1966-67

About a year later, we moved up north to Aurora Illinois as my father sought work; my aunt & uncle moved up north also, living in the nearby town of Joliet.  Believe it or not, I do have memories of living there.  

We lived in a two-story apartment complex along with hundreds of others I would only get glimpses of.  I remember the stairs and how my sisters would put me in a cardboard box and send me sailing down them.  It was so much fun until the day I crashed.

I Remember sitting in my father’s lap as we stayed up watching John Wayne movies.  I never made it through a single show and can only remember how big he was as he carried my up the stairs to bed.  If I recall correctly, all the bedrooms were upstairs and my bed was a mattress sitting on the floor without a frame.

I remember a white wooden bar stool that had black polka dots and black metal base. We had found in the dumpster when taking the garbage out.  I believe it had a screw missing, which Daddy replaced as we children were in awe of his abilities.

I remember the older boy on a bicycle in the field next door who had offered to take me to the circus, and when I went to ask Mama, she returned with me just in time to see him quickly riding away.  I remember being sad at not being able to go and Mama telling me that it was ok, “there would be another circus.”  In retrospect, what a blessing it was to be raised to always ask permission…who knows what the outcome would have otherwise been.

I remember the big basement in my aunt’s house and all the wonder and potential such a place held (basement’s are few and far between in Arkansas).  I also remember finding out that we had a basement on the one occasion of a tornado threat, and wondering how I had missed it.  

I remember my cousin Stevie taking a bath and I remember that cool wind-up boat he had.  It sure seemed like he always had the nicest toys.

I remember my sister’s taking me to school with them one day.  What stands out the most was the big triangular shaped slide, and the grab bars along the edge and how scared I was when I finally managed to make it to the top.

I remember riding in my cousin Carol Faye’s Ford Mustang.  I was standing behind her eating graham crackers as she drove.  I also remember her swatting at me and telling me to sit down (seat belts were an option back then); I was getting crumbs in her very big hairdo.  She was also a bit famous because she was a secretary for some guy name Pat Boone.  I never made the connection, but I did know it was something special.  Another thing that made Carol Faye special was the fact that she had a fake eye.  Evidently she had placed a cold bottle of fingernail polish on a stove or furnace to warm and when she returned to retrieve it, it exploded.  She lost her left eye if memory serves me right.  She was so cool!  Her untimely demise would make sense later as one looked back across the span of her life.

I remember the military base and all the tall buildings we saw during a trip to Chicago.  Looking up from the back glass required us kids to arch our backs backward over the rear seat, but the dizzy feeling made it all worth it!

I would have to say that those were truly years of wonder for me.  It seemed that everywhere I looked, there was something that would amaze me just a little bit more than what I had just seen before.   Mama always had a sense of adventure when it came to checking out her surroundings, which seemed to be more often than not.  My sisters actually seemed to like me, as I can distinctly remember being shown off.  It was almost like I was an alien or spotted frog that was displayed with pride.  Daddy…I still long for that security I felt when being in his presence.  Nothing was stronger than my Daddy’s arms…what I wouldn’t give for just one more embrace.