I am grateful that even in a big family, that mom and dad took us on vacation twice a year. We would always travel right after Christmas and during the summer. Each for one week to ten days apiece. And always to visit family.
Our summer trip was always south to Georgia. Our Christmas trip was almost always to visit my aunt and uncle...wherever they lived...MI, PA, VA.
I always remember the trips starting vacation being a lot more fun than the trip home. We'd excite ourselves with the normal games...license plates, etc. But we were ritualistic about the trips and this creating good and long-lasting memories.
The cars changed over time with the size of the family. Sedan, station-wagon, borrowed VW, and eventually the 15 passenger Silver Bullet.
The trip to Georgia:
Pack the night before. Get up at 4:30AM and start up. Immediately get munchkins at the nearby Dunkin Donuts. Drive till around 11:00 for a new tank of gas and eat at Jerry's in southern Indiana. Drive several more hours until gas runs out and take the cooler out of the back and pass around the pimento and cheese sandwiches or PB&J. Drive till we reach Nana's house in rural Georgia around 9 at night. Hope to see her playing Scrabble on the porch with Aunt Irene.
These memories have a sweet, almost sticky feeling in my mind.
Nana was the last of my grandparents. Mom's mom, early widowed, lover of Scripture, Scrabble player, prayer warrior, hard-working, frugal, accepting, independent wonderful woman.
We'd arrive late in the evening, get the cushions off the couch and place them on the floor and cover with sheets. Off to bed.
Over the course of our week there we'd hunt for frogs/toads, catch lizards, place pennies on the railroad track, fish for catfish/bass with some kataba worms off a nearby tree, swing on ropes into the lake, read good books, play Scrabble, collect coal that had fallen from the railcars, eat delicious Southern cooking, pick fresh blackberries and eat them with ice cream, in pies, and alone, and generally have some of the best times.
Later episodes: Dad's driven nature (no bathroom breaks no matter what), Brage's full-on Southern accent in 3 days of being in the South, fire ants, and the Cyclorama.
Our summer trip was always south to Georgia. Our Christmas trip was almost always to visit my aunt and uncle...wherever they lived...MI, PA, VA.
I always remember the trips starting vacation being a lot more fun than the trip home. We'd excite ourselves with the normal games...license plates, etc. But we were ritualistic about the trips and this creating good and long-lasting memories.
The cars changed over time with the size of the family. Sedan, station-wagon, borrowed VW, and eventually the 15 passenger Silver Bullet.
The trip to Georgia:
Pack the night before. Get up at 4:30AM and start up. Immediately get munchkins at the nearby Dunkin Donuts. Drive till around 11:00 for a new tank of gas and eat at Jerry's in southern Indiana. Drive several more hours until gas runs out and take the cooler out of the back and pass around the pimento and cheese sandwiches or PB&J. Drive till we reach Nana's house in rural Georgia around 9 at night. Hope to see her playing Scrabble on the porch with Aunt Irene.
These memories have a sweet, almost sticky feeling in my mind.
Nana was the last of my grandparents. Mom's mom, early widowed, lover of Scripture, Scrabble player, prayer warrior, hard-working, frugal, accepting, independent wonderful woman.
We'd arrive late in the evening, get the cushions off the couch and place them on the floor and cover with sheets. Off to bed.
Over the course of our week there we'd hunt for frogs/toads, catch lizards, place pennies on the railroad track, fish for catfish/bass with some kataba worms off a nearby tree, swing on ropes into the lake, read good books, play Scrabble, collect coal that had fallen from the railcars, eat delicious Southern cooking, pick fresh blackberries and eat them with ice cream, in pies, and alone, and generally have some of the best times.
Later episodes: Dad's driven nature (no bathroom breaks no matter what), Brage's full-on Southern accent in 3 days of being in the South, fire ants, and the Cyclorama.
2 comments:
as much as i love the no bathroom break stories. i think your description of your nana is much better!
happy.
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