few giving us a hint of green leaves forming. The purple-pink
redbud, however, was at the height of its glory, and an occasional
patch of bright yellow blooming mustard plant added more color. After
this bountiful blessing of roadside beauty, we arrived at the
hill-top destination home out from Cobden. There we had a long and
good talkative visit with Bill, who had recently suffered a serious
fall, and with Glenna who was there to make sure he was taken care
of as he recovers.
<br />
<br />
We left going back home a
different route of hills. These provoked even older memories of
when curvy Old 51 was the only way we had to go to Carbondale back in
our college days. Gerald had an errand there at a favorite hardware
story, and then we stopped in Marion to use one of our Christmas
restaurant gift cards.
<br />
<br />
Only a couple of days later
driving into Katherine's, in addition to all the early-season yard
sales going on, there were dogwoods now in bloom adding white
delight to the landscape along with the colorful redbuds. Many more
tall trees were green with early leaves.
<br />
<br />
More recently in one of the older
neighborhoods in town with its ancient bricked street that I love, I
saw a large pink dogwood blooming beautifully in someone's yard. That
reminded me of a lesson I learned a few years back. I like simple
things, and I like old things. And I am not too good about changes. I
had not grown up with pink dogwoods, so I thought pink dogwood had
to be a variation some over-eager botanist had created-- just like
our food manufacturers are no longer satisfied with plain oatmeal,
but must now befuddle us with many variations. This wide array of
choices makes going to a modern grocery mind-confusing and
time-consuming. So I resented the pink dogwood as a one too many
modern variation. Then I found out that I was wrong. It had been
around for a long time. I looked it up just now and found that this
lovely pink variety was noticed and recorded by a plant hunter named
Marc Catesby in 173l.
<br />
<br />
I am now trying to remember that
getting old should not make one crotchety and critical of inevitable
changes that will come when needed or maybe when not. I can be
grateful for caffeine-free tea for those who need it and the
quick-cooking oatmeal or other products for those in a
hurry—sometimes me.I can be grateful for healthier choices on our crowded long grocery aisles and I need to look at changes with
more openness. There is an excellent smaller store with fewer and
shorter aisles in town, and I often choose to go there. I am also
aware that many people in small villages or poor city neighborhoods
have no store that is easy to get to, and that makes my complaints
about too many choices seem even more petty.
<br />
<br />
Rejoice in your blessings. Cope
with your problems. And have a pleasant Easter everyone.
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<br />Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-74169500385796051932017-03-28T20:59:00.000-05:002017-03-29T11:02:33.027-05:00Celebrating Gerald!A few years back, Gerald decided he
needed to go see a softball series to celebrate his birthday. I
cannot remember whether that trip was to see our son coach or one of
our granddaughters play. Nevertheless, a tradition had begun. I
think he has managed to go see games for his birthday ever since.
<br />
<br />
This year the softball series nearest
his birthday was March 18-20 when Texas A&M would play Ole Miss.
Nephew DuWayne was ready to be a willing driving assistant; the two
of them always have a good time watching Gerry's teams. I was not up
to sitting on cold bleachers instead of following the games in the
comfort of home, so I declined.
<br />
<br />
I thought I ought to start the project
of uncluttering my office. However, as always, I became too
interested in old papers and would have to read them, so I did not
get far on that project. I did manage to fill a big tall wastebasket
and get those papers into the trash barrel in the garage. This is
good for me because I am addicted to paper, and it hurts me to part
with long-ago drafts or saved interesting articles that I might want
to use someday for research. Long before researching on Google was
possible, I had files of saved research on family history and other
interests for writing I have never had time to accomplish
unfortunately.
<br />
<br />
Since A&M swept the weekend series,
Gerald came home in great spirits Sunday night. The shared the
bleachers with fans, who with gave them credit for helping win and
urged them to come to all the games. I heard the radio broadcaster
telling how great the food on the Oxford square was, which was what
Gerald had told me the night before. Vickie had primed Gerry to be
sure Gerald had a birthday dinner there. With only one game a day,
Gerry had time for visiting with his cousin and dad, so the whole
weekend was successful. Gerald slept good that night back at the
farm.<br />
<br />
By Monday, the texts, phone calls,
Facebook greetings, and birthday cards had started. Gerald gave me
DuWayne's message that not only would Gerald's birthday breakfast be
in Marion for our convenience, but they would even delay it until
eight if I could come. I was flattered and embarrassed at the same
time, and I assured Gerald to tell DuWayne I could surely make it to
a 7 o'clock breakfast once a year! When Ernestine was here, I told
her she was the only one I would go clear to Jonesboro early in the
morning to eat breakfast with, but that was an exaggeration-–a
synonym for a lie. Actually there are many people I would rise early
for, but just not on a regular basis. Ha.
<br />
<br />
So on Tuesday morning, Gerald and I
calmly traveled to town to share breakfast and laughter with his
brother Garry and Vera and five of our nephews—DuWayne, Tim, Kerry,
Bryce, and great nephew-in-law Eric. We felt even better when we
learned that oddly all of the younger generation were actually
working up in our neck of the woods that day anyhow, so coming up to
Marion instead of Jonesboro for breakfast worked out well for them
too.
<br />
<br />
Gerald continued getting birthday
messages all week, and Wednesday brought the most beautiful one of
all. This brightly multi-colored handmade card was an elaborate
fold-down one with even its large envelope brightly decorated by our
artist daughter Jeannie. Gerald had to take it in to show Katherine on
Thursday.
<br />
Gerald's last official party was one
Mary Ellen cooked up for Saturday night. Brianna had been on spring
break all week, but at the same time, Mary Ellen was selling real
estate and finishing up their April issue of House2Home's magazine.
They had hoped to find time to look for Bri's apartment for next year
at Murray, but they were pushed shopping for her upcoming trip to a
roommate's California beach wedding at the bride's grandparents' home
this weekend.
<br />
<br />
Our Freeport granddaughter Cecelie was
also on spring break from high school, and her brother Elijah had put
her on a train in Chicago to travel down for a week's visit their
sister Leslie in Nashville. So on Saturday, Leslie was bringing
Cecelie up here to catch an early Sunday morning train in Carbondale
back to Union Station, where Elijah would meet her. So I was looking
forward to seeing them.
<br />
<br />
Naturally they were planning to see
Brianna and Trent. Mary Ellen and Brian invited us all to meet and
have pizza together to celebrate Gerald's birthday. We were shocked
to find when we arrived at the designated pizza place, there was not
a single parking place available—not one! We hastily called Mary
Ellen, who called the others, and we all ended up at another favorite
place, where parking was available. And their pizza was delicious as
always. We had a good time talking and laughing, and the younger
four got together for even more visiting while we went home to
contemplate our blessings. Cece ended up staying all night with
Brianna, and I enjoyed a wonderful end-of-the-evening talk with
Leslie hearing all about her new work as an independent worker in her
home office. Going rogue she calls it. She and Gerald visited
briefly over the coffee pot the next morning, and I assume Cecelie
caught her 7 am. train and Leslie made it home to Nashville and Mike.
<br />
<br />
This week has not been so pleasant for
Gerald as he had serious dental work yesterday, which was checked
again today. He looks great in his new dentures, and he has seemed
to enjoy soft meals I've served him of mushroom soup, jello,and ice
cream.
<br />
<br />
Before they left for Mississippi,
Gerald had hurried to get some CRP ground burned off, a storm-damaged
shop roof repaired, and a couple martin houses cleaned out. The
martins are already nesting in them. Today he was replacing a handle
on the downstairs toilet that had quit working. No wonder we
celebrated that 87-year-old man!!
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<br />Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-17848450069573279262017-03-16T01:22:00.000-05:002017-03-16T01:22:44.277-05:00A Fun WeekendThe fun started when we learned that
Geri Ann was flying from Oregon into Saint Louis around midnight
Thursday with plans to drive a rental car down to the farm. Erin was
to be surprised since she did not know her younger sister could make
the upcoming baby shower. Gerald told me with emphasis not to tell.
Imagine my horror Thursday night when I texted Geri Ann asking if she
were in Saint Louis yet, and almost instantly I received a reply from
Erin saying: “No, I am not flying into Saint Louis until Saturday
morning.” (I knew this already from her call to Gerald, but she
probably thought he had not told me all the details, which included
her plan to meet her mother-in-law there, who was flying in from
Minneapolis.)<br />
<br />
Since my copy of the sent text showed
plainly it was to Geri Ann, I was afraid Erin would see that if she
looked the text a second time. I did not want to be the guilty one
ruining the surprise. Fortunately, I have now learned that the name
of the intended recipient does not show, and so Erin did not suspect
that I was really talking to Geri Ann!
<br />
<br />
I have a terrible time with modern
technology, and I did not dare text either sister again Thursday
night. I went to bed puzzled. It took me until the next morning to
figure out that I had put Erin's phone number not only under her own
name but also under Geri Ann's. Obviously, I am not too familiar
with texting, and I guess I had not texted Geri Ann recently to
discover my error. (I dropped and broke my phone and had to put all
phone numbers in a new one.) Ah well. It is corrected now. Geri Ann
was asleep in the brown room when we got up the next morning.
<br />
<br />
(The brown room is where people choose
to sleep if they need to sleep in. Our house has a walk-out basement
and lots of light enters, but three back rooms have no windows—a
bedroom and my office and Gerald's office. The bedroom has tan walls
and ended up being called the brown room to distinguish it from the
bedroom in front with yellow walls.)<br />
<br />
After a nice visit, Geri Ann was off to
Johnston City to visit her long-time friends Cierra (Cece) and Dustin
and little Matt—Geri Ann's god child—now a toddler. We knew our
daughter-in-law Vickie and the third sister, Tara, were starting from
Texas after attending Tara's three boys' school musical, and they
might be arriving sometime after midnight depending how soon they
were able to actually get on the road. However, some time during the
night, Gerald had a text saying they had decided they better stop at
a motel before continuing. I think Geri Ann came back late after
visiting Gma Shirley and spent the night again in the brown room.
Quite frankly, that was the last I even tried to keep track of those
coming and going!
<br />
<br />
Saturday morning Vickie and Tara came
through Anna and picked up the special cake with a pink elephant on
top with at large pink bow (all made of icing) and Caroline's name on
it. They went onto the event center at West Frankfort where some
entrepreneur had revitalized the Old Fire House for celebrations such
as this. Geri Ann was directed to go there to wait for whenever she
was revealed to Erin!
<br />
<br />
A huge high ceiling-ed room awaited
them there that had once housed fire trucks, and they wanted to make
it pink and pretty for little Caroline's first party. So they were
busy unloading table cloths for the many circular tables, table
flowers with peanuts holding them in their vases, tables for signing
and gifts, and bags of animal crackers for favors. They also had to
gather various foods and set up to feed us the next day! I am not
sure who all showed up to help. Gma Shirley was there to visit and
help, and Mary Ellen and Brianna showed up before the day was over.
Since the hostesses did not want Erin to have to prepare for her own
party, we had the pleasure of a long visit with her during the
afternoon before we took her down to spend the night at her Uncle
Louie and Aunt Chris's house.
<br />
<br />
Sometime in here, Elijah had arrived
from Chicago, and he and Trent were briefly at our house before they
went shopping for baby gifts, I think. Before the evening was over,
Geri Ann and Brianna had joined them for whatever mischief they had
planned. Having Geri Ann with them was a special treat, though they
missed Cecelie and Sam, who could not make it. By then we had learned
that their cousin Leslie and husband Mike would not be coming up from
Nashville until Sunday, so there would be a bed instead of a couch
available for Lige. Tara and Vickie arrived at the farm after a late
night supper in town. I knew they must be tired after their previous
36 hours of travel and party efforts. We quickly agreed to leave the
door open for whoever showed up later and went to bed as soon as
possible.
<br />
<br />
The next morning Gerald went over and
picked up Erin as we both wondered why we had not thought to just let
her borrow the truck the evening before. (But we had enjoyed taking
her and, thus, visiting a little longer.) Because of our colds and
also because I had been needed at Katherine's house, Gerald and I had
missed church for a couple of weeks. So we headed out while Vickie
and her three daughters were able to visit a bit at the kitchen
table. Rather than eat in town as we usually do on Sunday, Gerald
and I came back for a quick light meal before we headed to the Old
Fire House to join everyone there.<br />
<br />
Gerald was pleasantly enthusiastic
about going to his first baby shower. While some of our men
thought they just were not meant to attend such a party, a lot of
them showed up. There were Glasco, Martin, Johnson, and Borum family
representatives there as well as Crab Orchard high school friends of
Vickie and, of course, her daughters' school friends from Johnston
City. I was relieved we did not play some of the games that have
been invented in recent years, and instead we just enjoyed visiting
and table hopping and lots of eating. I loved seeing people I had not
seen in way too long although I am no longer nimble enough to do much
of the table hopping.<br />
<br />
I did appreciate Gerry's cousin DuWayne keeping me up on the scores of Gerry's game going on down at College Station. A highlight for me was seeing little ones
there that I especially wanted to see in person rather than just on
Facebook--one of whom was DuWayne and Vickie's pretty little granddaughter Camy. And now we have photos of them that Gerald took. Erin
looked so pretty and healthy, and she proved she was ready for
motherhood when she raced to the big heavy outside door and rescued
her cousin's son Bentley, who had managed to open it—even though
he is not yet two!<br />
<br />
The big event,however, was seeing Erin
open so many gifts and seeing the sweet tiny clothes that are so
abundant for today's babies. I remember making six flannel night
gowns for our babies—and they all four wore those gowns before I
gave them away to another mother to use. I also had cute diaper sets
given to me—little plastic-lined ruffled pants with tiny cool tops
which were a new item in those days. Little girl babies traditionally
wore soft light-weight pastel dresses made in the Philippines. I was
blessed with an abundance of those because my sister-in-law Ginger
had received a carefully hoarded supply from her family in Missouri
when her daughter Vicki Sue was born. Ginger passed them onto me,
and I think I remember ironing fifteen of them in the living room of
our little rented house and laying them on the back of the couch to
enjoy before I hung them up. I did enjoy that work although no one
needs to iron baby clothes now. I am sure I passed those on also
although I would enjoy fondling one of those little dresses again.
<br />
<br />
Now babies are dressed in soft footed sleepers as well as
exquisite clothes for going out and about. Yet young mothers are
still passing clothes on since babies grow so rapidly that newborn
clothes are too quickly outgrown to ever wear out. Erin loved going
through the large shopping bag of her cousin Sarah's beautiful
clothes all carefully laundered and ready for Caroline now that Lily
Mae no longer needs them. I saw Erin go through that bag twice
enjoying those clothes showing them off, and I am sure back in Texas
now, she is handling and dreaming over the pretty new things she was
gifted with Sunday. Gerald's overalls (size 6-months)and a couple of
other farm outfits for Caroline were especially appreciated by all—or
at least giggled over. I want to see up close all the books Caroline
received if we someday get to visit her Texas home.
<br />
<br />
I was at Katherine's house after the party, but family members gathered to eat party leftovers that Vickie fed everyone at our dining room table. I am sure they were all tired but happy, I arrived home in time so enjoy this too.<br />
<br />
On Monday morning, although it quickly melted, there was
snow on the ground. Vickie and Tara were already
long gone before I woke up at 8. Erin came over from Chris and
Louie's, and we had a good visit before we had a final early lunch in
town with Erin and her mother-in-law Roxanne before they drove back
to Saint Louis to catch their respective flights back to Minneapolis
and Dallas. I know Erin was very eager to get back home. Her husband
Josh had been on a training event in California for a month; and as
service people's lives would have it, he returned to their home just
two hours after Erin had to go to Dallas to catch her flight here.
So he was being “dog daddy” for their little bull dog while Erin
was up here. He had to return to base the next day after she returned
home, but she was hoping he would have some time off later this week
while she is on spring break from her school. And if so, I am sure
she is showing him Caroline's clothes.<br />
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<br />Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-19091392551585837012017-03-08T00:27:00.000-06:002017-03-08T00:28:39.866-06:00Springtime in WinterBright yellow daffodils and the white
blossoms on pear trees continue to decorate this late winter
landscape. <br />
Gerald and I have both had our first cold that we have had in a year or two, but we cannot blame it on the weather. This has been an unusually warm winter
here in Southern Illinois, and I have kept expecting it to change.Yesterday's rainy weather while I was out and about doing errands after I had a semi-annual check up with the heart doctor made me think of April--not winter. Last night's wind storm did some slight damages here, but nothing
like the tornadoes a few days ago over at Elkville and elsewhere.<br />
<br />
Other areas have not escaped winter.
After Gerald's sister Ernestine and husband Don stayed around for
some final family visits here before they left our warm
weather and headed back to Wyoming, they were dreading the snow and
ice-covered roads between here and there. They made it back safely,
and we were grateful. Last Sunday, I noticed our son was wearing a
coat at the softball game down at Texas A&M while we were still
able to opt out of jackets.
<br />
<br />
I just hope we do not have one of our
March blizzards this weekend when family is coming up from Texas and
Tennessee for granddaughter Erin and Josh's baby shower. Preparing for the new
baby girl coming into our family's lives has been such a joy during
our season of sorrow. First the dining room table and then the bed
in the guest bedroom has been covered with sweet frilly clothes and
girly gift bags, and now I have to get that room back in operation
before company starts arriving for this weekend's party.<br />
<br />
The last
baby girl in our immediate family when out granddaughter Cecelie was
born—and she is a senior in high school this year! We have
delighted in our three great grandsons since then, but we are definitely ready
to welcome a little girl into the mix.
<br />
<br />
Erin's sister Tara has suggested
instead of using a card with our gift that we inscribe a children's
book—one we already have and cherish or one we choose just for
Caroline Marie, That has been a fun idea. (I have been concerned
when I realized how much cards cost these days. I loved the gorgeous
cards given us for our anniversary party, but was shocked when I
realized how expensive they were. They have been re-read more than
once and are carefully stowed away for future enjoyment.) With cards
costing more than some books, Tara's idea is an excellent one. I can
just imagine how much pleasure Josh and Erin will have reading to
their little girl.
<br />
<br />
Regardless of whether spring weather
stays or not, our hearts are warmed that we have a new birth coming
up to celebrate.
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<br />Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-41071306169368136272017-02-23T13:48:00.001-06:002017-02-23T13:48:57.534-06:00Keith DuWayne Glasco, Sr. (Aug. 8, 1937 to Feb. 16, 2017)On a beautiful rural hillside caressed
by balmy warm weather, we said goodbye to the body of Gerald's
youngest brother after his long fight with heart problems. We knew
Keith was in a better place and no longer in that beautiful wood
coffin as we listened to the final words of his pastor. Barbara's
parents and others of Keith's family were already buried in this
rural cemetery not far from Keith and Barbara's home where the long
funeral procession had stopped briefly for Keith's dog Hash to join
us for this final farewell.<br />
<br />
Our great niece Jennifer Jade Escue
from Kansas City hurried to our car and joined Gerald helping me
tranverse the upward climb on the soft thawed groud to the tent
waiting over the grave site. Before we left, all were invited to go
on to the church fellowship hall a hill or so away. Amid the
visiting, some were taking a rose from flower arrangements to
remember Keith with. Keith had been honored in every way his many
friends and family could accomplish.
<br />
<br />
From Thursday morning when Gerald
along with others of Keith's family saw Keith peacefully breathe his
last breaths shortly after his pastor had visited and offered what
turned out to be a final prayer with him, everyone wanted to remember
all the good things Keith and Barbara had done for others.
<br />
<br />
Our granddaughter Leslie was already up
in northern Illinois for the high school state speech contest on
Saturday that her sister Cecelie was in, so Les had planned to stop
at the farm on way home to Nashville. Now our daughter Jeannie and
husband Rick also came down to grieve with us. It was good to be able
to worship with them on Sunday morning. Although a previous
appointment made it impossible for Leslie to stay over for the
funeral, she did delay her drive back to Tennessee until after the
visitation for Keith. There she was not only able to see our daughter Mary Ellen and husband Brian but her cousins Trent and Brianna as well as more distant cousins--some of whom she had never met.<br />
<br />
Sunday evening we gathered at the
funeral home on the Jonesboro Square, where in the past we have said
goodbye to so many family members and friends.The line of grievers
soon reached the bank next door, and the people kept coming until
time to go home. While some had arrived from a distance, most were
neighbors and local friends. Barbara and her sons and their spouses
and the grandchildren and great grandchildren were hugged over and
over as they listened to the expressed grief and affection. Sometimes
tears came down the cheeks of those already missing their friend, and
sometimes laughs and smiles were shared.
<br />
<br />
The next morning we gathered there
again for a funeral service that was joyful and reassuring as we bid
farewell to the dear one peacefully lying there with his hands
holding one of his late brother Kenny's pocket knives and also a
little metal angel a great grandson wanted Grampy to have. The pall
bearers had been asked to wear jeans with black shirts, and the word
had gotten around so those garments were seen throughout the
congregation as well. I was silently thanking God that our son Gerry
had arrived safely at 4:30 that morning after driving all night. His
cousin DuWayne had tried to dissuade him from making that hurried
trip, so I did not bother. I did try to not take away any of the
very brief rest time he had at our house, but I was glad to visit
with him a bit at that bountiful feast the church provided in the
large fellowship hall packed with people. Soon Gerry would start the
trip back to Texas to be at batting practice the next day, and we
took Jeannie and Rick to their car to start their long trip upstate.
<br />
<br />
<br /><br />
Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-51369332840459399612017-02-15T20:10:00.001-06:002017-02-15T21:47:01.611-06:00Laughter and Stories Keep Us From CryingWinter has brought many good memories
and wonderful stories while we gather together and and listen to one
another talk of life and happy times.<br />
<br />
What can be better than being at table
with friends enjoying chili together on a cold winter day? A pretty
table with bread made by the host is icing on the cake, but the true
cake is enjoying each other while we make new friends and hear life
stories. (The lemon cake served for dessert was very good, but still
not as good as the stories, Laughter and stories cannot be
surpassed. ) How will we ever forget that the long-married couple
across from us first met when they were just eleven and nine?
<br />
<br />
He was visiting her church and playing
the piano. He looked around and saw her and thought she was the
cutest thing possible even though he had come with another girl who
was considered his “girl friend.” Sealing the deal, the little
girl he thought so cute winked at him!! She seems quite proper
today; but even in the church house, she knew the proper response to
his admiration at that early age! They married a few years later,
and have led a productive life rearing two fine sons and sharing
their many talents wherever they have lived. Since their childhood
homes were miles apart , I do not know how they continued that love
at first sight. If we are fortunate, maybe we will someday learn
how that was achieved. There was another great story about his car
break down when he tried to visit her as a young teen. Obviously,
this successful couple both knew who they wanted, and the world is a
better world because they did!<br />
<br />
Last week besides his own doctor
appointments, Gerald made several trips to Cape Girardeau to visit
his brother Keith at the hospital. His heart disease had become seriously worse.
Then at the end of last week, sadly Keith was sent home with Hospice
help.
<br />
<br />
Actually he and Barbara have wonderful
help already there on their rural hilltop. (They have wonderful help
because Keith and Barb have always been quick to provide help to
everyone they know.) Both his daughter-in-law Glenda and his
granddaughter Lauren are outstanding experienced RNs and live almost
within shouting distance of Keith and Barbara's, and they are very
attentive and devoted. Their granddaughter Amanda also lives at the
foot of the hill with her parents DuWayne and Vickie, so they also
have a trained beautician for manicures and pedicures along with many
other services that the nurses and granddaughter Andrea are happy to
provide for the grandparents they love. Their granddaughter Tracy has
years of experience in the dental field and was able to give Gerald
some advice while she was down from Saint Louis to see Keith and
Barb. Sons Tim and DuWayne, grandson-in-law Eric, and grandson Greg
are all close enough to visit and help and be involved taking care of
cattle, dogs, poultry, or anything else Keith would want done.
Grandson Mark, though not living adjacently is within a few miles of
Keith and Barbara's farm as is our brother Garry. Add on to that
Keith's cousins nearby and all the friends he and Barb have collected
and you have a community of help available.
<br />
<br />
Tim and DuWayne encouraged Gerald to
come down when he can because they feel like the brothers--only
Gerald and Garry now since we lost brother Kenny to leukemia-- make
Keith laugh more. (Our kids always loved to have the brothers
together to hear all the laughter that was produced as they talked of
childhood exploits and neighborhood characters.)<br />
<br />
As soon as Ernestine and Don heard how
seriously ill Keith was, they started here from Wyoming. Ernestine
was the only girl in that family. They were able to bring along
their daughter Leah and granddaughter Emmerson called Emmie since
Leah is home schooling Emmie this year. Despite living so far away,
Emmie has made close ties with the Illinois relatives because she
loves the farms and especially all the horses and dogs and kittens
and chickens and ducks that she finds on the Union County farms. The
Gamble clan arrived late Sunday night to Garry's place exhausted but
eager to visit Keith and Barbara. Gerald was eager to see them, of
course, but decided to stay away on Monday, so Ernestine could visit
that day without competition while Keith was most strong. Those two
were the youngest siblings.<br />
<br />
Yesterday, however, we could stay away
no longer. After a quick visit with Katherine, we took her hugs down
to Keith and Barb. I was able to repeat to Keith the loving memories
that Katherine had of him. “He always hugged me and whispered in my
ear, and I had no doubt he loved me,” she said.<br />
<br />
Tim had stayed with him again the
previous night since DuWayne is scheduled for future nights. Family
were pleased that Keith had slept better than usual the night before.
The established routine for Keith was to get up and dress and have
breakfast before going to his recliner. The TV screen is adjusted
for his chair where he continues his habit of watching his favorite
cowboy movies which Barb said he probably has memorized by now.
Visitors come sit near him and tell him what they need to tell him,
and he responds with typical love and laughter. When he tires, he
lapses into sleep and that is good. Lauren, who was on duty
yesterday, was quick to anticipate his every need. After lunch he
goes into his bedroom to sleep if he wants to, and people visit him
there. Once I glanced in to see Lauren lying on the adjoining bed
laughing with him and the visitor.
<br />
<br />
Before Ernestine and Don, Leah and
Emmie arrived, Barbara had told us how much fun seven-year- old
Emmie had with our warm weather allowing her to play in the yard the
day before. (Snow was deep when they left Wyoming.) She took good
care of all the kittens, and with permission and encouragement from
Barb had created what she called a “kitty buffet” with piles of
food for each cat. The zenith of her visit though was to see a
chicken fly up into a pan of straw there in the yard and then leave
it cackling gleefully! Emmie was amazed to find a warm egg left
there, and so was Barbara as she said they were not laying right now.
Barb asked her if she would like her to cook that egg for her, and
Emmie was delighted to eat the egg she had gathered.
<br />
<br />
When their family arrived, Leah
reported Emmie woke up talking about that egg and said if she found
one today, it was going to be for her Uncle Keith. Soon Emmie was
carrying out cat food for the kitties again and snuggling with each
one by one. Next Vickie Sue arrived from their home up near
Carbondale on Rocky Comfort Road, and she had a Valentine gift for
Emmie and colorful decorated cupcakes for all.
<br />
<br />
Just as Gerald had explained of his
previous visits, their adjoining dining room had a table full of food
that loved ones had carried in. (DuWayne was not above sending Gerry
way down in Texas the mouth-watering photos of his Aunt Opal's famous
egg custard pies that she and Bryce took down to them.) All the
people coming and going were fed freely if they were hungry, and
people usually were when they looked at the food. Garry had brought
in buns and pork from Jonesboro's famous Dixie Barbecue along with
pies. We had just finished eating, and here came our cousin-in-law
Morris with this huge huge pan covered with foil explaining he wanted
to get it there while it was still hot from the oven. People started
exclaiming that not only did it smell good, but this home-made tea
ring was a work of art. Lauren was quick to hand out servings to
everyone, but I had to go look to see how beautiful that tea ring
was. Barbara explained that Morris and cousin Judy are known as
these generous cooks who regularly show up with tea rings and
home-made pies for the sick and their families. Morris always
donates a similar large tea ring to the local fall festival, which
raises money for the school, and people will bid it up to fifty
dollars or more.
<br />
<br />
After lunch, Emmie was quick to go back
outside in the warm weather. One by one, each kitten was carried in
and visited with us. Since there were three dogs n the room (Keith's
beloved Hash, Lauren and Eric's little Murphy,and Don and Ernestine's
Finnley), there were a few snappy interactions if the kitten escaped
Emmie's arms. That provided a bit of excitement, but the best part
was the kittens inspired Barb to start telling Emmie about all her
pet animals down through the years. Barb pulled her wheel chair
toward Emmie, who was soon enthralled.
<br />
<br />
I remembered sitting in their living
room long ago and suddenly seeing a terrapin come crawling slowly out
from under the couch. I assumed that like most farmer's wives, Barb
had baby pigs and calves inside to warm up. But I had forgotten
about the pet ground hog. Barb said Keith had found a tiny pink
animal no bigger than your hand out in the yard and brought it in.
They had no idea what kind of an animal it was, but Barb got out the
baby bottles and the formula she used for baby pigs and started
caring for the tiny thing. It turned out to be a ground hog and
remained a loving pet for a long time until it was full size. It
finally bit her after she had been asked to take it to school for the
kids to see, and perhaps that excitement over stimulated it. There
was also a story about a raccoon although it must have been a short
story because I cannot remember how that animal showed up, but the
photograph of it high up the wall sitting atop their horse collar
lamp was adorable.
<br />
<br />
But the best story was of the pet skunk
Barbara had briefly as a little girl. The family saw it on the
highway, and Barb's dad stopped and retrieved it and handed it to
Barbara. She loved it, of course, and the only time it ever sprayed
was once when a dog threatened it and once when it hurt its foot on a
loose wire. She kept it until her mother found Barb had it inside
her bedroom and decided it was time for the skunk to go elsewhere.
Perhaps the sweetest part of Barb's stories was getting to watch
wide-eyed Emmie hearing them. A tiny little thing, Emmie has huge
blue eyes in a little elfin face and almost a perpetual smile. Her
enthusiasm for life is contagious.<br />
<br />
It was getting late in the afternoon;
and though we were reluctant to go, we needed to. But then Keith and
Gerald's cousin Irma and husband Jim arrived from Jonesboro, and we
wanted to visit with them when they were not in the bedroom visiting
with Keith. At Gerald's suggestion, I had put on my coat and gone
into the yard where he and Irma were visiting, when Gerald realized
his cousin Joyce, who was driving over from Cape Girardeau, was
almost there. So while Irma and Barbara directed her on the country
roads to find the farm, we were back inside for yet another family
visit.
<br />
<br />
I loved being in that familiar living
room again. Let me tell you about it. While they were adding this
room to the house the Holly Sitter family had left behind, a swallow
had found one of the overhead beams they were using on the ceiling.
They enjoyed watching her build her nest of mud attached to the beam and raise her babies there. Barb would not allow them to
clean the beam after the bird family left. The nest has remained
these many years with a tiny cloth bird sticking its nose out of the
top. The outside wall is all rock with a fireplace in the middle,
and three mounted deer heads from long-ago hunts. The room-length
mantle is filled with framed photographs of children, grandchildren,
great grandchildren, horses, and other beloved animals. A pleasing
collection of baskets hangs down from the mantle.<br />
<br />
Beside the carpeted room with lots of
seating is a long tiled walk from the front door to the kitchen and
dining room, and that wall is filled with more photographs and
memory-filled art work made by the grandchildren. Perfectly clean
now, I know that tile walkway has had much traffic from muddy farm
boots and the muddy barefoot feet of a host of happy children.<br />
<br />
Oh, I must mention the two large gray
hornet's nests—one on each side of the beam separating the living
room and dining room. I have never seen a hornet's nest in anyone
else's living room, but I love the looks of them in this room. Oh,
now I do remember part of the raccoon story. Her nephew Kerry had
giving Barb one of the hornet's nests, and that raccoon climbed up
there and started to destroy it. He quickly became persona non
grata, and that was the reason for his departure.<br />
<br />
Today brother Garry phoned that Keith
was much weaker this morning, so Gerald and Mary Ellen went down
after lunch. Vicki Sue was there and had posted on Facebook she was
sad, so I am dreading today's report when they return. I hope Garry
and Gerald were able to make Keith laugh again today. Regardless,
their hearts will be warmed this cold day by the love in that house
on the hill, but at the same time their hearts will also be broken as
they watch their brother's health deteriorate. Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-67715145441781479592017-01-26T01:28:00.000-06:002017-01-26T01:28:10.900-06:00January Happenings at WoodsongA nurse at one of Gerald's routine appointments asked him if he
had had anything good happen to him. He was quick to tell her that
we had just learned on Sunday that we are going to have our first
great granddaughter expected at the end of May.
<br />
<br />
Although Erin and Josh were eagerly waiting to find out what the
latest ultrasound showed, their only expressed desire was that the
baby be healthy. Since Josh was on base, Erin scheduled her mother
for a visit to go with her to the doctor for this important check-up. We immediately
got that the good news that all was well, but that it would be
announced on Sunday whether this infant was to be a boy or girl.
<br />
<br />
It was awfully late in the day when that video finally came on our
Facebook accounts. Before it did, there were some worried texts and
phone calls. Anticipation in Illinois was high. Finally the video announcement came showing Erin and her mother standing in front of
Erin's travel softball team and opening a large box to release
balloons, And they were PINK with a few red ones mixed in. Those
who know Erin will not doubt that her child will probably be properly
represented by a few reds mixed in the the pinks.
<br />
<br />
We were thrilled—just as we would have been if blue balloons had
come out of that box. With three great grandsons already in our
lives, we know how wonderful baby boys are. And we could imagine how
much fun a little boy cousin would have with those three. But it is
also easy to imagine how they will enjoy taking care of a little
girl. (Many years ago, Erin and her big sister Tara relished taking
care of baby Leslie. Those were our first three grandchildren, and
the two older ones made Leslie a little princess. Forgive the digression please, but one pleasure of
being old is that everything brings up memories.)
<br />
<br />
Being able to know the baby's sex is a relatively new possibility
despite old wives' tales trying to convince us about how we carried
our babies—low or high. Now that young parents can find out
scientifically, they often want to announce to the world whether it
will be a boy or girl. Others choose to not know ahead of time or
not to share it if they do. Knowing does help to decorate the nursery
or what kind of shower gifts to buy. (Way way back in time, all
infant clothing was usable by either sex, which is why there are some
adorable long-ago photographs of little boys in sweet dresses.)
Gerald's next big project is finding Caroline Marie her first paid of
overalls. He has already checked out the infant aisles at Rural
King.
<br />
<br />
I am not sure why I have not blogged in January very much. I have
not been that over busy. Christmas decorations were put away a
couple weeks ago. I think the only one still out is a favorite small
table cloth I use every year that talented Joyce Beasley made me long
ago. Candle wax spilled on it, and so it is in the garage where I am
gradually picking off the wax down to the cloth, and then I have to
figure out what the next step should be.
<br />
<br />
Listening to the news has taken more time than usual. I think it
is very important that we all be very watchful right now since our
democracy may be at stake. It has always been important to be
watchful, of course, but we have not previously had Russia trying to
influence our election in addition to destroying Aleppo while
threatening Europe. Nor have we had politicians' spoke persons
defending “alternative facts.” Accurate information is always
difficult to come by because the whole truth is often cumbersome and
almost impossible to discover. But defending untruths is not only
disgusting but about as unpatriotic as one can get. I cannot get
over the reporter who falsely reported that President Trump had
removed the bust of Martin Luther King. I am sure that reporter feels
terrible about his admitted mistake, but my sympathy would not keep
me from firing him if I were his editor. He has caused so much
trouble by his sloppiness and laziness in not checking out what he
was writing even if he did not mean to write an untruth. Others are
deliberately spreading falsehoods. So though I would like to watch
less television now that the election is over, I feel a
responsibility to pay attention. That is one reason I have not
blogged.
<br />
<br />
Despite often falling asleep when I sit to read, I have read
considerably this month since an excellent aide has reduced the time
I've needed to help care for our daughter Katherine. I did go in this
evening to feed supper, give night pills and help her get
comfortable and pick her choice from the guide of TV shows for night
watching. I have read quite a bit of the book I asked Gerald to give
me for Christmas and have continued reading a couple others I already
had started.
<br />
<br />
This afternoon I finished the third volume of Lawrance Thompson's
biography of Robert Frost. Thompson died before completing this
third volume. Consequently, R. H. Winnick, a student and then
assistant of Thompson, worked with him and finished <i>Robert Frost:
The Later Years, 1938-1963. </i>I
still need to finish an Appendix containing Thompson's personal notes
about this well-loved and troubled sensitive poet who lived a long
life despite many health and other problems. As I read about his
final days, I felt tearful. And then I turned on the TV to learn
Mary Tyler Moore had died. Who could not admire her beauty, her
talent, her courage, and all she did to make us laugh? Thank you
Mary Tyler Moore for all you did to advance the cause of women and to
fight against diabetes. While we recognize the extreme importance of
government, we must never forget the importance of the arts.<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /><br />
Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-21278125318658881482017-01-05T00:06:00.000-06:002017-01-05T17:17:30.192-06:00Twelve Days of Christmas--or More<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Our Christmas was different, but it was
a good one. Our first pre-Christmas guests were Gerry and Vickie and
Geri Ann, who had already had their family celebration at College
Station. We had a good breakfast with Glasco kin at Cracker Barrell
the morning after they arrived around midnight. There was a second
Glasco breakfast there a week later when was Jamie Escue was home
from Louisiana, but I was at Katherine's the evening before and
didn't get to go to that breakfast. Gerry and Geri Ann were giving
two softball clinics in this area while here, and Gerald even went
along to the second one and was impressed. As well as to be with the
Johnson and Glasco family celebrations, Vickie was here to help her
mother who was recovering from surgery</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Gerry did not stay as long as the other
two.Vickie took Gerry up the Friday before Christmas to catch a 4:30
a.m. plane to south Texas for hunting and bird dog work, which Gerry
loves so much that it is more fun than work. We fed him favorite
foods that we had stuck in the freezer to save for him since he could
not be here for the Thanksgiving feast. On Christmas day, he was
texting Vickie trying to get pity for missing the family dinners and
claiming to eat from a bag of chips, but I refused to feel even a
mite of pity. His hunting work continued through the New Year
celebration when Vickie and their three grandsons joined him for the
weekend, and he really enjoyed himself then.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Jeannie and Rick with Cecelie came
through Woodsong for a brief overnight visit on their way down to
Nashville to spend Christmas with Leslie and Mike. With Geri Ann
here from Oregon and Sam here from Baylor, and the Taylor kids off
school, they made the most of Cecelie's visit. They also made plans
then for a second cousins' celebration the day after Christmas when
Cecelie would be back through and Elijah also would be driving up after
his Nashville visit. In fact, Vickie agreed to stay an extra day
just so the six youngest of the cousins could have yet another night
together, and Sam's special friend Anna joined them since they
consider her one of the cousins. (When I say night together, I am
not exaggerating. They started early and left Woodsong for dinner in Carbondale and
a movie and I think a bowling alley visit and ended up at Woodsong
where the hardiest of them stayed up till 4 a.m. I was told. Since
that was about the time Vickie and Geri Ann were gathering up their
suitcases and three dogs to drive to College Station, I am not sure Geri Ann ever went to bed.)
That same night Jeannie and Rick and I saw the same movie, Fences, in
Marion. That was a late night out on the town for me, but I think
we were probably home soon after l0, and Jeannie and I did not talk
too late since they were also driving home the next day.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Christmas Day itself was a small affair
for us, but quite lovely for me since once again Mary Ellen had us
over to their farm for dinner. Vickie and Geri Ann enjoyed the
Johnson celebration on Saturday, and her mother was up to that
gathering. On Sunday, they attended church at Stonefort with her
brothers' families and were very happy to hear Louie and Terry sign
together. The Taylors and us worshipped in Marion together and
enjoyed beautiful music, the sermon, and seeing friends. While the
Taylors went on to the farm and check the ham and last minute meal
preparations, we were able to go by Katherine's and give her pills
before lunch. Later Mary Ellen and I took her in Christmas dinner,
and Mary Ellen fed her, and we all enjoyed the Christmas tree Sam had
put up in her bedroom the night before for the special dinner he prepared and the evening they had
together. Geri Ann and Brianna came adding to the afternoon festivities, and
our visit probably wore her out before we finally departed.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Mary Ellen's house was decorated inside
and out this year; and when we drove by, we had already been
enjoying Brian's white star on the barn—the same star the Rix family put
up there for years. As we stepped into their large kitchen and were
greeted by Fifi, our eyes were delighted with her lovely colorful
table with its many candles and places waiting for the nine of us.
Our noses were delighted with the wonderful smells, and soon our
mouths were rewarded with all the good food they had waiting for us. Sam arrived from going to church with Anna and Vickie and Geri Ann were there. Like Gerry, Fifi wanted us to feel sorry for her not having the yummy
food; but remembering her vet's warning after she got sick on human
food, I did not give her a mite of pity either. After we had
indulged in the dessert table with its colorful fruit, pies,
Brianna's angel food cake and the chocolate covered peanut butter
drops she had also made, we all gathered by the tree in the living
room to exchange gifts and stories. (I love the stories about the
pinball machine decorating one back corner of their living room.) We
were all having so much fun and laughter that Trent almost forgot that he
was supposed to be at work by 2, but he wasn't very late. Sam was able to go on and help his little niece celebrate her first birthday at his brother Davie and Krissy"s house.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The day after Christmas I enjoyed visiting with family still at the farm, but I was saddened to attend the funeral of a writer friend. Jari Jackson had asked for a "journalist funeral." The funeral director and her pastor were not sure what that meant, but Mayor Bob Butler, Jon Musgrave, and Pastor Bob Dickerson did an excellent job of creating one for a long time journalist who wrote for big city papers and then retired in her hometown and continued writing pro bono promoting good things here.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Gerald and I celebrated New Year's Eve
by driving into Marion and having our evening meal at the new I-HOP,
which we had not yet visited. Waitresses with bright clothing and
bright smiles greeted us warmly as we entered, the food was
delicious, and everything was so new and clean. We were surprised at how
large it was, which will be great next summer for the baseball
crowds.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Altogether it was a very nice Christmas
season despite our no longer all being together on one day and
despite the horror of multiple sclerosis. Our one tree is still up
and quite beautiful to me. I usually leave a tree up until New Year's
Day because that is what we did at our house when I was a child in
Jonesboro. Once or twice, however, when the weather was so bad the
kids had school cancelled, I left a tree up till Old Christmas that
I learned about from Jesse Stuart, a day some English immigrants
continued down in Kentucky and which some Amish still do. Tomorrow is Old Christmas or Epiphany
and our tree will be there to help us celebrate. The truth is I am
leaving it up till I get around to it, maybe during the weekend or
maybe afterward. Taking off all the ornaments and putting them away
in their proper box and then pulling the tree apart takes up a large
part of a day, and the family room will be a jumble until the job is
finally finished. So my twelve days of Christmas may stretch out to
fourteen or so. </div>
Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-34978409598424787872016-12-21T20:46:00.000-06:002016-12-21T20:46:42.789-06:00Perfectly Prepared for Christmas<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The tree
is up and decorated in our downstairs walk-out family room.
Left-over pies from Thanksgiving were thawed for Gerry, who could not
be here that holiday. Final Christmas cards are in the mail, the
ones I did not have an address for. In the old days, one could look
in the phone book for local addresses, and that is what I did
unsuccessfully in this day of cell phones. It finally dawned on me
that I could look up addresses on the Internet, so I did. I even got
the bags of plastic bags to the Salvation Army store since they
appreciate them especially during this busy buying season.
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I made a
quick decision last Friday not to put up the living room tree this
year. I planned to, but suddenly the thought of not having to
unearth it and all its decorations sounded good to me. Then, best
of all, the thought of not having to take it back down and store
everything again sounded even better. So in a weak moment, I made
the decision; and for the first time in 15 years, there is no tree in
the living room in this house. Yes, I miss it a bit, and I am
resolving to be better organized next year. On the other hand, maybe
this is a fine new tradition.
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Reading
the latest issue of <i>Springhouse</i>, my favorite regional
magazine, I had changing emotions when I read my friend Dixie Terry's
usual column. First I was mad at myself. Then I decided I was angry
at Dixie for making me mad at myself. Then I corrected that thought
knowing I was just jealous. Then I found myself amazed and admiring
her extreme competence even though I have always considered her a
very talented person who seems to do more than any one person could.
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
She had
me going all right until I came to her punch line after she had
described the beautiful decorations, the completed baking, and all
the Christmas preparations she had accomplished early in December.
While I was still shaking my head and telling myself that I could
surely do a little better if I started earlier next year, her next
phrase stopped my whirling brain: “IN MY DREAMS,” she said. Ah
well. That was better. I am sure her house is more decorated than
mine and that she really has done all kinds of food making, none of
which I have done. Nevertheless, the perfect preparation she
described was only in her dreams! Now she could still be my friend!!
It was that perfection we all only dream about that had made her
untouchable and unreal. Thanks for the laugh, Dixie—something you
have often made me do when you have written about your busy life.
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Another
fascinating <i>Springhouse</i> article was about Mark Motsinger,
whose father Virgil received the Crab Orchard High School
Distinguished Alumni Award in 2011 after an outstanding coaching
career at Southeaster Illinois College. Mark's grandparents were the
late “Copper” and Irene Motsinger in our village. Mark is now
teaching history in the high school at Carrier Mills, but back in
2000 after a successful 16-year career coaching the Lady Falcons, he
was one of several people laid off at SIC, and he spent the next year
teaching in a Christian school in Senegal. On weekends he helped out
in a nearby village, where he actually bought land and helped
establish a church. He experienced much we don't see in Crab Orchard.
If you don't already subscribe, you might want to pick up a copy
at some area businesss who handle the magazine, or just subscribe for
$35 to Springhouse, 8250 Level Hill Road, Junction, IL 62954. If you
ask for the current issue with Mark's story, I bet Brian DeNeal would
send it to you.</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div align="LEFT" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I am
also reading the new local book my brother Jim and his wife Vivian
sent me: <i>The Law and Judge Lynch: 200 years of murder in Johnson
County, Illinois</i> by Ed and Diane Annable. They had received a
copy before I knew about the book because Diane is is Vivian's niece.
An interesting good pick-up-and-put-down book, it is quite revealing
of past times and attitudes. I have read a couple other books
recently in addition to finishing the second volume of Lawrance
Thompson's biography of Robert Frost. (I had recently re-read the
first volume, and now I am on the third.) So I have had time to read
even if I did not feel I had time to put up a second Christmas tree.
But then, of course, I can read sitting down. (It feels good to have
some time to read lately, except I am likely to fall asleep in my
chair.)</div>
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Gerald
and I also took time to go see the annual musical at the Marion Civic
Center last weekend. I so enjoyed the beautiful music, the many
quickly alternating attractive sets, and the brightly colored
costumes as well as finding out what Tiny Tim did after he became an
adult. What a great gift to our community from the First Baptist
Church! We appreciated the Saturday matinee, so we could still get
home early. It was pouring so hard when we got out that we changed
our plans to eat in town. We did not even want to go through a
drive-in with wind blowing rain inside the car. As it turned out, we
had three grandkids drop by who have all finished final exams and
were hanging out together. So we let everyone choose from our
supply of frozen sandwiches that we keep on hand, and with the help
of the microwave, everyone had a bite to eat.</div>
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Our
Oregon grandchild, Geri Ann, arrived with her parents Gerry and
Vickie from Texas just after midnight Tuesday night. Because of
their late arrival, the Glasco breakfast gang very graciously
committed to an 8 a.m. breakfast time at the local Cracker Barrel.
That was late enough and close enough even I was willing to get up
and make it! A dozen of us lingered for way over an hour talking,
laughing, and taking photos. Three of us old generation (Gerald, me,
and Keith), six of the second generation, two of the third
generation, and tiny Gentry (wearing spurs no less) made it a
four-generation event. That night the Taylors joined us for a supper
of store-bought frozen lasagna and salad—one of the easiest meals I
know of.
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Since
Gerry and Geri Ann are involved in two softball clinics and Vickie is
helping with her mother who is recovering from surgery, we are not
going to see as much as we'd like of them, but it is nice to have
them in and out. Vickie is also busy taking care of her new puppy
Gage, who is in Gerald's shop along with Chloey and Chance. She makes
sure they are let out to scamper about every few hours. (The
Archibalds couldn't come so they are taking care of Nelly.)</div>
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Our one
tree is twinkling brightly right now while Gerald watches a
basketball game. It is not piled with gifts beneath as in the past.
I not only went very lightly buying gifts this year, but they were
wrapped and mostly sent home with family members either at
Thanksgiving or since then. Shopping is a more difficult chore than I
want to experience, and I don't like mailing packages either. I
have found time recently to do my long-neglected leg exercises that I
never should have stopped, and I think I am already walking a bit
better. If I keep that up, maybe I will be able to be better
organized next Christmas! In the meantime, I am blogging to you and
wearing the very bright sequined sweat shirt that Mary Ellen made me
many years ago when she was a young single editor down in Tennessee.
I always get lots of notice and compliments when I wear it in public.
I am looking and feeling festive and am relaxed since I don't have
to achieve Dixie and my dreams of perfect preparations.</div>
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-78578992303701920492016-12-01T23:16:00.001-06:002016-12-02T00:10:05.188-06:00Beauty and Bright Lights Wherever We Go<div align="LEFT" style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So many
folks must have used the weekend to put up Christmas trees and
holiday lights, and I am grateful as I am enjoying all I see. I was
in the mall yesterday to pick up my new glasses and enjoyed the
decorations there as well as on homes to and from town. Today I had
a brief dental appointment in Carbondale, and the dentist's reception
area was so beautiful that I almost wished they had been delayed in
seeing me. Recently redecorated, the room's blue and silver color
scheme was magical with a silver tree and blue and silver
ornamentation added all around. A few scattered brown natural pine
cones was the perfect touch on the tree.
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Before
the dental appointment, Gerald and I recycled a trunk load of cans,
plastic, newspapers, glass, catalogs, and cardboard. (I have been
recycling magazines to other readers.) Then Gerald treated me to the
Chinese restaurant for lunch before my appointment. With its
presentation of rows and rows of food, I find the variety amazing as
well as delicious. So much food that can only be described as pretty
is a visual delight. We enjoyed seeing a young college-age couple
opposite our booth laughing at each other and using chopsticks.
Another family with two young children finished, and the little girl
saw us watching her and consciously smiled and carried on a bit to
charm us. Two retirement-age couples were in the booth next to us
and were obviously enjoying their visit as well as their food. Many
in the restaurant were dressed in work clothing and on their lunch
hour. The guests and the staff were multi-cultural and as varied as
the food. I had to rejoice again that we live in a nation with such
abundance for so many of us ordinary people.
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I
remember growing up that a restaurant meal was seldom enjoyed by
working class families. Even when we traveled, we often stopped at a
grocery store and bought bread and bologna for the day's lunch. It
was good, and it was fun. Occasionally someone might take me to
lunch, such as when my best friend Lynn and I sold poppies on the
streets in Anna because her grandparents were active in veterans'
affairs. The Dillows always treated Lynn and me to lunch at the Anna
Cafe, where side dishes were served in little bowls I thought were so
cool. Menus were foreign enough to some of us that we would order,
“The same.” Now many families can afford to eat out so often
that mothers wanting more control over nutrition have to limit that.
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I know
there are many hungry in our nation, but with school breakfasts and
lunches, soup kitchens, senior meals on wheels, and weekend sacks of
food given for many needy families, we do not have a great problem of
starvation, and I am grateful. (Anything we can do either by
friendship or government to help families function better will help
eliminate child hunger. Jobs are important, but often it is
addictions and untreated depression more than lack of money that
keeps children from being fed properly.)</div>
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After an
errand and the dentist appointment, we headed down the highway south
to visit Gerald's brother Keith and wife Barbara at their farm. The
highway had just finished being reconstructed, and again I knew how
fortunate we were to live with such magnificent roads. And when we
left the highway and went onto country roads, there was no fear of
the car getting stuck in the mud,which happened on rural roads in my
childhood.
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At the
farm, three beautiful kittens came to greet us as we approached the
door; and as always, Hash (Keith's constant companion) welcomed us
with a bark when we went inside. Their granddaughter Amanda was
there helping Barbara, and their great granddaughter Cammie (not sure
how they spell that) greeted us with an adorable smile. Four fingers
held up on her little hand made me realize how long it had been since
I had seen her as a baby once at a family gathering. We visited and
enjoyed looking at the pretty Christmas tree Amanda had helped Barb
put in the living room window. As we left after our goodbyes, I got
to talk to the kittens again.</div>
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After a
couple errand stops in Marion and a brief visit at Katherine's, we
headed home through the country. Sometimes Gerald takes the highway,
but he was willing to go that way to satisfy my request that we take
the time to go off the old Creal Springs Road and head up Cherry
Valley Road to see the annual light display out in the middle of that
rural area. Last year I kept seeing it at a distant and thinking I
would have time to run up Cherry Valley, and suddenly the season was
over and I had failed to get a close-up view. Their display has
always been spectacular, and it is easily seen from a distance, but
one needs to go and stop there and gawk as long as possible. You
will only see part of it even then. It can only be described as
fantastic. I really think everything is mostly new this year; but
since I did not visit last year, maybe that was when so much more was
added. There is a sign I had not seen in past years saying the hours
were from 5 till 10 each evening except Saturday and Sunday then the
lights go off at 11. The sign told me the family name: Yost. I
have always wanted to meet these generous people and hear the story
of how this enormous family project was started and what keeps them
going. How young are they to be able to put up all these lights and
other decorations? Where do they store all this between Christmases?
The family certainly ended our day with pleasure, and once again I
was grateful.
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Going to
the dentist during the beginning of the Christmas season
made for a fun day. There are no Christmas decorations up at
Woodsong yet, although this morning I did carry in the pumpkin/squash
autumn display from beside our front door. Now I will need to cook
those decorations and start getting down Christmas boxes.</div>
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14168837.post-561410008355361482016-11-27T01:00:00.000-06:002016-11-27T01:00:12.712-06:00Giving Thanks
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“We
have a lot to be thankful for,” my 90-year-old sister Rosemary said
when she called me on my birthday this week. She had kept the
pulling of her upper teeth a secret from her kids, but the procedure
went well and the upper plate was ready in record time the very same
day. She was grateful for that and many other things.
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She had
ended up with a blood infection a year or so ago when a couple of
teeth were pulled, so she was nervous despite changing dentists and
being certain to have antibiotic preparation this time. She did not
want her daughter down the street to know because Gloria would have
wanted to go with her to support her. Because Gloria's daughter was
recovering from a double mastectomy, Rosemary felt it was more
important that Gloria focus on helping Jennifer without feeling
conflict. My sister has always been an inspiration to me, and once
more both her gratefulness and her independence were setting a good
example for me as I am entering the frail elderly stage of life.
Although we can't sleep together in our childhood bedroom any more
while we giggle or she gives me advice, I still gain wisdom from her
through letters and phone calls. I am very thankful for her.</div>
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After
Gerald's brother Keith's hospitalizations, we recently were able to
meet Keith and Barbara down at the Lake of Egypt restaurant for
Friday night fish. We do little social activities these days, and
this was a time of celebration that Keith is much improved. We are
very thankful. A couple Friday nights later, I came in from
Katherine's and was expecting us to eat one of our usual hurried-up
simple suppers, and Gerald said his brother Garry and Vera were
coming up for fish at Lake of Egypt. Would we like to meet them? We
did and that too was a lovely visit. We are thankful for Garry and
Vera.
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We came
home early from our time in Freeport so we could visit my only
brother and wife in the middle of the state on our way home. It is
no longer as easy a drive up to Mattoon as it used to be, and Jim and
Vivian can't jump in the car and drive down here as in the past. My
big brother was my hero as I was growing up, and some of my best
childhood adventures were with him and our cousin Jack down at Mr.
Airy Farm. Then when he came back from service, he gave me good
advice as a teenager, and I liked watching his and Vivian's romance
develop into marriage. Jim and I like to reminisce on the phone,
but seeing the two of them in person was so much better. They were a
wonderful support when our parents were still alive and then helping
afterwards. So that visit was especially important to me. and I am
so grateful for them and all they have meant down through the years.
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If I
counted correctly, Gerald and I now have 24 in our immediate family
and one on the way, and I am extremely grateful for each family
member. Although they were not with us on Thursday, we were
thankful for the Archibald gang who traveled duet with Vickie from
Texas and arrived Monday night.
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Tuesday
was a spectacular day with the three great grandsons all over the
place “driving tractors, driving tractors, driving tractors” as
6-year-old Payton said when he stopped long enough to eat something
mid-morning. Maddux and Aidan were also driving whatever they could
find. And the lime carried in the house from their tennis shoes,
which they are wonderful to remove at the door, showed proof that the
lime pile Gerald provides for their digging was not neglected. Their
dad Bryan was kept busy sweeping up. Tara reorganized clothes for
their family so they could leave early Wednesday for the long drive
up to Chicago area to visit Bryan's family. Gerald has been clearing
trees and burning them along the edge of a field, so he created a
giant bonfire, which was beautiful, and the boys roasted
marshmallows. The Taylors--Brian, Mary Ellen, Trent, and Brianna--
came over and ate supper with us, and Trent and Brianna had great fun
playing with the three boys.
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When I
walked out of my bedroom Wednesday morning, my birthday started with
a chorus of “Happy Birthday” from Rick and Cecelie as they had
arrived the night before shortly after I had gone to bed. Soon Vickie
was presenting me with a gaily wrapped special wall picture
especially chosen because she knew I would love it because of the
birds. The day continued with greetings and remembrances and ended
with Brian and Mary Ellen bringing me and Gerald birthday supper.
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Gerald
helped me with the turkey getting it from the fridge where it had
thawed for four days. (I really have trouble now lifting a 20 pound
turkey although I managed to get it from the store and home.) He
went even further and pulled that plastic thing-a-ma-jig that unkind
men put in the turkey's rear cavity. Of course, that part is never
completely thawed. Gerald found out I was not exaggerating when I
carried on about how hard that is to remove. Tom Turkey was panned
and put back in the fridge for Gerald to put in the oven when he got
up the next morning. Since Vickie and Mary Ellen were doing
everything else for our dinner, I went to bed early. Of course,
Vickie had also been at her mother's a lot and was busy making food
for the Johnson dinner Thursday night at her brother Louie and
Chris's house. On Thanksgiving morning once I made the dressing, I
was able to relax and read!
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We had
15 at our Thanksgiving Day table, and we certainly missed the 10 not
present. It was Gerry's first Thanksgiving not with us, but he was
busy with his new hunting operation on the Kennedy Ranch next to King
Ranch in South Texas. Brian did an excellent job carving the turkey,
which had always been Gerry's job. Jeannie could not come because she
was sick, and I had to fight being distraught about that. I soothed
myself by knowing how important it was for her to finally get some
rest and recover. And I understand that she has. Since she will be
in the full swing of things again on Monday, that is good. Knowing
that Geri Ann is finishing her degree this term and will be with us
at Christmas time kept me from too deeply grieving her absence
although we all felt bad that snow in Oregon had prevented her and
friends from the trip they had planned. And I had to be proud and
happy Leslie had rehearsal for her upcoming Christmas tour she was
chosen for. I figured that Mike may have been on duty. Whether he
was or not, I felt pride and gratitude that he had accomplished this
career move.
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One big
event Thanksgiving Day was the arrival of Josh and Erin Simons from
Belton, Texas. They had started up the day before after Erin's
doctor exam; they were excited because their baby is now far enough
along to have fingers and toes. They have a girl's name chosen, but
soon we were challenged to find a boy's name that Josh likes since he
is choosing the boy's name. Our college kids got into that and the
next hour or so was spent calling out and debating boy names.
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Another
highlight was that Katherine was able to come out for dinner with the
help of an excellent aide. Getting to sit at the table and visit with
her was a special treat.
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Cecelie
and her college cousins Brianna, Trent, Sam, and her teacher brother
Elijah were in and out all week either sleeping (??) here or at Mary
Ellen's. Well, they do sleep, but often most of it is in the
morning. And they shop and go to the movies and watch movies and
find numerous ways to entertain themselves. They also thoroughly
enjoy playing with the Archibald boys. Sam got to visit with his
little niece, and the photos he took of her were adorable. Of course,
we had a brief visit with Anna once before they joined the other
young adults downstairs. People also had individual plans and were
in and out eating at their favorite places. Add to this mix, six
granddogs, who all stayed in Gerald's shop when they were not out
running and enjoying themselves, the very good week sometimes became
somewhat of a blur.
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<span style="font-style: normal;">Bryan
ended staying up staying in the Chicago area since this coming week
is one he needs to be at his firm's headquarters, so Tara bravely
drove with the three boys back to the farm last night. To her
surprise and joy, they quickly tumbled into bed the minute they
arrived. Today has been another busy day of play for the boys, and
Tara was getting them packed to drive back to Texas as soon as their
cousin Kinsley's birthday party was over this evening. </span>
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Vickie
had brought much food back to Woodsong from the Johnson feast and put
it in the fridge in the garage. Trent was working today and Sam had
gone back to Marion. Rick and Cecelie got on the road for the long
trip upstate. But I think there were 12 of us at lunch who ate food
from our holiday dinner combined with Vickie's yummy left-overs.
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After
every one left tonight, I took a remaining pecan pie to put in the
freezer for Christmas, and there was most of Vickie's delicious
ice-cream cake with chocolate cookies though out. With the
abundance of food, we had forgotten it was there. So that too is
ready for Christmas.
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As my
sister said, we have so very much to be thankful for. I am so sorry
that food and shelter and safety and family are not there for
everyone. Let's try to make that happen for others when we can.</div>
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Sue Glascohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13976061856779443049noreply@blogger.com0