Vern’s Stories: Reminiscing About Daddy and Mother - Forrest and Edith Harris
From the memories of Genevieve, Patricia and Darleene At "Sister Week" - May 14-18, 2001
Our Dad, Forrest Harris, thought he could do anything, just anything, and he just about could. Daddy tried to instill in his children that they could do anything they set their minds to, and he did a pretty good job of it. His three sons, Vernon, Glenn and Ralph seemed to adopt the same attitude and were not afraid to try almost anything. I, Genevieve, grew up confident I had the ability to do almost anything I wanted to do, but acknowledged there were many things I didn't want to do. I believe Nelliemay had the same inclination. No doubt, it rubbed off on Pat and Darleene, too
Daddy was quite a story teller and he had hundreds of stories, one for every occasion. He could talk for hours about his experiences, and did, especially when he and another man were chewing the fat. I must admit, his stories were decidedly interesting. I (Genevieve) always liked to go places, so would jump at the chance to go with Daddy to do some errands. Then when he and one of his cronies were swapping yarns for what seemed like hours, I would wish I hadn't gone and would tug on his arm and say, "Let's go, Daddy." He would say "O.K.," but that didn't mean we were leaving anytime soon. I expect Pat and Darleene remember waiting for Daddy when he and an acquaintance were talking, talking, talking. Unquestionably Vernon inherited his father's story-telling ability and has delighted the family with his stories, especially since we finally got him to write out some of his experiences. He is the family story teller extraordinaire. Vern's grandson, Jim Cox, seems to have a talent in this department, too.
Daddy loved Mexican food, and he liked it as hot as any Mexican could eat it. He loved chorizos, which he call "toreeses." When we lived in Santa Monica, he often picked up homemade tamales from a Mexican place so I think most of us kids learned to like hot foods, too. Mother didn't like food that was too spicy or hot, probably because she had trouble with her stomach. She used to take soda in a glass of water when she had indigestion. She did have an ulcer in her stomach and when it perforated in I946, we nearly lost her. That was a scare for all of us. Daddy loved butter but didn't care for margarine. If that was all we had, he would say, "Don't give me that old skid grease." He also loved meat with lots of fat on it. He also wanted his eggs cooked just so—that is, hardly cooked at all. After breaking the eggs in the frying pan, we cooked them just long enough so they would hang together, turn them over, then dish them up in his plate, with the whites and yolks still soft and runny. When we lived at Muroc, I (Genevieve) can remember that several times Daddy cooked a Mexican dinner for the family, and boy, did he make it hot! We kids were so thrilled that Daddy would cook dinner for us, that we would eat the unbearably hot food and with tears running down our faces, we would say, "Oh, Daddy, this is so good!"
Daddy and his sisters and brothers had large eyes, some of them slightly bulging eyes. He almost always had dark circles under his eyes, especially as he got older. Glenn, too, often had dark circles under his eyes. Glenn's grandson Donnie also has dark circles under his eyes.
It was very hard to get any money out of Daddy, not that he had a lot of money, but he held tightly on to what he had. If Mother had any money, she would give it to us if there was a real need. I (Genevieve) always went to her first but if she didn't have any money, then I had to approach Daddy. When I attended high school, the country was in the great depression. If I needed ten cents, I always asked him for a quarter, because of how difficult the process was. When I told Daddy I needed a quarter to buy some notebook paper and other things for school, he usually ranted and raved for a little while, saying, "You kids must think money grows on trees!" and other various sayings. All the while I would be telling him that I had to have notebook paper, etc. for school that day, and we had to leave to catch the bus right away. My persistence finally paid off and he would dig down deep and give me a quarter. I was extremely frugal with what money I received and was able to purchase a school annual by paying for it a nickel or a dime at a time during the school year. I must confess that I was very persistent and would stoop to begging for something I wanted badly. I admit, I was a selfish kid. When I was going to graduate from high school in 1938, I begged Mama to buy me a $25.00 watch from the Sears, Roebuck catalog. That was the cheapest price for a watch but it was a large sum of money then. Mother ordered it for me without telling Daddy and then he was angry at Mama for some time, because she had spent so much money on a graduation gift for me. That was my very first watch. One of Daddy's sayings we have all heard was, "I remember when a loaf of bread only cost five cents."
Daddy loved little kids and in my (Genevieve) early memories of him, Nelliemay and I were sitting on his lap with his arms around us, one on each side, and he was rocking and singing to us. We have seen him down through the years, bouncing little kids on his knee, usually his children or grandchildren, and singing, "Trot, trot to town, to get a loaf of bread. Trot, trot back and the old trot's dead.” Daddy liked to sing little ditties—some he made up as he went along- and he made them rhyme.
Our Mother, Edith Harris, would have made a wonderful school teacher, like her mother. We were blessed that she was a stay-at-home mother who loved her children and constantly taught them. She talked to us whenever we were around, sharing things she had learned in life. We could ask her anything and she would give us an honest and direct answer. She knew her Bible very well and could explain anything we asked about. She read books, magazines and her Bible so she kept herself well-informed, even without radio or television. She had a mission to instill certain values in each one of her children. She was not overly strict and gave her children the option of making many of their own decisions. She taught us to think for ourselves.
A hard worker, Mama worked long hours without seeming to be extremely tired; she may have had a good active thyroid. When we lived at Muroc, things were rather primitive and Mama had to wash all the clothes on a wash board and hang them on the line, whether it was cold weather, hot or a cold wind was blowing. At times the clothes froze on the line. Out on the open back porch, she had to scrub Daddy and my brothers’ heavy overalls on the board, plus sheets, tablecloths and all the other clothes. When we left for school about 6:30 a.m. she was heating up the wash water and when we returned about 5:30 p.m., sometimes she was still washing. She was always up early in the morning, fixing a hearty breakfast for her family and many times she was up late at night, sewing a new dress for one of her girls. She knew what hard work was.
Mama used to read out loud to the family in the evening. She probably read some of the classics and we loved it. We sat on the floor, stretched out on the couch, played checkers, did some hand sewing or we may have poked at each other as she read, but we did not miss a word of the story. I think we all developed a love for books and reading. The first few years at Muroc, we did not have a radio or any other form of entertainment except for a phonograph. We had memorized almost all the songs and the ''Uncle Josh" comedy sketches on the records, so it was refreshing to listen to Mama read.
Mama admitted that she worried sometimes about whether they had enough money to live on and about her family's safety. When Daddy drove to Los Angeles and was very late getting home, she worried that he had been in an accident or that he had car trouble. Sometimes she let her fears wander to the point that she began planning Daddy's funeral and what she would do if he was killed. Though she had prayed earnestly for his safe return, when she found herself contemplating the worst, it was time to commit him completely to the Lord. Although Mama may have worried, she did her best to instill in her children that we should trust the Lord in all things and should not worry.
Mama wrote long detailed letters to her mother about her life and family. In turn Grandma kept us informed about the things going on in the Murdy family. When any of us were away, especially when we got married and moved away, we could always depend on Mama's epistles keeping us informed on the latest news of all the family. What a blessing that was! When she visited our homes, she always wanted to help out, and doing the dishes for us was one of her favorite things to do. We always appreciated that.
When Pat and Darleene were growing up, they thought Mama was easy on them. "Run along," she would say, "I'd rather do it myself. You are only young once. I want you to enjoy your childhood. You'll be grown up soon enough and you'll have to work hard. I want you to enjoy yourself now." Genevieve also remembers how unselfish Mama was. When we went to church in the evening, we barely had time to eat supper and get ready. Sometimes we cleared the table and Mama put away the left-overs. When we got home and probably should have done the dishes, she would say, "It is late; go on to bed and I'll do these dishes tomorrow." After we got a piano, Mama would say to me, "You practice the piano and I will take care of the dishes." I would gladly do that because I loved to practice and Mama loved to hear me play.
Mama couldn't seem to get her tongue around the word "Massachusetts." When Glenn was in the service during World War II and was stationed there, every time she tried to say the word, she couldn't say it right. She said she sure wished Glenn would be transferred to another state that she could pronounce.
Daddy liked to tease Mama by bringing up a sore point, trying to get her ire up. He liked to heckle her about her "Irish." Her father was Irish and he had a temper that could erupt like a volcano. Daddy picked on things he knew Mama would get easily irritated about, then would keep it up until she got really mad. Then he would say, "Oh, Mama, I was just kidding you." She sometimes cried because she thought he was being cruel when he implied that she had not done things right, especially when she thought she had worked so hard.
Although Mama was a very kind-hearted person, there was one thing that tickled her funny bone and that was seeing someone fall. Even though she did not want anyone to get hurt, she couldn't seem to keep from laughing. When Daddy was courting Mama on his motorcycle, the tandem broke and Mama fell off the bike right in the middle of the main street of Redlands. Years latter when she was relating the story, she just had to laugh out loud when she thought about what it looked like to the people on the street who observed the incident.
One winter when I was in high school, I had a wart on my elbow. It was so provoking to me because I was always bumping it on something and it would bleed and get blood on my jacket or other clothes. One day I was bemoaning to Mama how terrible it was for me. My voice had reached a high whining pitch as I said, "Of all places for a wart to be—it couldn't be on a worse place." Mama replied, "You should be glad it isn't on the end of your nose." Though she was sympathetic to our real hurts or pains, she wouldn't let us feel sorry for ourselves, but in her wisdom, would point out what we should be thankful for.
Mama had a variety of sayings to fit into most any situation at hand. Here are a few that we remember:
1. "Straighten up and get the hump off your back. Pull your shoulders back."
2. "For goodness sakes, snap out of it." (No pity parties for us.)
3. "Don't put in writing what you don't want the whole world to know." (No notes in school)
4. "Just give it a lick and a promise." (This meant, don't spend too much time on a project.)
5. Mama would say we were ''too hard on the cream" or whatever she thought we were using in excess.
Mama said breakfast for her was the most important meal of the day. She said if she could only have one meal a day—it would be breakfast. She didn't think she was a good cook. Perhaps she was comparing herself to her sisters. When she was growing up, she worked out in the field helping "Papa" while most of her sisters worked in the kitchen with "Mama," therefore she didn't get as much experience. She raised seven children and they all loved her cooking and so did Daddy. On a winter evening, nothing was better than coming home to a warm, cozy kitchen and Mama's cooking. Sometimes it was a big kettle of rice cooked with raisins. Add to that milk, cream or butter and cinnamon and your stomach was fully satisfied. Other times it was a big kettle of steaming hot tomato soup with crackers or toast. She made it with canned tomatoes heated in one kettle, with an equal amount of milk heated in another kettle. When both were heated, she added a teaspoon of soda to the tomatoes and quickly put them together, adding a big gob of butter and salt and pepper. Ummmm, good!
With lots of extra milk Mama often made a big kettle of tapioca pudding or chocolate pudding. If she made chocolate, she had to also make some vanilla pudding for Daddy. The pudding was delicious topped with nice thick cream or milk. Many times because of an abundance of milk, Mama made "drowned potatoes," which we all loved. She cut up potatoes and onions, cooked them, added milk, butter, salt and pepper. We ate it in separate bowls. She used to bake a can of spam or ham, score the top, pour over it a mixture of brown sugar, mustard and vinegar.
The whole family made a project of canning pears in August. We brought them from Littlerock, where during the depression, the price of pears was so cheap, the growers couldn't make enough to ship them out, so hauled them out in the desert and dumped them. We picked out the nicest ones and brought them home. When the pears began to ripen in a few days, we had a big job on our hands and we all put our shoulders to the wheel. One ingenious member of the family made special instruments to remove the cores. We all peeled pears and Mama oversaw the cooking and canning of them in quart or half-gallon jars. At least once we filled a five-gallon square can with hot pears and sealed the cover with sealing wax. I must say, in the winter when we opened that large can of pears, it took awhile to use it up and we all got rather tired of canned pears.
These are the memories of Daddy and Mama that we thought of, talked about and laughed ourselves silly over last May at "Sister Week." Perhaps this year when we have "Sibling Week" and Vern joins us with his wonderful memory, we can recall some other things.
--March 29, 2002-
We had our "Sibling week" on April 20-27, 2002 On Monday morning, Vern drove us up to Big Bear where we stayed in Margie and Chuck Lundie's cabin near the Lake. We, Vernon, Genevieve, Patricia and Darleene ate, slept, read and played games besides taking some trips around the area. We left Big Bear on Friday morning and drove to Santa Monica where Vern and Genevieve showed Pat and Darleene where we lived, went to school and church during the era of 1922-1929. We then drove to Granada Hills and had dinner with Margie and Chuck and family.
REMINISCING ABOUT DADDY AND MOTHER Forrest and Edith Harris
From the memories of Vernon, Genevieve, Patricia and Darleene At "Sibling Week" - April 20-27, 2002
When Daddy came to the desert, he thought he was too old to start over. He was only 41 years old. He said he had made a fortune several times and lost it. ( 1 ) Farming in Santa Ana and running a restaurant that served lunch for people who worked at the sugar factory and other factories around. His well on the farm sanded up so he gave up. ( 2 ) House-moving business in Santa Monica - Daddy bought Uncle Bert out - then Uncle Bert went to Los Angeles and bought new house-moving equipment. Daddy felt that he couldn't compete against Uncle Bert. ( 3 )Later Daddy and Mama had a grocery store - it did well for a while but people charged groceries and when their bill got high, instead of paying, they began buying groceries elsewhere. When they left the business, they were owed thousands of dollars which they couldn't collect. The depression was on and it was hard to find a job when they moved to the desert. Dad said he wanted to work for something for his kids.
Daddy talked about a lizard whose tail was cut off and it grew back. He told Pat and Darleene that snakes grew out of horses' tails in the horse trough. Daddy's value of things depended upon whether someone else wanted it. If no one wanted something, he was ready to give it away, but if someone was interested in it, Daddy's price went up!
Things Mother used to say: "I'm eating this banana to save its life! (A banana or something that was so ripe that it might spoil in a day or two) "It will never show on a galloping goose." (pertaining to having everything just right when sewing a dress) "When you go on a trip be sure you have on clean underwear and have clean feet, in case you get in an accident." She talked about milk going downhill - also fruit or left-overs that were almost spoiled. She said, "Daddy never does anything by halves!"
Mama said it was such a waste when a tall man married a short girl. The tall men should marry tall girls, she thought. I laughed and said if tall men married only tall girls and short men married only short girls, after awhile we would only tall or short people and no one in between.
Vern said that when Joy was young she said, “Daddy, aren’t they ever going to put black frosting on this road?”
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