The 15th of the Month

The 15th of the month is here. I look forward to this day, a few moments of catching up with my family and all the memories/warm feelings that rush through my mind as I read the family newsletter.


This past month I have watched the new flowers bloom and my old bird families’ return home to rebuild their homes and raise new families. Grandma McGowan always loved her flowers. This time of year she could be seen tending to her flower beds around her small, oval, trailer home. Eddie and I would begin to bring her flowers home from our walks to and from the corner store. Bachelor Buttons (blues, pink and violet) were abundant in the ditches along the way. They must have a very shallow root system because we always seemed to bring the whole plant back. She planted those in her flower garden that butted up to the north end of her trailer. I still see them sway in the wind in mind’s eye.

Melvin could be seen preparing his garden. The one I am most attached to was in the lot between his land and the neighbor to the west, Mrs. Sherman. Mrs. Sherman owned the land and “rented” the land to Melvin. I am not sure if money was ever involved or if she was just a great lady.

Mrs. Sherman is the only lady I remember Grandma stopping by to visit. They often sat in Mrs. Sherman’s back yard under the huge shade trees talking the afternoon away. Later in the evening, it was not uncommon to see Grandma and Mrs. Sherman sharing a few words across the fence that separated Melvin’s garden and his land.

I miss them all.