Grandma's Gleanings
Words and Thoughts from Grandma
Surrounding our small country cottage is a canopy of lovely, mature maple trees, providing us shade from the heat of summer and a beautiful tapestry of color in the fall. But there is that moment every year when I sincerely ponder having those trees felled to the ground. God provides the maple tree seed …
Run for Your Lives! On June 1, 1889, newspapers across the United States bore the news that Johnstown, Pennsylvania, had been ravaged by the most devastating flood in our young nation’s history. Johnstown, comprised of German and Welsh immigrants, was a growing and industrious community, well-known for the high quality of steel produced there. …
When we were youngsters, my dear sister was always on the lookout for creative expansion in our lives. She surpassed me in her boldness and adventure seeking, and thankfully, she would often drag her less outgoing, more reluctant, baby sister with her. I did learn a lot during the lets-try-ceramics phase of life, when …
This has been one weird winter here in western Pennsylvania! The past few days have been short sleeve/flip flop weather…downright balmy…tempting us with thoughts of spring. Our outdoor kitties are contentedly sprawled out on the deck, taking in every warm ray of sunshine. I’m sure that even one or two confused crocuses were tempted …
He was just a high school kid, trying to find a part-time job to help cover his college fees, car expenses, and provide a bit of spending money. Who would have known that years later, that job would morph into a living, as he would become the store manager of that establishment? This young …
Perched along the shore of freshwater Lake Michigan, Chicago is the third most populous city in the United States, and the fifth most populated metropolis in all North America. But in October 8, 1871, a huge conflagration, fed by a period of hot, dry, windy weather, and fueled by the wooden construction prevalent throughout …
Does anyone know where they go? How is it that a harried housewife can have ten socks go into the dryer, and only nine survive the process? Is there a secret escape hatch inside that metal cylinder that serves as a time-travel portal to a parallel universe where socks find a respite from smelly …
There is nothing quite so satisfying on a brisk winter night as a bowl of rich, hearty soup. My dad, a first-generation immigrant from Italy, was a pure master when it came to the kitchen, especially regarding soups and stews. One trip to the small garden in our back yard and he could throw together …
Have you ever been pushed to the point where there was a burr under your saddle? That idiomatic phrase is used when something or someone in your life is extremely irritating or aggravating. Many plants produce burrs as part of their reproductive system, small seed pods which have stiff barbs, spines, or hooks around …
Oh, we endured the moaning for YEARS: Mommy, please, can I have my ears pierced, please, everyone else does; why can’t I, please! But Dad had spoken, and she would be waiting until she was sixteen, like it or not. Of course, old Mom was stuck in the middle, submitting to the authority of …
A tragic incident occurred recently on one of the major thoroughfares traversing our state, leaving in its wake twisted metal and mangled lives. Sixty travelers were rushed to local hospitals due to their injuries, but the most devastating news was that five souls had lost their lives on that fateful morning, regular people like …
It was a rite of passage in our home, a bit of a peek into the window of adulthood, a first step towards independence. One by one our youngsters left the freedoms of childhood behind them and took on the responsibility of their first official job. For one, it was as a scooping ice …
I recall the field trip as clearly as if it happened yesterday. Baldinger’s Food from All the Nations, a small store nestled near the town of Zelienople, Pennsylvania, was established in 1933 and was brimming with all you needed to satiate your sweet tooth. Our students, armed with envelopes of spending money, could hardly …
Recently I had the opportunity to stroll through a local park where I had passed many a childhood summer day. Armed with a grandchild in each hand, we walked up to the old chain-link fence surrounding a small, shallow baby pool. How many days I had passed puddling around this teeny water haven, deeply …
I just don’t understand it, I can sit down to a healthy meal, salmon, fresh salads, fruits and vegetables; I can munch through that nutritious combo to the point of full, yet not be content. But give me one yummy peanut butter Reese’s cup, or a few Hershey kisses, or some delectable donuts, and …