Tree in 1955

 This was our Christmas tree in 1955.  It stood in the corner of the old living room on the farm.  As I recall the room had one rocking chair, a plant table with some fancy leaved begonias and a couple of extra kitchen chairs...and the tree always found its place in the corner.  My Dad always went out and cut down a Christmas tree, I never went along....maybe my brothers went along when they were older.

Mom took the photo with her little Brownie Kodak Camera.  The film was developed in June of 1956.  The film probably had my baby brothers birthday on the same roll of film. He would have been 21 months old and I was 4 years and 3 months old the Christmas of 1955. 

You can almost see the doorway to my bedroom behind the rocking chair. It was a tiny room with a twin bed.  Cozy but very cold in the winter time. My brother slept in a crib in my parents room.  It was a huge old farmhouse with four bedrooms upstairs, but we were not supposed to play up there and it was not heated in the winter. 

Far Side

Wistful Wednesday: Christmas 1955

This photo was amongst the photos that Cousin Bonnie gave to Far Guy.  I have seen it before.

All of these sister in laws are gone..  Cancer..Alzheimer's..and old age claimed them all. 

Married to brothers..together for Christmas at the farm.

Far Guys Mom Evelyn is on the left, it would have been her 97th birthday yesterday.  In this photo she was 41 and the oldest. She wasn’t a very social person, everything was prim and proper..nothing was ever done on the spur of the moment.

Auntie Esther is next, she died last December.  She always called Far Guy and I “you kids.”  She was spontaneous..and during the summer at the lake she would almost always be found in her swimsuit.  She enjoyed the outdoors and embraced every activity from hunting to snowmobiling to fishing and of course golfing.

Jean..I won’t call her Aunt Jean..she was divorced from her husband a few years after this photo was taken. Far Guy said she was beautiful and had a mind of her own.  I never met her, she died of cancer.

Aunt Beryl, I have known her ever since I can remember. She had an infectious laugh.  My Mother was one of her best friends. I remember when her new house was built and the white crushed velvet furniture appeared in her living room..I wondered if anyone ever dared to sit on it…us kids always went to the basement!   She had Alzheimer's a number of years..she was gone..but her body wasn’t done living yet..Alzheimer's is a terrible affliction. 

I wonder sometimes how these women all got along.  I am certain there were some under currents..perhaps even some teeth gnashing.  They must have all gotten along for the sake of their husbands. I think it would have been interesting to have been a mouse in the corner sometimes:)