Recently in Family Category

I've been really excited about this since I first heard about it this fall. We loved "Band of Brothers" and can't wait to watch "The Pacific" tonight!

My dad was in WWII and in the Pacific theater. He didn't talk about it much, but he did write letters home regularly--the last letters I think he ever wrote, I think! There is a box of letters from his time in WWII, but none afterwards...

Here's one:

Philippines
April 10, 1945

Dear Mama,

I rec. several letters from you and Gladys today sure was glad to hear from you.

I don't guess you have thought about it, but this is my Birthday. One year ago yesterday, I was home, but it feels like it has been several years of course it is not so bad here I like it here ok. You asked me if I had been to Manila. Yes I have been there on pass. I know it was a nice place before the war, but now it is not much left there.

I have had some pictures made and they came out ok, so I sent them back to have some more made like them and I will get them tomorrow and send you some I want to send you one of each.

Is Bobby going to get to finish this year of school or are they going to take him on to the Army?

Does Natalie think as much of Bobby as he does her and will Mrs. Cogle let her go out with Bobby or don't she like him?

Do you ever see Edward Agee now?

I guess Antoinette still gets everything she wants.

Well I guess I had better close now but I will write again soon. P.S. Did you send Virginia's pictures to her.

Love Clark

[for reference, Gladys was my father's sister--my Aunt Gladys who lived in Alaska for years before finally retiring in Linden, Alabama. Bobby was my father's brother: the youngest of the family. Antoinette was my father's first (I think) niece, born to my Aunt Margaret.]

Wow. It has been three years. It seems forever, but also just yesterday when Mama was taken away. It somehow makes it that much harder that it is one week from her birthday. I miss her so much.

I've been going through old letters she sent (I promise not to continue to post them), and found the following one she sent me when I turned 25. It is VERY self-indulgent on my part to post, but Mama's not around to say such nice things about me anymore, so thought I'd put it out there anyway.

Here it is:

My dear Joe,

It seems impossible that you are to be 25 Saturday! How proud we were of that tiny bit of love--Dr.  Henry's "pea mite." Since then you have been my "raison d'etre." It has been our pleasure to see you mature--and with many uncompromising traits. Just thank you for being you, for showing tender love and true caring for your family. For whatever we have done, over protectiveness included, it was done in the name of love.

Have a happy birthday and please know that I love you with all my heart.

Mama

October 27

I Miss her so much. She really was such a wonderful person. If half the things in her letter to me were accurate, I'd be delighted. But it all came from having such a loving and caring family. Mama, you were the greatest!

Mama would have been 86 years old today. I miss her so much. She brought a lot of good into the world, including all 6 of us. Below is  part of a letter she wrote a few years ago just after her birthday. I wish I had inherited her letter-writing abilities (or at least took the time she always managed to find to write)...

Dear Joe,

It's 11:15 and can you believe that I have a few minutes to call my own! (It's because I've left the kitchen porch "as is" for the time being.)

It's so pretty here--the redbuds are in bloom, all the white bushes and the daffodils, plus the hyacinths are so pretty.

Billy Milstead just stood and looked around and remarked, "Everywhere you look you see pretty!" He also talked about so many pines in general everywhere else, but hardwoods surrounding us.

You want believe this, but it is now nearly two o'clock as I've had to stop at least a dozen times for some incidental thing, but for Papa it can't wait! For instance, "The mail came. Reckon my medicine is there?" A walk to the mailbox, of course I must get the scissors to clip the end of each piece of mail--mostly junk, but it must be taken care of!

I must stop now as I need to get ready to take Papa for a drive after he finishes lunch.

I love you,
Mama

February 26

Happy Birthday to the person that made me the person I am today (at least the good parts!)

Had to search through some old boxes for a book I needed to complete a project this afternoon. No luck with the book, of course, but did manage to come across a nice letter. Really reminded me of Mama. People do not send letters like this anymore. She managed to share a tidbit that might help me with our backyard, tell a cute story about racoons, remind me about Ms. Florence Mooring, inform me that my shoes (hastily forgotten on my previous visit) would arrive with my sister and that my niece had found a job. Oh, and she shared information about my dad. Oh, how I miss her.

Here is the letter:

Dear Joe,

Just today I went through a stock of papers and this backyard with fountain just happened to be among them. I thought you might get some ideas.

Guess what? Today I noticed some movement of the trumpet vine that remains on the side porch. Slowly, very slowly, there emerged three very small raccoons--getting off the roof onto the downspout. The mother was very patient. The coons were very cautious. I decided to call Florence and see if she could bring Ashley to see them. While I waited for them, I watched them climb down to the porch, explore everything on it, and then disappear before Ashley got here. How sad! I did fix her some cookies to take with her.

Did you hear more movement than usual when you were here? I don't know how, but I believe they've been in the attic.

Julia will bring your shoes when she comes for her doctor's appointment. I'm sure Stacy will be with her. She, too, has an appointment, I think. I understand that she has been accepted as Special Education instructor at the high school in Thomasville. She also interviewed in Grove Hill, but this will be easier for her--no travel.

I plan to go see Papa tomorrow. I went yesterday and things are about the same.

July 27

I love you,

Mama

Christmas 2009 in Octagon. Got to see my very photogenic great niece along with my sister and her grandmother Julia.

Thanks to one of my sisters for sending this photo of Mama (front row second from left). Linden High School, Linden, Alabama.

What a wonderful thing. So much sadness in the world and in our family these last few years, it is a good thing to have a beautiful baby girl to come in and brighten the world.

My niece, Dawn, just had a baby girl!

Marcella Renee Dailey
Date of Birth: June 21, 2009
Time of Birth: 5:04 p.m.
Weight:  8 pounds 5 ounces
Length: 20 1/4"

Top picture: new Mom Dawn with Marcella (that, by the way, was my mother's first name, though she was always called Inez, or more frequently, Mama!).

Bottom picture: Morgan, my very first great niece (and yes, she is great) with Marcee.

Well, I didn't go. I was here working the whole time.

But sisters Julia and Madeline went with my adorable grand niece Morgan. Here they are not looking at all worse for the travels after stopping by to pick up a car.

Really pleased that Ann's great uncle (Lacy Weston, the last veteran interviewed in this short clip) was able to make this trip to the WWII memorial. My father would have LOVED to have gone on one of these trips. Wish he could have. Any veterans who can should go now. Tennessee Valley Honor Flight marks seventh trip to Washington, D.C.

Well, I've been quite a bit less than diligent about updating my blog lately. It isn't for lack of activity--it is for lack of time!

I just finished a newsletter for the American Mining Insurance Group, I have been working on a website blog (using wordpress) for Holmestead Farms outside of Marion, Alabama, I've been doing some routine updates for Brombergs, Underwoods and Alabama Communities of Excellence as well as my usual Your Town Alabama work.

Discovered that the mailing company that has been handling the Sierra Club's bi-monthly newsletter is shutting their doors for good (we've been planning to go to an all digital newsletter anyway, so this may simply speed up that process).

I've been playing around of flickr a bit more and trying to get a handle on twitter (I now have several accounts). The biggest thing though, is our home renovations. Cousin Kevin "Chunk" Mitchell brought a beautiful armoire to our house on Friday night. Beautiful but EXTREMELY HEAVY! It weighs 750 pounds and will house our television soon. For now it is living in our dining room. We're done with painting the dining room and we have our new Bear Creek Glass Chandelier hung (see below for a full room view and a closeup of the hand blown globe!). But the biggest news of all, I think, is that we've decided to go with the Marvin windows. Casement all-wood windows in our living and dining rooms. Very excited!

Update: Obituary found here>>>

Someone who meant the world to me growing up died unexpectedly yesterday: Dave Nelson. He retired from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources about a year ago. I'd like to write something a bit more about this later, but really just wanted to say something now:

I first met Dave Nelson when I was probably 5 years old. I may have been a little older or a little younger, but let's just call it 5. My Uncle Bill Watts lived in Florence, Alabama and had a cabin in Waterloo. My father loved to go there and visit and would go for several nights at a time. I don't know the full story, but Dave was working nearby, in Cherokee, Alabama, I think, with the Fish and Game Dept. or perhaps the Dept. of Natural Resources even then. He was an expert on wild turkeys and was using radio collars to track them and learn more about their behavior. My Uncle Bill was also involved with Fish and Game and I guess that's how they met. My father and Dave met sometime after that and, I guess, hit it off immediately.

Dave started coming to Octagon to visit soon after that. He LOVED to hunt turkeys and one thing Octagon had in abundance at that time was turkeys. He would come for several days, perhaps even a week, staying with us and eating breakfast. My sister Madeline was once asked how well she knew Dave. Her reply: "He's seen me in my night gown." That apparently always got odd looks!

Though Dave loved to hunt turkeys, he would always find the time to take little squirmy, twitchy, can't be still me out in the woods with him. He taught me a lot: how to build a blind, how to shoot, and so much more. He had a nifty wicker backpack that he kept filled with woodsman supplies like an axe, a little shovel, matches, etc. I thought he was the coolest thing in the whole world. And I'm pretty sure that, in a wilderness setting, Dave would have taken Daniel Boone and shown him a thing or two. I think that for a little while, I sort of suspected he was Davy Crockett.

I remember visiting his trailer in Cherokee (he was I guess just out of college a few years before--though to me he seemed like an elder statesman) and he showed me some of the many things he was proud of. I recall having burgers there--though I'm not sure. There is another story that I've always loved about Dave feeding Connie, his soon to be wife, burgers made out of beaver. He knew she was the one for him when she didn't stop eating!

Dave loved Marengo County and the Black Belt so much that, when he had the chance, he moved to Forkland, Alabama (just north of Demopolis and right on the river) and put a trailer for his new family to live in. He built a beautiful house on the lot, mostly, if I recall, himself. In addition to being an amazing outdoorsman, he was quite the woodworker as well.

Dave and Connie had two boys, I grew up and moved away to college, but I always had and will always have a special place in my heart for the man who taught me so much about the outdoors and about life. Goodbye good friend. You'll be missed more than you could ever know.

So many great things come from connecting with family. Cousin Kevin "Chunk" Mitchell has been helping us with our house--and we really, really needed the help. He was here several weeks ago to give us some ideas and see our house for the first time. We were talking and exchanging some photos. He told me about this photo and it certainly isn't one I'd seen before. My Uncle Clifford and Aunt Phebe Mitchell getting married. The man on the far right is my father, best man to the groom.

Not a lot to say today, really. Just really missing my Mama. She was born Feb. 23, 1924 and she was taken 2 years ago today. I had planned to write something, but just don't really have the energy. A tribute to her is how we all live our lives. That's the most important thing I can say. I intend to do my part as best I can.

My Mama, Inez Hinson, was born today in 1924. What a fitting time of the year for her to have been born: she really seemed to relish this time of year. The passing of winter was certainly her least favorite season--and it would have been your least favorite season too if you lived in a house with as little insulation as our house in Octagon had when she was growing up! The first signs of spring are already bursting forth into bloom. Camilla's blooming everywhere, the bulbs of thousands of daffodils in full bloom--this is the spring Mama loved. Green starting to dot the landscape with color for the first time in months; spring in Octagon was always a special time.

I got to visit with my cousin Kevin "Chunk" Mitchell over the weekend (he came to help us with doing some renovations on our house--very excited about that, but more on that in a later post). Getting a chance to visit him and talk with him about family, to catch up, to hear about everyone, really drove the point about that strong Hinson gene and the power of family. Mama was a firm believer and I'm sure she would be delighted to know that Chunk and I were reconnecting!