Now, that really is not that big of a deal, a lot of people have Moms. Some of them even have Moms that are 81...but I like to think my Mom is special. Today, my brother, sister and myself took Mom out of the nursing home and to brunch today. Where we talked about life, and the experiences that she has had in her life...
More below the fold...
My Mom was born on August 27, 1927...2 years before the start of the great depression...she was born at home...she was the 5th child out of twelve...ten girls, two boys. She was born in a shack (just don't let her know I called it that, she will kick my ass) the same house my grandparents lived in when I was a child. When I say shack, I do mean it...there were 5 rooms in this shack...the living room, kitchen, the master bedroom and two sort of seperate rooms upstairs. There was no indoor plumbing, however, my Mom's family was considered affulent...they had a two seater outhouse...
My Mom's first memories were of deprivation...my grandfather took work where ever he could find it...doing what ever was needed to put food on the table...which quite often was not enough...although, every Friday, my grandfather made sure he came with one piece of candy for each child.
My Mom attended school in a one room school house that was about a mile from my grandparents home. That school house still stands today, it is now the town hall...and much of it looks as it did when my Mom attended school there.
The only President my Mom knew growing up...was FDR...he came into office when she was six...she remembers listening to him on the radio...grandpa would take the battery out of the car so they could listen to the radio...the only things they got to listen to on the radio...when the President spoke...and the news...(although, my Grandpa was a Republican...so he just complained when FDR spoke, my mom never did understand why grandpa was Republican)
When it came time for my Mom to go to High School, she moved into town and lived with her sister, my aunt Vivian, not because she wanted to, but because it was the only way she could go to school...my grandparents could not afford the fees for the bus. My Mom was in High School during WWII, many of the young men she saw go to war never came home. By going to high school in the summer my Mom managed to graduate a year early, becoming the first in her family to have a diploma. In 1944 after graduation, she moved to the big city to live with another sister...at the age of 17, my mom became Rosie the Riveter. She made batteries for the war effort. In August of 1945, she was told her services were no longer needed, and she was let go...which bothers my Mom to this very day.
Three years later, Mom married my Dad, there first home was a two flat downtown...they had to share a bathroom with the other tenant. My parents bought their first home in 1950, a three bedroom ranch for $6700. In 1951 my brother was born, in 1954 my sister was born...I finally came into the picture in 1967. During the period between my sister and me Mom was a typical mom of the day, Dad worked, Mom stayed home and took care of the kids.
After I was born Mom stayed home yet again...when I started middle school, Mom went back to work...which was a challenge for her...my Mom never learned how to drive. Can you you even imagine not knowing how to drive in this day? So, everyday, no matter the weather, Mom walked a mile to the nearest bus stop to take the bus across town so that she could teach people how to decorate cakes.
Once I graduated High School and went into the Army...and after my Dad's boss broke the union where my Dad worked, my parents retired...Dad passed away in 1999, Mom, went into a nursing home with Dementia in 2004, luckily, it is progressing slowly so she is for the most part still Mom.
The point of this diary...well, simple...one to honor my Mom, two, I am sick of all the Palin diaries, three, well, to tell my Mom's story. I remember as a child here comlaining about pro-lifers protesting...she said it was her body...not theirs. I remember her saying in 1972 that "Those black folks should know their place", now in 2008 she is for Obama...showing that people can change. She is actually embarassed of her comments from 1972. She never forgave Ray-o-vac for letting her go after the war...she liked working there...she wanted to stay there...she was always bitter about being let go just because she was a woman...I got a lot of my values from my Mom, what I did not get from her, I got from my Dad...those old Conservative fuddy duddies I remember as my parents...were really a couple of very Liberal folks.
Oh yeah, another thing, that shack she grew up in...well, I was five when it got indoor plumbing...my grandfather would not let Grandma get a double bowl sink...he saw no reason to have two sinks...folks would think they were putting on airs.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed this respite from the Palin diaries...