After graduating from high school in the last week of May 1932, I stayed home and felt free as a bird for a very short time, as plans had been made that I start to Platt Gard Business College the following summer. A representative from the college came to our school to talk about how it was possible for any one to attend there, if they were willing to work hard enough.
I'm sure my folks had known about this already. Dad was on the school board then as he had been for several years, so the next weeks I was more or less getting prepared. I remember that I didn't have a large enough suitcase for all that I needed, so Tike (I imagine) offered to loan me one of her family’s.
Mom helped me with what to take and what NOT to take” all the time. I suspect she felt apprehensive that her little bird was about to leave the nest. I am sure that she advised me to leave the "evening gown" at home for the time being, although quite some time later I cut it to a shorter length and dyed it black! (And gotta lotta good outta it...)
That year was into the very hard times, and we all had our usual chores to do as well as helping with gardening, hoeing weeds out of the pastures, mowing the yard with a little push mower (and we had a big yard), and helping with canning (washing and sterilizing dozens of fruit jars). Can you believe that we "put up" all the way from seven hundred to eight hundred jars of food a year?
As the time that I'd be leaving drew closer, I had a sort of scary feeling, but tried not to "let on" for the sake of my younger siblings. My younger brother, Ernest, told me later that he was mad and sad when I left. He remembered when I used to rock him to sleep in my little rocking chair. I was eight years older than he was and his birthday was the day after mine and our sister Alice, whose birthday was the same day as mine. I don't recall which of my siblings were there the day I left other than Ernest, Florella, Arthur, John, and Gene (who was four months old). Gracie, the youngest, wasn't born until after I was married for several years.
I had told most of my friends their good-byes, some for the last time. Back in those days we didn't jump in the car and buzz off to far away places any old time, so I would have to "find" new friends, I thought. However, a friend, Dorys, who had once lived in Sheridan (her parents ran the hotel) had moved to St. Joe, so I would get in touch with her once I landed in that nest of strangers!
The day came all too soon that I had to leave. It was hot, dry, and windy. I had known that someone was coming to take me to the home of a widow lady with whom I would be staying. A Mr. and Mrs. Clayton came mid-afternoon, I do not remember or if I really cared what kind of car they drove, only that the windows were rolled down and the dust blew in (until we hit the pavement), and that I was like a little Fish-er out of water!
I really didn't do much between graduation and when I started to Platt-Gards, as that was a very busy time of year and I was helping at home. Howard was married, Janice was away working for a family with several children at that time and was home only on weekends, Chauncey was working in the harvest fields and going to business college in Minnesota, and Raymond was still at home.
I probably went to the movies during the time between graduation and St. Joe, but the summer was just beginning and I left home and summertime fun and Sheridan behind, except for memories, for a time at least.
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