by Jan Fielden
We had a weekend on the porch reliving life events from years ago. The Colonel would tell a story and then it was my turn. His were much more interesting even though some of them might not quite be the way he told them. Most of our tales were things and events with our grandparents and then we compared the tales to ones we wonder if our grandchildren will remember and tell their kids. We certainly hope so.
I remember the wonderful feather beds my grandmother had. I would fall back on it, and it seemed like Heaven! The Colonel, being a man, talked about the “outhouse”. I grew up with one of those but would like to forget it. We both seemed to be afraid of having to visit the outhouse in the dead of night. Someone had built an outhouse on the Red Oak Ranch just about 40 years ago, but it collapsed after a while.
Of course, we both had stories about our grandmothers wringing the neck of a chicken. I have never liked chicken because of that and because of the smell when they were dunked in the hot water so their feathers could be pulled out more easily. I do like chicken salad though. And then, the stories of having to get to the table on time, eating whatever was put in front of you and eating all of it, always saying Grace before you ate. I remembered one of my uncles living with us for a short while and he always asked my Dad to throw him a piece of bread. One day my Dad actually threw it at him which surprised all of us! Sitting on the porch when the weather is not Death Valley hot is a wonderful time to talk and share stories. The Red Oak Ranch offers a good place to remember things.
