Everything looks different when you look at it from Robinson Crusoe’s standpoint, surrounded by a sea of depression, and things show up at a more real value. We appreciate the actual value of things. -- Ina, 1932
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| The wide window under the dormer is the pantry. |
The
Ghost of Christmas Past visited Ina again as she kneaded bread at the pantry
counter where
she had plenty of light. She occasionally looked up from her
work to watch big wet snowflakes fall on the bank behind the house. She knew
the snow wouldn’t stick, but it lightened her mood anyway. Her thoughts drifted
back five years to the “hard times” Christmas of 1932.
Ina recalled that June and Bertha [Jack’s twin brother married
to Ina’s sister] had felt unable to get treats, and that made the tree loom
larger, but she and Jack promised to have a regular tree anyway. She had filled
candy boxes leftover from a past Christmas with sugared popcorn, hard Christmas
candy, and the Orofino Mercantile’s best assorted nuts, managing to purchase
these treats by bartering with chickens and eggs. Lydia, the clerk, had put in
an extra pound of the hard candy, a much-appreciated gesture. Besides “the
Junes,” the Christmas Eve party had included Mr. and Mrs. Boehm and Mrs.
Cordell and her son Jay.
It was that December of
1932 when Henry began to call on Shirley and take her to the various gatherings
that young people enjoy. Among the few gifts that Ina had actually purchased
were a pair of brushed wool gloves for
Shirley, which she needed for going out on those winter nights. Their neighbor,
Luella Miller, had suggested that Henry take Shirley to the singing bees, play
practice, etc., and Ina noted at the time that he seemed to remember easily.
Well, it was nice she had a way to go, and Ina had seen no harm in it, though
it’s always wise to be wary of any man who calls on the daughter.
Ina recalled that she had dried rose petals over two summers and had plenty to make three rather small cushions, one each for Ethel, Myrtle, and Earle and Bernice. She had made a cute little print apron with hankie in pocket for granddaughter Shirley Jean, and she gave Earle and Bernice a jar of her fancy strawberry preserves, which pleased Earle so much since they had failed to put up any themselves.
And for Shirley, Ina always had an extra gift or two. She recalled
how she had surprised her with a pretty print apron made of the stuff leftover
from a quilt top she had made for daughter Pearl.
With satisfaction, Ina thought of how that “hard times”
Christmas had cost next to nothing for what they had bought was necessary
anyway. They all had a big time! As they had done for Christmas 1932, they would do again for
Christmas 1937. “We’re going to have a very merry Christmas,” said Ina to
herself emphatically. KW
4 comments:
I think Ina gets a kick out of making something from "nothing." I do too!
Ina was proud of her ability to provide gifts from her storehouse of "nothing." More of that attitude will come out as we move through the years. We have a different concept of gift-giving today. We attempt to place a monetary value on our relationships, to show appreciation through expensive gifts, and also to satisfy the wants and wishes of our loved ones. I think that this is natural when society has more money and goods. But -- sometimes I long for the simplicity and individuality of the token gift.
Her pantry was on the second level?
No, the wide window UNDER the dormer was the pantry. I was just trying to point out the pantry window in the photo. It's on the first floor on the back of the house. Today, the room is the downstairs bathroom / utility room. The window is still an old-fashioned pantry window with room to cool a pie on the ledge. We no longer do that, of course.
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