Aunt Pearl was born first, in 1915 or 1916 or thereabouts. Her younger sisters Neva and Marguerite (your great-grandmother GG) always said "Mom only had one child and that was Pearl" and "Pearl was Mom's favorite" and similar statements. They were not so much jealous of Pearl as they were just annoyed that Grandma Golden gave a lot of attention to her first born. She also relied on Pearl to be her helper, which Pearl always was. Grandma Golden depended on Pearl for many things both as a child and later on. Pearl never let her down. I'm not sure Neva and GG always saw it that way, sibling rivalry being what it is and all.
Uncle Bud was very handsome. He came from a family of gifted, creative people. They sang and danced and (in Bud's case at least) whistled. GG says he could whistle a tune and make you think it was an orchestra playing. He hunted and fished and poached game right alongside Grandpa Deeds which must have delighted and gratified Grandpa immensely. He also whittled and carved many beautiful and functional things from wood and deer antlers. I never heard him raise his voice although cousin Shirley his daughter may have another story, maybe not.
This is Pearl and Grandpa Deeds in 1945. She would have been around thirty years of age.
Cousin Shirley needs to tell me more about these pictures, I don't have dates or places to help me tell a story here. GG tells us that Pearl quit school early to go to work as a waitress. She says that the money and restaurant left overs that Pearl brought home kept the family going at times. She also remembers that Pearl could sew (as could Grandma Golden, but more along the lines of mending, not making) and that Pearl reconditioned outfits worn by her and Neva for GG to wear to high school. When you look at the pictures of GG, you are likely to see some of Neva's fur trimmed finery on GG's skinny frame courtesey of Pearl's agile needlework. Times were harder for these young women than we can imagine,
ninos. The hard parts crushed the softness right out of their lives, yet the fragile bonds of affection survived. Older shared with younger, food, clothing and if necessary, shelter. What is it like to be terribly hungry and to give part of what little food we have to someone else, and give it freely, not because someone makes us do it? Your GG never failed to offer food from her plate to everyone at table. It was ingrained, never to let your companions go hungry while you have food to share. At a restaurant, she set aside a portion of her meal and wrapped it to take home "for later." GG never had a hungry day after she met and married Grandpa Max, but she could not change those habits learned at a table set by the hand of Starvation.
Here is one I can guess at a date, because that is Shirley at around nine months. She is a couple of years older than me, so I would guess this is taken in 1942. Pearl and Bud had a daughter Peggy Lee who was born first and only lived a few months. I have a picture of her, but again do not know the story of Peggy.
This may have been Pearl's picture about the time she would have graduated from high school, if she had finished. Isn't she beautiful,
ninos? Some things I remember about her are that she was sweet and calm and womanly. She always welcomed you with such pleasure, she seemed surprised and delighted at the same time whenever your uncle Judd or GG and I would appear on her doorstep. She had a throaty coo and a lilt to her voice that is impossible to describe. A fabulous cook (gourmet level, she eventually started a catering business in a very small town filled with good cooks, and was quite successful) she sat you down and fed you no matter the time of day. Her sisters all asked for her recipes and then complained when their dishes did not turn out as well. They suspected she left something out of the recipe on purpose. More likely Pearl put more into the preparation than a recipe could tell you. She just had a way with food, and she wanted the people who ate her cooking to enjoy it, not for her benefit but for theirs. After I saw
Gone with the Wind (a movie,
ninos, you may not have seen it yet) I always thought of Pearl as the character Melanie, the mature one, competent, capable, beautiful without making you jealous. I liked Pearl a lot, but I really don't know more of her story, and now she is gone I wish I had asked lots more questions.
Aunt Pearl was born first, in 1915 or 1916 or thereabouts. Her younger sisters Neva and Marguerite (your great-grandmother GG) always said "Mom only had one child and that was Pearl" and "Pearl was Mom's favorite" and similar statements. They were not so much jealous of Pearl as they were just annoyed that Grandma Golden gave a lot of attention to her first born. She also relied on Pearl to be her helper, which Pearl always was. Grandma Golden depended on Pearl for many things both as a child and later on. Pearl never let her down. I'm not sure Neva and GG always saw it that way, sibling rivalry being what it is and all.
Uncle Bud was very handsome. He came from a family of gifted, creative people. They sang and danced and (in Bud's case at least) whistled. GG says he could whistle a tune and make you think it was an orchestra playing. He hunted and fished and poached game right alongside Grandpa Deeds which must have delighted and gratified Grandpa immensely. He also whittled and carved many beautiful and functional things from wood and deer antlers. I never heard him raise his voice although cousin Shirley his daughter may have another story, maybe not.
This is Pearl and Grandpa Deeds in 1945. She would have been around thirty years of age.
Cousin Shirley needs to tell me more about these pictures, I don't have dates or places to help me tell a story here. GG tells us that Pearl quit school early to go to work as a waitress. She says that the money and restaurant left overs that Pearl brought home kept the family going at times. She also remembers that Pearl could sew (as could Grandma Golden, but more along the lines of mending, not making) and that Pearl reconditioned outfits worn by her and Neva for GG to wear to high school. When you look at the pictures of GG, you are likely to see some of Neva's fur trimmed finery on GG's skinny frame courtesey of Pearl's agile needlework. Times were harder for these young women than we can imagine, ninos. The hard parts crushed the softness right out of their lives, yet the fragile bonds of affection survived. Older shared with younger, food, clothing and if necessary, shelter. What is it like to be terribly hungry and to give part of what little food we have to someone else, and give it freely, not because someone makes us do it? Your GG never failed to offer food from her plate to everyone at table. It was ingrained, never to let your companions go hungry while you have food to share. At a restaurant, she set aside a portion of her meal and wrapped it to take home "for later." GG never had a hungry day after she met and married Grandpa Max, but she could not change those habits learned at a table set by the hand of Starvation.
Here is one I can guess at a date, because that is Shirley at around nine months. She is a couple of years older than me, so I would guess this is taken in 1942. Pearl and Bud had a daughter Peggy Lee who was born first and only lived a few months. I have a picture of her, but again do not know the story of Peggy.
This may have been Pearl's picture about the time she would have graduated from high school, if she had finished. Isn't she beautiful, ninos? Some things I remember about her are that she was sweet and calm and womanly. She always welcomed you with such pleasure, she seemed surprised and delighted at the same time whenever your uncle Judd or GG and I would appear on her doorstep. She had a throaty coo and a lilt to her voice that is impossible to describe. A fabulous cook (gourmet level, she eventually started a catering business in a very small town filled with good cooks, and was quite successful) she sat you down and fed you no matter the time of day. Her sisters all asked for her recipes and then complained when their dishes did not turn out as well. They suspected she left something out of the recipe on purpose. More likely Pearl put more into the preparation than a recipe could tell you. She just had a way with food, and she wanted the people who ate her cooking to enjoy it, not for her benefit but for theirs. After I saw Gone with the Wind (a movie, ninos, you may not have seen it yet) I always thought of Pearl as the character Melanie, the mature one, competent, capable, beautiful without making you jealous. I liked Pearl a lot, but I really don't know more of her story, and now she is gone I wish I had asked lots more questions. 
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