Tuesday, June 01, 2004
1958 CONTINUES.....
Late summer John had another ‘needling’ on his other eye. Dr. Eubanks was satisfied with the first procedure and decided he could now go ahead and finish the process. George was able to get the day off and take us this time which was appreciated. After Dr. Eubanks finished with the surgery he was brought back to the room where we waited. He had a patch over the eye they had worked on and his other eye was looking pretty groggy. He was glad to know mom and dad were there but soon fell asleep and when he was resting quietly we slipped out. We brought him home the next day.
For several days afterwards he wore the patch and needed eye drops applied. By the next appointment we were finished with the post surgery routine and Dr. Eubanks was pleased with the results. He told us it wouldn’t be long until he would fit John for glasses which would aid in his sight defects. We had done all we could at the time as far as providing more possibilities for better vision.
Georgie (who now wanted to be called ‘George’) started second grade in August. He was well acquainted in school now. We were in a ‘young’ neighborhood of families who were branching out from apartments or rented houses to own their own homes as we had done. Each house had several children and so there was a built-in familiarity for everyone in the Neiman School District. Most of the children walked to school since it was well placed in the area. George had roughly seven blocks to school and some of the others had a few blocks further.
George Jr. was an easy kid to raise. He was usually carefree and liked school…he enjoyed learning. He always worked hard on any thing he undertook but ignored anything that didn’t tickle his interest. Becky was lost after school started again. She usually followed George around like a shadow and when he was away she didn’t know how to fill up her time. John was too little for her to “do” things with so she was constantly wanting “something to do.” She played some with a little girl down the street who was her own age and with the children of our friends. It wasn’t long until the big gap grew smaller and she had forgotten all about being left behind.
Becky was always more physical than George. She was drawn to action such as riding her bike, jumping rope, swinging and so on. She was rarely still. George liked quiet things and at an early age was interested in landscaping. He started taking note of the first few flowers I planted along the fence. I would bring some back from Grandma Strain or my mother after visits with them and I had to rely on their instructions as to planting etc; for I had no knowledge of gardening. Before I knew it George would be correcting me on which flower was what and pulling weeds when I didn’t have time……..then started mowing the lawn when he could little more than reach the handle. When he saw pretty flowers somewhere he would encourage me to get some and even spent some of his allowance on flowers of his own.
We had a large yard and I did a lot of the mowing because big George walked all day long carrying mail and it was no fun to go back in the heat and mow. I enjoyed it and young George did too so we spent a lot of time in the yard. It was also a good way for me to observe where John and Becky were playing so I could keep tabs on them.
Thanksgiving was fun because we always had Christmas with mom and dad and whoever else could come and bring their gifts rather than mailing. To come in December was not good since George Sr. was always worked down with the Christmas mail rush and the weather was totally unpredictable. Dad still worked for the Mo. Hwy. Dept. so had to be ‘on call’ if the roads were bad back home. It was a nice way to split up the holiday’s and it gave the children more to look forward to. This particular year my brother came and brought his steady girl-friend from Milwaukee, Gail Perkins. We hadn’t seen him for a while and looked forward to them coming. We all highly approved of Gail…we liked her instantly. My cousin, Dale, came solo that year so with mom and dad and our own little family we made a festive group. One of the highlights of the season was to drive down to the Plaza to see the Christmas Lights turned on. It always happened the night of Thanksgiving and is truly a wonderland of lights. People come from all over the world to enjoy the occasion and was a family tradition for us.
And so, everyone began leaving the next day and it would be Spring before we would see them all again. For now, the children were eagerly waiting to start decorating our tree and getting ready for our own Christmas. Tomorrow we need to finish up the year…….1958.
Until then,
Essentially Esther
For several days afterwards he wore the patch and needed eye drops applied. By the next appointment we were finished with the post surgery routine and Dr. Eubanks was pleased with the results. He told us it wouldn’t be long until he would fit John for glasses which would aid in his sight defects. We had done all we could at the time as far as providing more possibilities for better vision.
Georgie (who now wanted to be called ‘George’) started second grade in August. He was well acquainted in school now. We were in a ‘young’ neighborhood of families who were branching out from apartments or rented houses to own their own homes as we had done. Each house had several children and so there was a built-in familiarity for everyone in the Neiman School District. Most of the children walked to school since it was well placed in the area. George had roughly seven blocks to school and some of the others had a few blocks further.
George Jr. was an easy kid to raise. He was usually carefree and liked school…he enjoyed learning. He always worked hard on any thing he undertook but ignored anything that didn’t tickle his interest. Becky was lost after school started again. She usually followed George around like a shadow and when he was away she didn’t know how to fill up her time. John was too little for her to “do” things with so she was constantly wanting “something to do.” She played some with a little girl down the street who was her own age and with the children of our friends. It wasn’t long until the big gap grew smaller and she had forgotten all about being left behind.
Becky was always more physical than George. She was drawn to action such as riding her bike, jumping rope, swinging and so on. She was rarely still. George liked quiet things and at an early age was interested in landscaping. He started taking note of the first few flowers I planted along the fence. I would bring some back from Grandma Strain or my mother after visits with them and I had to rely on their instructions as to planting etc; for I had no knowledge of gardening. Before I knew it George would be correcting me on which flower was what and pulling weeds when I didn’t have time……..then started mowing the lawn when he could little more than reach the handle. When he saw pretty flowers somewhere he would encourage me to get some and even spent some of his allowance on flowers of his own.
We had a large yard and I did a lot of the mowing because big George walked all day long carrying mail and it was no fun to go back in the heat and mow. I enjoyed it and young George did too so we spent a lot of time in the yard. It was also a good way for me to observe where John and Becky were playing so I could keep tabs on them.
Thanksgiving was fun because we always had Christmas with mom and dad and whoever else could come and bring their gifts rather than mailing. To come in December was not good since George Sr. was always worked down with the Christmas mail rush and the weather was totally unpredictable. Dad still worked for the Mo. Hwy. Dept. so had to be ‘on call’ if the roads were bad back home. It was a nice way to split up the holiday’s and it gave the children more to look forward to. This particular year my brother came and brought his steady girl-friend from Milwaukee, Gail Perkins. We hadn’t seen him for a while and looked forward to them coming. We all highly approved of Gail…we liked her instantly. My cousin, Dale, came solo that year so with mom and dad and our own little family we made a festive group. One of the highlights of the season was to drive down to the Plaza to see the Christmas Lights turned on. It always happened the night of Thanksgiving and is truly a wonderland of lights. People come from all over the world to enjoy the occasion and was a family tradition for us.
And so, everyone began leaving the next day and it would be Spring before we would see them all again. For now, the children were eagerly waiting to start decorating our tree and getting ready for our own Christmas. Tomorrow we need to finish up the year…….1958.
Until then,
Essentially Esther
