Cousins are the Best
I read somewhere that "cousins are the first friends most people ever have as children. No one will ever understand your crazy family like your cousins."
I can say from experience that my cousins are truly the first friends that I remember. Being the first born in my family, I have very good memories of most of my cousins, and trust me, there was a multitude of us.
My dad's family was very close during my growing up years and for the most part, we all lived near each other. That was when families came for supper, or as Aunt Bea would say "suppa" and wound up spending the night or several days. How I loved those times. We didn't have computers, smart phones, x-box, e-mail, facebook, twitter, or any of today's inventions from space. We played outside and hated it when we were called in. Our parents didn't have to worry about us being abducted by every crazy within ten miles of us. We all were our own police force, out in numbers. Get one, get us all! We played all the old fun games such as Annie-Annie over, hop scotch, jump rope, red rover-red rover, blind man's bluff. I'm going to name several more. See how many you can remember. Hide and seek, Mother may I, jacks, kick the can, flashlight tag, dodge ball, freeze tag, cops and robbers, Simon says, stick ball, leap frog, I spy and just plain ole 'tag'. Oh, don't forget the infamous spin the bottle! Ladies, remember our friends, our paper dolls? They were our soul mates when there were no Barbies. Do you remember the shoes we made from cans? How many miles did I 'clomp' in those shoes! I remember playing all these games first with my cousins. I don't think I ever played spin the bottle with any of them. Mighta been some 'kissin cousins' in there somewhere.
One of my earliest memories from when I was two or three was sitting beneath a stairway playing with someone's pretty compact - probably one of our mothers'. I don't remember who my other cousins were, but I believe one of them was my cousin Sue. We had a good relationship as children and still do to this day. Sue was always one for jokes and was always pulling them on me. But I get even with her today. I tell on her in my columns. Her sister, Shirley, stayed with us several times and helped my mom. I loved it when she was with us.
I don't know where we lived, but I remember playing chase in an open field with my cousins Gilbert, Ruthie and Bonnie Grubbs. I remember catching little blue butterflies with my cousins Margaret, Dorothy, and Joyce Ross. Seems like those little butterflies always fluttered around where ever the dish water was tossed out.
As a teenager, I remember my cousin Kenneth Grubbs and I cruising "the strip" and my listening to him tell me how much he loved his girlfriend, Julie. She soon became his wife. Still is. We only rode around like this a couple times, but man, could he take that curve down on Walnut Street and AF.
I remember my cousin Sue, the one I tell on, and her brother Hershel, pushing me in a tire swing in our back yard. Our house burned when I was in the first grade and, as I recall, my cousin Patsy was the first person out of their car, running towards me crying. Just like me, she was scared out of her wits.
My cousin, Jerry Williamson and I double dated when we were just entering our teens. My cousin Dean Ross and I became pen pals when he entered the army. He even sent me pictures of a young man; and we became boyfriend/girlfriend through the mail. We never met, but I can remember sitting in the front yard waiting for the mailman to bring me letters from him. One of my cousins, Lillian, babysat me and even named one of her daughters, Kathleen, after me.
I have so many cousins that I love. They are spread all over the place and I don't have the opportunity to see many of them any more. We all descended from the Grubbs clans of my father, Johnny, and his siblings.
As I write this, my heart aches for those days again. To all my cousins whom I have mentioned and those I didn't, you are my heroes and heroines for this column. I love you all and truly miss the ones who are no longer with us.
REMEMBER: "Some people grin and bear it...Others smile and do it."
See ya next time some where in a korner.
kdover28@gmail.com or 573-820-2404
Comments
- -- Posted by Madeline1 on Sat, Aug 20, 2011, at 8:49 AM
- -- Posted by kkcaver47 on Sat, Aug 20, 2011, at 9:35 PM
- -- Posted by goat lady on Sun, Aug 21, 2011, at 7:29 AM
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