Growing Up

I recently was made aware of the new google maps street view. I think most of us who have visited it have gone back and checked out the homes where we grew up. I know I did. It made me reminisce about my younger years. My mom has Alzheimer's Disease. Seeing her memory disappear has made me try to remember more about my past so I could pass along some memories to my kids, and hopefully on to their own someday.

In an earlier post I talked about spring cleaning. While cleaning my dusty room, I was reminded about a special piece of furniture that I own. Looking at the piece, you would repeat "special??" as it is nothing to look at. The special part of this little cabinet is that it was made by my Grandfather Frank Lentz. Grandpa Lentz died when I was very young so I have no memory of him. Grandma Anna Lentz died when I was very small also, probably about 8. My memory of her is singing to her while visiting her in the nursing home. She had "hardening of the arteries" among other things. I would guess now that they would call that more like Alzheimer's. She would get her medications mixed up so my Grandpa made this cabinet to keep them in. On the side of the cabinet are two little holes, which he put in so he could insert little wooden dowels and she could not open the drawers. I thought it was pretty ingenious!

As a child Memorial Day was truly for honoring the dead, not just a day off of work. We would all load up in the car (all 7 of us) and drive up North 76th Street. We would always stop at a little garden center to buy geraniums. We always bought red geraniums. Back in the car and continue north to Mill Road. On Mill Road we would go east to the Graceland Cemetary where both Grandma and Grandpa are buried. I believe I still could drive straight to their cemetary plots. Anyway, there we would plant those red geraniums and stand back and look at the headstones. As a kid I never was really very sure of what we were to do while we were just looking.