TWIN FALLS LIFE

MANY THINGS GO OUT OF MY HEAD AS I THINK BACK TO THOSE YEARS IN TWIN FALLS. WE VISITED DEWARD AND VELDA IN RICHFIELD SEVERAL TIMES DURING THAT TIME. THEY INVITED US FOR EASTER PICNIC AND OF COURSE THEIR CHILDREN BEING OLDER WAS ANXIOUS FOR A PICNIC. IT WAS COLD AND RAINY SO WE IMPROVISED PUT A QUILT ON THE FLOOR AND PICNICED THERE. THE KIDS HAD FUN AND WE ALL WENT AWAY FEELING GOOD ABOUT THE DAY.
DURING THE SUMMER ON A VISIT CHUCK FOLLOWED HIS COUSINS RONNIE DARRELL AND CAROL OUT TO PLAY. IT GOT QUIET AND I WENT TO SEE WHERE THEY WERE JUST AS CHUCK STEPPED INTO THE DITCH OR DID HE FALL ARE JUMP. THAT WAS SCAREY AS I RAN SCREAMING TO RESCUE HIM EVERY ONE CAME OUT TO SEE WHAT THE EXCITEMENT WAS ABOUT. GUESS WHAT HE DID SURVIVE THAT SWIM AND BECAME A FAIRLY GOOD SWIMMER LATER ON.

BEFORE CLAY WAS BORN ALL THE BUS CO. EMPLOYES WANTED TO HAVE A PARTY. WE DIDN'T HAVE ANYONE TO BABY SIT SO THE PARTY CAME TO US. I THINK EVRY ONE HAD A GOOD TIME BUT THEY LEFT EARLY SO VERELAN COULD GO TO WORK AT FOUR A.M. HIS USUAL SHIFT. THE FELLOW WHO WAS SUPERVISOR INVITED US TO VISIT THEM IN KIMBRELY A FEW TIMES. I THINK THEY LIKED HAVING THE LITTLE ONES AROUND SINCE THEIRS WAS AWAY FROM HOME.

FOR SOME REASON THE NAME OF THE LADY WHO BEFRIENDED ME IN THE TRAILER PARK HAS GOTTEN AWAY FROM ME. SHE HAD A SON DICK AROUND TWENTY AND A DAUGHTER LOIS IN HER TEENS. DICK HAD AN OLD PICKUP AND HE WOULD BE OUT WORKING ON IT WHILE CHUCK PLAYED IN THE LITTLE FENCED AREA BY THE HOUSE. DICK USED A FEW WORDS I'D RATHER NOT PUBLISH AND CHUCK TOOK A LIKING TO HIM. ONE EVENING VERELAN HAD INVITED THE FELLOW WHO CLEANED THE BUS DEPOT AND HIS WIFE FOR DINNER. CHUCK WOULDN'T OPEN HIS MOUTH AND SAY ONE WORD. THOSE PEOPLE THOUGHT HE WASN'T ABLE TO TALK. DID HE PROVE THEM WRONG. AFTER DINNER HE GOT DOWN CLIMBED UP ON THE COUCH AND RUNNING BACK AND FORTH USED THOSE WORDS HE'D HEARD DICK USE ON HIS PICKUP. THEY FOUND OUT HE COULD TALK AND CHUCK NEVER SAID THOSE WORDS AGAIN TO MY KNOWLEDGE. I JUST THOUGHT OF THE LADY'S LAST NAME WE CALLED HER MRS. CASSEL MAYBE THAT IS WHY I DIDN'T REMEMBER NO FIRST NAME.



THERE WAS A COUPLE THAT AFTER HE WENT TO WORK AT THE BUS DEPOT SORTA BECAME FRIENDS AND SHE HAD TWO GIRLS. HER OLDEST WAS A CUTE LITTLE GIRL AND THE BABY WAS SKINNY BUT CUTE. ONE TIME SHE TOLD ME SHE WOULD LIKE TO GIVE HER OLDER DAUGHTERS CLOTHS TO ME FOR PENNY AS HER SECOND WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO WEAR THEM AND SHE WAS NEEDING THE SPACE THE CLOTHS TOOK UP. SHE REALLY LOADED ME DOWN WITH SOME NICE CUTE DRESSES. AND PENNY WOULD GO TO THE CLOSET AND CHOOSE WHAT SHE WANTED TO WEAR BY GRABBING A BELT AND PULLING ON THAT ARE I'D HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE ASSORTMENT TILL SHE AGREED ON ONE. SHE HAD SEVERAL SIZES AND I HAD TO PUT THE BIGGER ONES AWAY WHERE SHE COULDN'T SEE THEM TILL SHE GREW INTO THEM. I THINK SHE HAD ABOUT THREE YEARS OF WEARING THOSE CLOTHS.

AFTER WE MOVED BACK TO IDAHO FALLS AND DEWARD AND VELDA CAME BACK IN THE SPRING WHILE WE HAD MUD. THEY STAYED WITH A WHILE AND AFTER THEY MOVED OUT VELDA MADE SOME SUN CLOTHS FOR PENNY, TOPS AND SHORTS. ONE DAY OUR NEIGHBOR A MAN FROM NEW YORK ASK ME WHY I PUT TOPS ON HER. HE SAID SHE DOESN'T NEED THAT I TOLD HIM IF I EXPECTED HER TO GROW UP AND BE MODEST SHE NEEDED TO BE DRESSED MODEST AS A CHILD. THEN LATER WE HAD SOME PEOPLE MOVE IN WHO EVRY ONE DECIDED WAS NUDESTEST. THEY NEVER DRESSED THEIR CHILDREN WHO PLAYED OUT IN FRONT. AS WELL AS WANTING TO PLAY WITH THE OTHER LITTLE ONES. THE LITTLE BOY CAME ONE DAY AND I SENT HOME TO GET CLOTHS ON IF HE WANTED TO PLAY WITH MINE. HE DIDN'T COME BACK AND THEY MOVED SHORTLY AFTER THAT. MR GROTCHEN DID SAY TO ME DURING THAT TIME HE WAS GLAD I DRESSED PENNY AND SORTA APPOLAGIZED FOR HIS EARLIER REMARKS. EVEN HE WAS APPALED AT THAT FAMILY DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM.

GROTCHENS HAD A SON RON THAT LIKED TO DO ADVENTUROUS THINGS AND HE TOOK CHUCK AND MAYBE CLAY SOME TIMES TO WHAT THEY CALLED THE BLACKS.
IT WAS WHERE BUSH SCHOOL WAS BUILT. IT WAS A SWAMPY AREA AND THEY CAUGHT TOADS AND WATER SNAKES WATCHED THE BIRDS THAT NESTED THERE AND SPENT SOME GOOD DAYS. ONE DAY SHE TOLD ME THEY HAD DECIDED TO QUITE SMOKING. SO THEY COLD TURKEY'D IT ONLY SHE HAD SOME LEFT IN A PACK THAT SHE WOULD BRING OUT AND PUT ON THE TABLE SO SHE KNEW SHE COULD HAVE ONE IF SHE WANTED TO. THEN WHEN IT WAS TIME FOR "LARRY" TO COME HOME SHE'D HIDE THAT PACK. THEY WENT BACK EAST SOON AFTER THAT. SHE VOLUNTEERED THAT SHE WOULDN'T WRITE ANYONE AFTER THEY LEFT AS SHE COULDN'T HAVE FRIEND SHIPS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. I DID HEAR THAT RON CAME TO UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO IN MOSCOW. DON'T KNOW IF HE GRADUATED ARE WHERE HE WENT FROM THERE. HE WAS SORTA A FRIEND TO JACKIE HIGH AND ERMA TOLD ME ABOUT HIM.

THEN THERE WAS THE SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS THAT SHE WAS A MEMBER BUT HE WASN'T SO SHE WASN'T ATTENDING BUT ENJOYED THE PEOPLE WHO STOPPED BY TO VISIT AND TRY TO GET EVRY ONE TO JOPIN THERE CHURCH. SHE WAS ALWAYS A NICE LADY AND THEIR SHIRLEY AND DAVID PLAYED IN OUR YARD SOME WITH ALL THE OTHER KIDS. THEY LEFT IDAHO FALLS AFTER A YEAR ARE A LITTLE OVER AND BELLS MOVED IN THAT HOUSE WITH LLOYD THE ONLY ONE THEY HAD AS NEW MOVE IN'S. ABOUT THE TIME CLAY WAS IN FIRST GRADE I THINK THE OMANSONS CAME TO TOWN FROM MONTANA. BETTY WAS A CONVERT AND WAS RELEAVED TO ONLY HAVE ONE CHURCH CALLING PLUS VISITING TEACHING. THEY HAD LIVED IN A SMALL BRANCH BEFORE.

MCOLUMS LIVED NOT TO FAR AWAY AND WE BECAME GOOD FRIENDS NOT SO MUCH WITH HIM BUT ERMA AND I. ONE DAY SHE CALLED ME ON A WARM SUMMER DAY AND SAID YOU BETTER COME OVER HERE AND SEE WHAT CHUCK AND CLAY DID.
WELL THEY HAD TAKEN MATCHES FROM SOME PLACE AND RIGHT UNDER ERMA'S BEDROOM WINDOW HAD STARTED A FIRE. I SCOLDED THEM HELPED PUT THE ASHES AWAY IN THE GARBAGE AND TOOK THEM HOME TO LEARN HOW TO LIGHT MATCHES. I HAD BOXES OF WOODEN MATCHES GAVE EACH BOY A BOX AND WENT OUT IN OUR GARDEN AND MADE THEM LIGHT MATCHES. OF COURSE THEY SOON TIRED OF THAT GAME BUT I DON'T THINK THEY STARTED FIRES NEXT TO ANYONE ELSES HOME. CLAY CALLED ERMA COLLUM AND THAT TICKELED HER. HE WAS A BIT AGRESSIVE AND SHE DECIEDED TO SAVE HER STUFF SHE WOULD PUT HIM IN CHARGE TO BE SURE NOTHING GOT BROKE. SHE FELT THAT WORKED WELL AS HE LET HER GIRLS KNOW THEY COULDN'T BREAK STUFF. HE DID LIKE TO GO THERE EVEN IF HER GIRLS WERE OLDER THAN HE. I THINK ERMA NEEDED A SON AND DIDN'T HAVE ONE SO HE WAS HER PROXY SON WHILE THEY LIVED THERE.

HERE IT IS NINE AND I'M ABOUT TIRED SO WILL GET READY FOR BED AND CONTINUE THIS ANOTHER TIME.