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Things My Grandmother Told Me By Laura A. Brown Ontario's First Prize Essay in the ACWW Essay Competition 1959 How far away it seems â€" and yet as yesterday. those dear eyes have been closed for almost thirty ..ears; those busy hands have been still so long. Born in Woolwich Township, Waterloo County. it the early 1830‘s, Grandmother lived all her life it the same community. Her parents were of jnglish stock, and had settled in Winterbourne fter Coming from the State of Vermont, .here they had first lived after emigrating tom the Old Country. Grandma married when bout thirty-seven years of age, and was almost evenly when I, her first grandchild, was born. lcedless to say, I was made a great deal of, and any were the interesting stories she related to me. One poignant event she used to tell of the early lys was when Asiatic Cholera was raging through .c country. A family had been noticed settling rther back in the woods. then sickness hit their to home, so that no visit had been paid to the wcomers. One day her father said, “Something wrong up the road in the new cabin â€" there is -. smoke. We must go and see." They found a :in and his wife nearly dead with Cholera. and a or wee baby boy crying in his cradle. They ryed with the stricken folk and comforted them best they could, but help had come too late. id when they died, Great Grandfather carried the de fellow home. They did not know the name his family so they called him John Goodchild. stayed with them on their own. and when own to manhood, went to the West as a Method minister. My Grandmother's teachings have followed me wn through the yEarS. I remember her saying. 'ever forget, Cleanliness is next to Godliness“; d again. “Never put off till to-morrow. what :u can do to-day“; another hit of advice f "A 1ch in time saves nine" â€" how neat those ‘ches were â€" how orderly her sewing basket. i you have nothing good to say of a person. say ' tihing." This axiom has come back to the re- atedly when I have been tempted to speak crit- .l|y of others. Undertakers were very scarce in the early days. Id Grandma was often called when death visited - neighbouring household. How many times she JSed the sightless eyes and folded the tired hands. ‘Iiere were the little ones, who scarcely knowing :u, were taken away with one of the treacherous ‘t'lidemics prevalent in those days. A VENUE "sphew on the next farm developed the dread “’Phtheria â€" a homemade swab was being Used "‘ try to keep the throat open â€" the swab be- me loose and the poor child choked to death ~ the next night the tiny sister died of the same ail» €719n1â€"â€" “HOW grim were those days! And they are L-ll buried in the old Churchyard." Her own small l:‘I‘Olher, Tommy, was subject to croup. One night. uuring a particularly bad spasm, he strangled â€"â€" there was no help, and so he slipped away; but FALL 1959 “All was not trouble.“ she would say â€" “The fun we had! Quiltings. tea meetings, concerts. My first party dress was of salmon silk and was made for me when I was twentyeone. Parties! We played games and danced “The Lancers' to the music of the violin." One game was called the Philippine. Partners were chaser-1. hazelnuts were distributed, the nuts were broken open. If a twin nut was found by a couple. that couple was supposed to be partners for life. "It didn't always work out that way, but it caused a lot of amusement." When a baby announced its coming into the world. Grandmother was frequently asked to help. While this event usually brought joy to the home, it was a time of great anxiety. All too often tragedy would strike, leaving a motherless family. Doctors were so few and so far away. Pro-natal care was unheard of. “The old cemeteries bear witness to this sad truth." Barn Raising; were social events in Grand- mother's youth. Men were asked to do the work and the women did the cooking. Two meals a day were served. each family returning daily. The final night, a big party on the new barn floor was always looked forward to. and “Many a girl met her mate at one of these homely functions." Grandmother’s cooking will never be forgotten é the luscious buttermilk pastry. the salt-rising bread, rivals [this was a way of making yeast which was passed from one neighbour to another), her way of making dressing, her mouth-watering gin- gerbread, her buckwheat pancakes, set to rise on the back of the massive wood stove. her fried cakes. and her apple fritters which melted in your mouth. Oh! to be a child once more in my Grandmother‘s kitchen. tasting her goodies. and listening to her tell how she made each one. The Grand River was once navigable for boats up as far as Wintci‘bournc. so Grandmother told me. and she recalled a flux mill going down the river at the time of the spring flood. Winterbourne at that time was a thriving village. with several saw mills. n tannery. two churcth and two stores. She talked of log drives on the Grand River at freshet time, of fields being cleared. logs prepared and cabins erected. The river teemed with fish, and a few minutes with rod and line provided a welcome change of diet for our pioneers. Grandmother used to tell how she fostered a romance. it seemed her friend Betsy wanted to marry the man of her choice. bill her parents were against the match. Grandma drove to Betsy’s home. and going right up to her bedroom. threw her clothing out the window to her chum waiting below. Then she stayed and visited with the parents to distract them. while the young couple slipped away to be married. “ 'Twas a happy mar- riage, I was never sorry," she would say with a chuckle. 15