Granny's Birthday

Ellie and Jack Baer with grand daughters daughters circa 1950

A bit of serendipity.

The new assignment for my memoir group is to write the chapter about your early childhood.

Well my grandmother Ellie Hall Keasler Baer will be the loving center of many of those memories so its right to begin with a few notes on that chaper today.

June 1st is her birthday.

Remember how you learned important birthdays- other than your own day - when you were young?  Maybe like me you still know them. That's how it is with me and June 1. That's Granny's day.

She was the loving center of my childhood.

Ellie and Jack Baer group-up with grand-daughers Lynda, Kathy and Ellouise before the at-home reception for their 25th wedding anniversary.

Granny loved a party and she worked for weeks getting ready to celebrate their 25th anniversary. She prepped the house from top to bottom and I remember helping with polishing  the silver. It was a very special evening  - which afterwards she pronounced a big success.

June 1 - a good place to start my childhood notes.

Where would you start yours?

I am going to kick this off with something she always had with her.

Granny's big leather pocket-book with the loud snap on top was like a treasure chest.  It smelled of butter-rum Life Savers and Juicy Fruit chewing gum which are both still my favorites. You could count on a neatly folded handkerchief- later a small purse-sized packet of Kleenex. And, her coin purse always yielded pennies for the gum ball machine or a dime "for later." Oh, yes, there was always a package of Sir Walter Raleigh cigarettes and a little box of matches but I was not allowed to touch either one.

Yes, that prompts more memories - for later.

And, I admit it, this makes me wonder what my grandchildren might remember about my "tote bag" - maybe the sketch book, pencils, scissors and glue or my camera but for sure my digging deep for loose change dropped into the bottom of the bag - you know, a quarter or two for a snack.