Another installment from my journal that my daughter Meghan asked me to keep.

Download Reflections.pdf

What were your neighbors like?

I grew up from birth to college in a small town called Knowlesville. Actually, it was not even considered a town, but a hamlet, composed of just three streets. And one of the streets was not a street at all and had a fancy name of West Avenue. But we called it Back Street instead. We knew everyone and everyone knew us. It was the kind of place where if you didn’t hear your mother call you for dinner, someone else did, and told you. We were neighbors.  Being a very shy girl, I did much more observing than socializing. But some of the strongest bonds that I had were with a few sweet neighbors that are significant to me to this day. It’s funny now that I think about it, they were mostly of the grandparent type….a perfect fit for me, being grandparentless!

I can see their faces and  with fondness remember  Esther and her tatting, knitting and crocheting.  The pastors who had young wives and babies that I could play with. Sealy Palmer and his wiener dog, who was,  in our childish minds, the one that was most scary and mysterious. Audrey, like a second mom to me ( who always cut the crusts off sandwiches, which was very swanky, in my opinion), taught me how to love and protect her disabled daughter,Joanne. Joanne still calls me every year on my birthday to sing to me! And Jan, another of the women who was so influential in my life…always involved in a creative project or three or seven!

 

God lived next door to the south. It was the United Methodist Church, with it’s red brick facade holding the most awesome gutters where you could get a good shower during a downpour. We were at the church at least every Sunday with it’s slick wooden pews upstairs, unless you were a kid, and then part of the morning was in the cool damp basement where the flannel board Jesus lived. Many of our neighbors were there, including Lorraine, who made us quietly giggle at the “joyful noise” that she would offer up as we all sang hymns together.

Judge Anderson and his wife lived to the north, our properties separated by flowering shrubs, and  row of hollyhocks. They were an older couple, and I loved when Mrs. Anderson would invite me for games of 500 Rummy on their big front porch. She’d serve up peanut butter sandwiches on Monk’s bread, and root beer floats. They had a splendid, somewhat secluded  backyard with a big rope swing, and a huge carriage house where her grandchildren and I would spy on a great horned owl that slept there during the day.

Interesting that with God on one side and the Judge on the other, I still found myself in trouble a lot.

 

On the other side of the church, Bessie and Harry lived. She cut my hair every month into a pixie, right there in her own little beauty shop that was at the back of her house! I was so shy that I could hardly say hello to her as I would walk or ride my bike past. She would inevitably give me a kind-hearted teasing about it. I knew Bessie was good people because she always had treats for our dog, and allowed me to play in her huge, expansive back lawn that stretched all the way to Back Street. I would imagine it was a great wide prairie and that I was Laura Ingalls.

Buelah and Bill lived a few houses further down from Bessie, and if I was riding or walking by Bessie’s house, it was in all likelihood to go visit with Beulah and Bill and their dog Lady. What can I say about the Suttons? I loved them. I loved being with them. They had such a fond affection for one another, and for Lady, who, much to my surprise, got a Christmas stocking under the tree every year!  When my mother worked, I would go to Beulah and Bill’s house before school to catch the bus. Beulah always offered a snack, and showed my through her gardens, and how to squeeze the snap dragons so their mouths opened and closed. We read together and listened to music and they were always interested in my schoolwork. In their home, I was their honored guest. I felt important and loved, which was not always how I otherwise felt as an awkward, shy and chubby kid.

I still think of the day that Bessie comforted me when I learned that Beulah had died. It was what neighbors did.

   

They all shaped me in some way or another. I wonder if any of them realize the impact of their being good neighbors and loving friends....the influence they had on my life.

Comments

[kathy b]

Wonderful clarity in your writing Lynn. God Lived to the south....just the best line ever!

[deb]

Yes, they did realize the impact they had on your life because someone in their past had an impact on THEIR lives. Just like now, you have an impact on the lives of your neighbors - whether great or small. What a lovely and touching essay. You've made me take a trip down my own memory lane today, and it was a sweet and wonderful one too!

[Marisol]

Gosh that is some amazing writing Lynne! I think you should submit it or write a book! You have been blessed many gifts! How wonderful to have had such amazing people in your life:) I am sure you are now passing it on to your neighbors--being that you are such a caring person.

[Elizabeth]

I don't believe for a minute you got into such trouble, sweet little Lynne!
Beautifully said.

[Renna]

You sound very much like me as a child, chubby and shy. I grew up in a small town, not quite as small as yours, until the age of 14. I don't have the memories of special neighbors, though. We moved alot. When you're a kid, moving from one neighborhood to another is no different than moving from one town to another. I never felt rooted in the community, nor did we go to church on any kind of regular basis, so there was no root in God, either.

Your childhood sounds like a blessed one in many ways. These days, that type childhood is a rarity.

[Mary]

Your post is a good reminder of how we all should be towards our neighbors - I'm afraid I fall short of your wonderful childhood neighborhood. Thanks for sharing those precious memories.

[Sharon]

Thank you for sharing your childhood memories, Lynne. I think it should be a reminder of how things were and how they really should be today. We've lost sight of this in our own neighborhoods today and it's really rather sad.

[Kim]

What a beautiful post about your childhood. I lived in a similar neighborhood growing up and could easily envision yours. You definitely have a gift for writing!

I had a "pixie" when I was little too...LOL. I haven't heard that term in many years.

[Mama Rose]

Wow ! That was quite a story. It brought back a lot of memories for me and dad. What a great little town that was. And what a great place to raise our kids.I loved that little town and all the people in it. Like you said every one watched out for everyone and always ready to help.So many fond memories.And the little church with its outhouse.The best part is we lived on Maim Street haha Didn't we think we were rich.
Great post Lynne.You should of been a English teacher.

[Snowbird]

Okay, what is monk bread? Boy do I remember pixie haircuts. I think I wore that haircut thru 7th grade. What wonderful memories and neighbors to share with all of us. A lot of use grew up shy and awkward. Life does have a way to change things.

[Nancy]

I want to go there, NOW ! ! ! ! Oh, for the days when you knew your neighbors and there was more sanity. The days when what was right and wrong seemed to matter so much more. When people sat out on their porches...

Nancy