Stories of my Dad, two
When we were growing up, my dad was gone a lot. He was always working,usually 2 jobs each day. Then afterwards, he still had the chores around the farm to do. I always missed my dad and was so happy to get to spend any sort of time with him. Back then, he would let me come in the milk barn just to watch him and Jim get the cows milked. I just wanted to see them and spend some time with both of them. I really liked my baby brother too, but he was just a tiny baby at that time and I could only play with him so much. You think when your new baby brother or sister come they will be your constant buddy, but it never works out that way. Dad worked construction jobs too, sometimes from dusk till dawn. We would be in bed before he would come home. It was a lonesome time when he was gone. I remember lots of stories he would tell us at night or when we had company. It was always so much fun to listen to him because when he was little he had horses and dogs and kittens to tell us about. He even had a part in the local rodeo. That surprised me because I never realized that was what they did at Saddle Club! I was going through some old photos and it dawned on me then. They would even have parades with their horses. He and mom would even ride the same horse in different entries sometimes. I will get some of the old photos copied and post them here. Dad was always tinkering on old cars and trucks too. He loved anything to do with motors. Most of the time he was fixing something on one of our vehicles that was not working. Good thing he loved doing it! Our cars were always breaking down in some way or another. Later on,when I was about 15, I would spend some time with daddy. Sometimes it was while we were waiting for supper to get done. We would talk and usually, I would either comb his hair or rub his shoulders as they were always sore from the hard work he did. He loved me to comb his hair, even though he never had very much of it to comb! He told me how much it helped him relax and let go of the tension of his day. We would talk about our day or just sit quietly watching the latest news on T.V. Soon after this time, I would become responsible for getting the supper meal prepared and the table set so that most of the time, it would be ready when mom would come home from school. She was a teacher and was usually gone until almost five o'clock and sometimes even five-thirty. I was not the best cook, but I learned how to organize a meal and get everything done at the same time. Quite a skill for a youngster!I used to wait and wait for my daddy to get home. Then shortly after, we would have to go to bed. I cannot imagine working 2 or 3 jobs and still trying to be happy with children. But he and mom both did it. Mom worked as full time mom for many years, then went back to college to get her teaching degree. She then taught for 6 or 7 years before her health couldn't take it anymore. She really enjoyed teaching, beginning with kindergarten, then moving up to higher grades. I think she was working with 6th graders when she retired. She was really good at it, too. She would spend hours on her own time getting displays ready, or reading and checking papers. I was happy when I got to help her cut out letters, or glue them down. On the other hand, I was jealous of those kids who got more of my moms time than I ever did. I was, after all, still a little kid myself. An older little kid but still young.
When mom got her teaching degree, she looked and looked for a teaching job in Missouri where we were living, but none of the jobs available paid very much. So when writing and phoning her mom, she found out that beginning teaching jobs in Iowa paid much more. So, at 13 I got to move! I was really glad at the time because I had had it with outdoor bathrooms. The incident with the Wasps will be written about at another time. Dad's hobby (when he had any free time), was playing the piano or accordion. He would get together with his brother and they would have a good time. They both played the accordion. Don had found them and bought them in Germany when he was in the service.
One of my most favorite times was whenever we would go visit my cousins in Missouri. I have often wondered how my life would have been changed had we stayed in those Missouri hills. It was more of a chore moving back to Iowa than it had been when they moved down. Mainly, because there were 3 children going back. Going down there was only a little boy and a little girl still in mommie's tummy. They moved a lot like the Beverly Hillbillies. We loaded up our pickup truck, the car and I think someone helped us move. I cannot remember who it was for sure. It could have been the Merrill's or the Baileys. I will have to ask Jane. I doubt I have it written down anyplace here. I don't remember seeing any photos of it either. I was more than glad to go. No more stings and a flushing toilet! Even when it froze up in the cold Iowa winters, we still did not have to go outside in the snow!!! There used to be a lot more snowstorms back then. The snow would pile up almost to the rooftops. It drifted into our yard and stayed because there was a dip in the yard just big enough for the snow to layer. There are several photos of it being over dad's pickup. Dad always managed to have newer vehicles quite often. When we moved back to Iowa, he and mom bought a sporty car. It was a 1969 Dodge Charger! I still can barely believe they bought it.
