she missed all the fun years

Gravelly News by Glenna Goodson

A passenger in a taxi tapped the driver on the shoulder to ask him something. The driver screamed, lost control ofthe cab, nearly hitting a bus, drove over the curb, and stopped just inches from a large plate glass window.For a few moments everything was silent in the cab,then the driver said,"Please don't ever do that again. You scared the daylights out of me."The passenger, who was also frightened, apologized and said he didn't realize that a tap on the shoulder could frighten him so much, to which the driver replied:"I'm sorry, it's really not your fault at all. Today is my first day of driving a cab. I have been driving a HEARSE for the last 25 years!"


In talking to Chuck McCool in Fowler's last week, he and I were talking about his mother's and my generation growing up without electricity. He said one time when his son James was about 6 years old he asked his grandmother,"Nanny, did you have electricity when you were my age and when she told hm "No" he asked"Well, Nanny how did you use your microwave?"

A couple of nights last week, after I went to bed, my feet were so very cold and no matter what I did I could not seem to get them warm .My mind went back to when I was a girl growing up in Yell County, Ar in the country where we had no electricity and no heat in the bedrooms.I would go to bed under at least 12 quilts to keep me warm and Mama would heat two irons on the wood stove, wrap them in towels and out them to my feet. I wished forthose irons at my feet the other night.

In one of my cousin, Billy Highfill's e-mail last week he was telling me about the snow they had in Tulsa the week before. It reminded him of when Aunt Dora and Uncle Loy moved from Gravelly to Bixby when he was a teen-ager.They moved their milch cow from Gravelly to Bixby. Billy had graduated from high school and gone to work at Sinclair Oil Co. in Tulsa.They had a big snow storm in Bixby and Tulsa and his Mom looked out their dining room window and saw their cow lying on a clump of snow. Aunt Dora told him that was a sign that it would come another big snow before that snow melted. Well, Billy told the people in his office andthey thought it was very funny.Billy was so sure it would come another snow but that snow melted with out another snow coming. Billy said he was so disappointed because for the first time he saw that the old timers at Gravelly were not always correct with their weather predictions!!

I talked by phone to my grandson's wife,who lives in Kansas, last week.Heather is hired by the school system in Mulvane as an interpreter for the deaf in middle school. She also interprets for her church and for neighborhood groups, as they have political meetings or just meetings that are social. I am so proud of Heather and she loves her job.

Bill Workman, of Gravelly,can sure make good stew. He also makes good burgers--just as you like them. I was watching Mrs. Workman cook pizza she had made and boy, it looked good. Bill's place is open until about 5 each day, so come in and check it out. Also a coke machine will be at his place, outside by next weekend. Bill told me it will have water, orange juice, etc.besides the cokes. I really love Dr. Pepper and I was drinking one at his place whle I ate a hamburger and I was tellng Bill that my blood sugar was pretty high. He says"Well, when you get that Dr. Pepper fnished, be sure you get another one, cause that is really good for your blood sugar!!!

Johnny Turner had surgery last week to remove a blockage in his neck. Johnny saidthe surgery was a success for which I am thankful. I was sad that Johnny has not felt well in a long time and didn't even feel like teasing me!!

I have spoken to my friend, Melba Reed, in St. Josepoh's hospital, a couple oftimes since her surgery last week. Her colon surgery went well andthe doctor said there was no more sign of cancer--that they believe they removed it all. Praise the Lord!!

I have written in my column before that my sister, Kathy Minnie, in our Eastern Star is the grand representative of Australia in Ar. She is planning for her and Lacey to travel to Australia this summer. I really hope she gets to go--sure wish I could go to Australia--do you thing Lacey would let me take his place?No way!!

Saturday, I talkedto my cousin Calton Highfill and his wife Lucille who live in Carrollton, Texas. Calton and I were remembering a tornado that came in the early'40's through Gravelly.It blew the Mulberry Church away and also most of my Uncle Willie's house, next to the church.Calton was reminding me that they were in the cellar and Uncle Loy had a rope tied to the cellar door and he and Billy helped Uncle Loy hold that door down. I remember that my grandfather Copeland was visiting us. He and alll my family except my Dad had gone to the cellar. My Dad usually did not go to the cellar cause it seemed Mama went every time it thundered. My grandfather ran back to the house and came back with my Dad. He had seen the tornado coming and told Daddy he'd better come to the cellar.POart of Uncle Loy's house was blown down but our only didsaster was the roof of our barn was blown off. Kathy wasn't born then so she doesn't have those memories. I tell her she came along so late thatshe missed all the fun years Bob and I had but I really don't think a tornado was one ofthose fun times!

Remember, nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission!!