continued my story

I'M NOT SURE WHERE TO GO FROM HERE BUT THOUGHT WHILE CLAY IS SLEEPING UP STAIRS I'D DO A LITTLE MORE ON MY LIFE SKETCH.
JOSSINE JOINED OUR FAMILY JUST BEFORE WE MOVED THE HOUSE UP TO THE STATE LAND THAT DAD AQUIRED SOME HOW. SHE WAS BORN AT AUNT LEAH AND UNCLE JOES ON THE TWENTY FOURTH OF OCT. JUST AFTER MY EIGTH B/D WE WENT THERE TO SEE HER. VENON AND LUCRIETA LIVED IN THE FRONT TWO ROOMS WITH THEIR CHILDREN AND MOM WAS ON A COUCH THAT MADE INTO A BED IN THEIR PART OF THE HOUSE. I REMEMBER THINKING WHAT A CUTE BABY SHE WAS. I OFTEN WAS HER CARE TAKER DURING SUMMER MONTHS TO KEEP HER FROM GETTING IN THE DITCH OR OTHER DANGEROUS PLACES. JOSSINE WAS NAMED AFTER MOMS GRANDMOTHER . THEN AUNT LEAH CAME UP WITH HER MIDDLE NAME OF MARLOU FOR OUR GRANDMOTHERS MARGARET FARRIMOND AND LOUCETTIA BAKER. AS I GOT INTO MY TEENS I READ LITTLE WOMEN AND NICKNAMED HER JO AFTER THE GIRL IN THAT STORY. MOM DIDN'T LIKE ME CALLING HER THAT BUT LYLE HAS BEEN CALLING HER JO FOR MANY YEARS I DON'T THINK IT CAME VIA ME AS I HAD QUITE BY THEN.

WHILE LIVING BY THE SCHOOL HOUSE I TURNED EIGHT YEARS OLD AND OF COURSE THE CANAL WAS PROBABLY FROZEN BY THEN SO ON JUNE 4TH I THINK,I WAS BAPTISED ALONG WITH MY FRIEND MARJORIE ALLEN. I WENT FIRST AND THE WATER WASN'T WARM I DO REMEMBER THAT. DAD BAPTISED ME THEN MARJORIE AND HER TOE CAME UP SO SHE HAD TO STAY AND GO THRU THAT AGAIN. THEY MOVED TO FRUITVALE OVER BY PARMA SOME PLACE AND THRU THE YEARS I LOST TRACK OF HER. SHE DID GIVE ME ONE OF THE PRETTIEST VALENTINES I'D EVER SEEN THAT YEAR BEFORE THEY MOVED. IT HAD A LACEY DOILY ON THE FRONT. I KEPT IT FOR A LONG TIME BUT I THINK IT FINALLY HAD DETERIATED SO MUCH I DID GET RID OF IT. IT WAS WITH HER MOM THAT ALBERTA WENT SWIMMING ONE DAY WHEN SHE WAS HOME WITH ME. I DON'T REMEMBER WHERE EVERYONE ELSE WAS BUT ON THE PROMISE I'D DO AS TOLD WE WOULD GO WHEN MARJORIE CAME ASKING. WE MET THE GROUP DOWN BY THE SWIMMING HOLE IN THE CANAL AND SINCE MARJORIE AND I DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO SWIM WE WAS LEFT BEHIND A BARB WIRE FENCE TO BE SAFE. EVERYONE WAS HAVING FUN AND LAUGHING A LOT AND WE STARTED BEGGING TO BE ALLOWED TO CROSS OVER TO BE WITH THE OTHERS.
SO FINALLY WE COULD IF WE STAYED BY THE FAR BANK UNTIL TOLD IT WAS SAFE TO CROSS THE CANAL. AFTER ASKING NUMEROUS TIMES AND BEING TOLD TO GO A LITTLE FURTHER I DECIDED IT SHOULD BE SAFE SINCE WE HAD GONE SO FAR. I TOOK A VERY FEW STEPS AND WAS IN OVER MY HEAD I SPLASHED AND WENT UNDER SEVERAL TIMES AND KNEW I WAS DROWNING AND EVEYONE WAS LAUGHING AT ME.
FINALLY THE CURENT TOOK ME TO SAFE GROUND WHERE I TOUCHED SOLID GROUND. I NEVER LEARNED TO SWIM. I THINK THAT WAS SO FRIGHTENING THAT I FELT INADEQUATE TO LEARN AND BESIDES I DIDN'T WANT TO GET IN ABOVE AT MOST MY WAIST.
WHILE LIVING THERE MOM WENT TO WORK AT THE SEED HOUSE. IT WAS A BUSINESS WHERE WOMEN SIT ALL DAY WATCHING SEED PEAS ROLL PAST THEM AND THEY SORTED AND CLEANED THE SEEDS TO BE SACKED FOR THE NEXT YEARS FARMERS PLANTING IN THE FEILDS. I THINK SHE MADE AROUND $25. DOLLARS A MONTH OR MAYBE TWICE A MONTH. IT WASN'T MUCH BUT IT HELPED BUY GROCERY'S AND SHOES FOR OUR FEET. THE HOUSE WOULD BE COLD WHEN WE HURRIED HOME TO FIND SOMETHING FOR LUNCH AND WORSE AFTER SCHOOL
WHEN WE WENT HOME TO AN EMPTY COLD HOUSE. DARLEEN WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL BY THE TIME WE AGAIN MOVED THAT HOUSE ON A PLACE REFERED TO AS STATE LAND. I NEVER UNDER STOOD THE CONCEPT ONLY THAT IT WASN'T A GREAT FARM. DAD HAD FARMED WITH UNCLE JOE SLACK ALL THOSE YEARS AND ALL HAD BEEN OK THEY FARMED A DRY FARM AND LOADED UP THE WAGONS WITH A WEEKS SUPPLY AND STAYED ON THE DRY FARM ALL WEEK COMING HOME SAT. NIGHT. THAT GOT THEM TO CHURCH AND THEY TOOK TIME TO SEE THE IRRIGATION ON THE FARM AT HOME WAS DONE BEFORE HEADING BACK TO THE DRYFARM. I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED WITH THE DRY FARM BUT IN THE MEAN TIME OUR COUSIN RAMONA GOT MARRIED AND SHE AND HUSBAND SORTA KNEW HOW TO CHEAT DAD OUT OF HIS SHARE OF THE FARM. IT WAS THEN THAT DAD GOT THE STATE LAND AND IT SORTA JOINED CLOSE TO UNCLE JOES PLACE. WE MOVED BACK INTO THE HOUSE WE'D BEEN OUT FOR SEVERAL YEARS LONG ENOUGH TO GET THE LITTLE HOUSE MOVED UP ON THE STATE LAND. IT WAS ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE OF THE THEN NEW 91 HYWAY WE WERE BEHIND SOME WILLOW TREES. THE TREES NOT VERY TALL AND BIG AROUND PROBABLY TOO MANY TOO CLOSE TOGETHER. DAD LET QUAKER STATE OIL CO. PUT A SIGN UP AND DARLEEN AND ALBERTA BECAME THE QUAKER STATE GIRLS. THAT WAS THE DIRECTIONS GIVEN THE FELLOWS WHO CAME COURTING THEM. ONE GUY TOLD ONE OF THE GIRLS HE DIDN'T THINK THAT LITTLE HOUSE COULD BE SO NEAT AND CLEAN. HE DIDN'T KNOW HOW HARD MOM AND WE GIRLS CLEANED AND SCRUBBED EVERY WEEK TO KEEP IT THAT WAY. MOM ALWAYS FELT CLEANLINESS WAS NEXT TO GODLINESS. SO EVEN WHEN SHE WORKED AT THE SEED HOUSE ON SAT. DARLEEN BECAME THE MOTHER AND WE ALL PITCHED IN TO HAVE A CLEAN HOUSE WHEN MOM GOT HOME. DARLEEN MADE THOSE SAT. FUN LIKE THE TIME WE'D MAKE PIES IF WE GOT THE HOUSE CLEAN IN TIME. WE EACH GOT TO HAVE A LITTLE PIE CRUST AND I USED A FRUIT JAR LID FOR MY PIE CHOOSING SAGUMN FOR THE FILLING. IT MADE A MESS IN THE OVEN AND GOT HARD AND STINKY. NO MORE SORGHAM PIES FOR ME.