TERRY
As I write it is 11:30 and Terry is busy reading the Sunday paper. She REALLY slept in this morning which I think is good for her. Her health, there is no change at this point. As I always say, one day at a time.
Not much to say today. We are one day closer to Christmas and I have to say that is good but it is difficult to get excited about it. Terry and I will be alone as will many many family and friends. At this point we have gotten a couple of Christmas cards but I am guessing that too may be not so much this year. We did get ours out some time ago.
I have to admit I am maybe a bit over the top. Sister Joan mentioned that her son Quinn's birthday was not on the 2021 calendar so I wanted to be safe and I started the 2022 one and made sure his birthday is on it. Well one thing led to another and after several hours I am almost done with the 2022 one! I made many changes on the dates as I maybe added 30+ pictures on the birthdates. That is kind of fun. As to the pictures on the top of the calendar I have yet to figure out a theme. Anyway I did not intend to get working on it 11 months in advance BUT.
7:30 tennis the next two days. When it is that early it tends to be a bit chilly for a short time.
August 24th, 1957 Saturday
As I hurry downstairs and enter the kitchen I can tell Mom is upset about something. I ask what is for breakfast and she says there is food in the fridge and I can help myself. Now that is NOT the Mom I know. As she is putting some dishes away in the cupboard I hear her ask Dad what time he thought Olaf Olson is coming over. When I hear that it clicks. I know what Mom is nervous about. In church last Sunday the Pastor had said that there would be people going around in the next week to collect the yearly church dues. YES, I said that right. Of course they passed the collection plate each Sunday but in addition to that there was yearly dues to belong to church. Dad always made sure us kids had a couple of pennies or maybe even a nickel to put in the plate. Pastor had mentioned that the dues for the coming year would be $35 which was an increase of $5. He mentioned there needed to be some maintenance on the church which was the reason for the increase. There was a reason they collected in August as harvest was then pretty much finished and I am sure the reasoning was farmers would have the money then. I am sure everyone who belonged to Bergen farmed.
Well Mom was so nervous as she knew there was NO $35 to pay the dues. Our wheat crop had been hailed out and the rest of the crops were terrible that year. Mom and Dad knew they would be borrowing money for the coming year with hopes that the crop in 58 would be good. So expecting Olaf that day was something Mom was afraid of. I kind of understand yet not really as I think there was nobody nicer than Olaf and there was NO way he was going to make a stink if we could not pay. I really think that if one had taken a vote as to the nicest guy in the county it may have been Olaf! After I had milked the cows and put the milk through the separator I was ready for a day of play as our fall work was pretty much finished. Dave and I had all the plowing done and the only thing left for fall work was to harvest the millet which would not happen for a month or so. It was about 9:30 and I was about ready to go outside when I heard Mom say in a strained voice, "Carmen you need to stay in the house for a while." I walked back from the entry way into the house again and then noticed Olaf's car coming into the driveway. Dad went outside and he and Olaf talked for some time with loud laughter often taking place. I think that calmed Mom a bit. AND actually I think Mom was just feeling badly and perhaps a bit ashamed that they just did not have the money for church dues. I have no idea how things ended up but that may have been the year that the packages above the kitchen cupboards were scare! It is interesting to me that Bergen Church had a yearly dues. I wonder if any churches do that today.
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