I was thinking of Daddy this morning and his parents. He was born on Jan 21, 1912 and he said he weighed about 2 lbs. Now I don't know if they had a scale and it was probably just a guesstamate but he was little enough to be kept in a shoe box so he couldn't have been that big.
His Mama, the Grandma that I talk about with the long hair that she put in a braid, was tiny so it was not a far stretch that she might have a preemie or tiny child. I can't imagine trying to keep a preemie child alive in a wood house with a wood stove for heat in winter. Although I shouldn't say that as we did the same thing with my first Grandchild, born a month early at 4 lbs and 2 oz and only 3.5 when we brought him home in Nov.
Times were different then and even in a shoebox in a dresser drawer, I know it had to be cold. I can imagine Grandma holding her tiny boy, her first boy born after two girls and willing him to live, just as I did with mine that contracted whooping cough at age two. Night after night, rocking in the chair praying for life and for God's grace and somehow Daddy made it and my child did too.
Grandpa wasn't a wealthy man but he had managed to buy some land outside Jay City limits and Grandpa had built a house. There was nothing left but some wood pieces the last time Donna and I looked many years ago but it was the home that my daddy grew up in. Daddy had to stop schooling when he was 12 and go to work for the family. He worked sawmill and field work like his Daddy and Granddaddy before him so he wasn't rich either.
Life in 1912 was hard. His Daddy was 27 and Mama 26 with two girls, Loree and Thelma. I know that Grandpa was excited about having a boy because men in those days equated having a son with success. What it really meant was your family name would live on and I can see the importance of that as a Historian but it also glossed over that you had two daughters that were equally as important as your son, but that was the time and thinking then and in some places now.
There was a daughter Sudie Ann born after Daddy on Oct 1913 but she only lived two years. She died on Dec 13th 1915 and is buried at Sardis Cemetery where much of the Gilmore and Creamer family are interred. I have a middle name of Ann too and wonder if it came from her. I never thought to ask when my Two Aunts were telling stories to me and Donna.
The year Daddy was born in 1912 saw so many things happen. New Mexico became our 47th State that year in Jan, followed by Arizona in Feb. In March Roald Amundsen announced the discovery of the South Pole. That same month The Girl Scouts were formed in Savannah by Juliette Gordon Low. In April the famous ship The Titanic sank but I doubt that Daddy's family ever heard anything about any of these things. They could not read and did not have radios and such back then. It would have been in the Newspaper but I doubt they ever saw one of those, at that time either. It was pretty much word of mouth news back then. The local Gossip and you all know who I am talking about would be on the party lines of my youth and that is how news traveled in my day but in daddy's day, you didn't visit that much and grew all your own food so there wasn't the social aspect of seeing lots of people everyday like we do now. The world has exploded in the years since Daddy was born.
That same year Native American Jim Thorpe won Gold at the Olympics in mismatched shoes he had found, because someone threw away the ones he had. He ran and won it in loafers, not running shoes. What an amazing feat that was. I am proud reading about it years later with my bit of Native blood running strong in my veins. It is shameful that this many years later, people of color still fight to be recognized as equal in our land but it still exist and we still hear about it in the news.
Only a few short years later The First World War happened but Grandpa didn't go to War. He had 6 children by the end of the War with 5 living and was doing everything he could to make sure they had food on the table. He grew his food and Grandma fixed it for everyone to eat.
The land was fertile where Grandpa's house was. It was near the Escambia River and they could grow most anything they wanted to eat. I do wonder where they bought their Flour, sugar and salt but I don't have anyone old enough to ask these questions anymore. I can guess that there was a store close by that they took a buggy or horse too and spent their hard earned 50 cents for a big bag to take home. Sugar cane was freely grown in that area too so he may have made his own sugar and syrup like some of the people did on Morristown road when I was a child. I can only surmise these things as I have no one to ask. A reminder for us to ask the things we want to know before our parents and grandparents depart leaving us with unanswered questions.
Daddy grew tall despite the conditions of this birth and was a hard working man like his Mama. I would say Grandpa was too but I only ever saw Grandpa sitting while Grandma was working so don't know if he was a hard worker. His daughter Aunt Elma thought "Papa" hung the moon so I can guess that he was a hard worker and a good man. I didn't know him much. Grandma was my hero and the one that I went to see as much as I could. She baked Snickerdoodles and let me help her with the chores and then rewarded me with porch swing tea and cookies. It was the best of times with her and I am so grateful for those.
Life was hard in those days and many since. When WWII happened my Uncle Hardy went to War but my daddy did not. He was married with a child of his own so stayed home working in the sawmill to take care of his little family. By Wars End another child was born so he had three mouths to make sure were fed. There is one thing I can say about Daddy is that he kept us fed, clothed and Sheltered my whole childhood, even when he drank, he worked and worked hard. I love and respect him for that and am grateful.
I guess many of these memories are coming forward because that first child he had, my sister Ruby Lee is 81 years young today. I told her this morning how beautiful I always thought she was and that she has a beautiful heart to go with it. I will always be grateful to her for keeping me safe growing up.
This is going to be a series and this is the first part. I wanted to get it on paper while my memory is thinking of it. I appreciate you all letting me ramble on about my life. I love you all and wish you a beautiful Fall Day. Always, Kimmee.
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