The following story is from my mother’s book, Remembering Etta Bend. These are the words of Susie Latty, who, much later, became my mom. This would have been around 1918. Most of the things we used were homemade and they had to last as long as possible. Papa carved his own handles and wood implements […]
Oct 29, 2020
Goose Summer
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From The Heritage of Etta Bend by Susie Latty Day. Time: around 1918, Place: the Latty Farm. In the fall come rare, sparkling days that are warm and bright, with very little wind, when nature seems to savor the last remnants of summer. Spider webs break loose from their moorings and float through the air, […]
Oct 28, 2020
In the Walnut Woods
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From The Heritage of Etta Bend by Susie Latty Day. Time: around 1918; Place: A small farm in Oklahoma. Autumn, on our farm at Etta, had its special joys. East of the spring branch, maples blazed in gold and russet. Oaks wore yellow and brown. Walnut trees dropped their leaves, then shed their green-coated nuts […]
Mar 31, 2020
Rain, a Hundred Years Ago
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On this rainy spring day, I’m thinking about long ago Etta and my Latty family. It would be dark on the farm at this hour, house lit only by kerosene lamps, no outdoor lights at all. Pappy would take a lantern as he walked through the rain, across the road to the barn to […]
Oct 2, 2019
Keeping the Hearth Fire Burning
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Maybe it’s because October is here and with its arrival, the promise of cooler weather. Crisp days and nights make me think of much chillier temps and that, of course, leads to the thoughts of the fireplace. So, why do I have a life-long love of fireplaces? Could it be because Irish ancestors sat […]
Feb 16, 2014
Caves, Chills, and Deep, Dark Caverns
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Sometimes I am amazed at how our idea of entertainment has changed through the years. We depend on others to amuse us: movies, plays, music, TV, the list goes on. What would we do if we had to resort to our own ingenuity for diversion? It was a question that didn’t arise for my mother […]
