After my last post telling about my Grandma's story telling ability, I started thinking about how she got to Canada.
Grandma arrived in Canada about 1902. The real story happens before she got here.
My ancestors moved to Russia/Ukraine in the late 1700's. Catherine the Great asked Germans to come to farm and show Russians and Ukrainians how to farm more productively. My family were devote Lutherans. They were pacifists. They were promised they could keep practising their Lutheran faith, keep their German language and not be made to join an army. Over the next 100 years these things eroded away depending on the location. For example, my Grandfather was in Russian army. Land had become scarce and this meant that their children would not have the opportunity to farm and this meant that they had very little opportunity to make a living. Canada was giving land away. They did not have cash so free land looked like a golden opportunity. All the Germans learned to speak Russian and many learned Ukrainian.
My Great Grandfather was fearful that they would lose these rights. To him they were absolutely mandatory. They began to think about where to move so that they could maintain their beliefs.Two of the family were sent to Canada to look at the prospects of moving to Canada. They came back with a positive report. Plans were made and by 1900 some of the family had moved. Great Grandpa was the organizer and leader. Great Grandpa had all his adult children and their spouses move to Canada. Many of the in-laws of his children also came with this large family.
So this is how my Grandma came to Canada. She was not part of the decision making group. Some of her relatives were left behind. She kept in contact with them. My Dad also kept the contact up.
Now over a hundred years later, probably none of great Grandpa's family speak German. Very few of them follow the Lutheran faith. Many of them have been in the armed forces. Several of Great Grandpa's grandchildren fought in WW II. What would great Grandpa think today? Would he be happy how things turned out? He was a great leader and I think he would agree that he made the best decision by moving to Canada.
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Monday, April 28, 2014
Grandma Was a Story Teller
My Grandma was born in 1874 in Russia/Ukraine. She had no formal education. She learned to read though the church school. So she had a basic reading and writing level. I would think the only thing she ever read was the bible.
Grandma came to Canada in 1903.
We visited Grandma about once a week and a couple of times a year we stayed with her. Several times a year there was a large family do and our cousins were at Grandmas too.
Sometimes Grandma probably had enough with grandchildren tearing around her small house and she would get us together for a story. I guess she wanted to get control of the situation and calm us down.
Grandma would take us under the stairs which was dark and small. This was also on top of the trap door that led to the cellar. Did I tell you Grandma was four feet by four feet by four feet? So it was crowded and dark.
This was the place Grandma used for telling her stories. She certainly knew how to set the mood for her stories. She was also a master at using her voice to add to the story. She knew when a quiet voice was necessary or rapid speaking ...all techniques were used.
Grandma's stories were about wolves chasing people in Russia. Telling a story which is a chase is a standard pattern. Grandma had no problem with the story line being carried along.
Grandma's stories were always about wolves chasing people so there was always conflict.
Yes she had characterization too. The wolves were always sneaky,mean , fierce, evil beings.
Rising action was no problem. Wolves chased and got closer. The person being chased got lost or fell. Hunters came along to scare the wolves.
Sometimes there was a grisly conclusion and sometimes the person escaped. Grandma had a good sense of the horror story.
For a lady who'd never been to school she certainly knew all the elements of a short story. Her stories were always different. There were always surprises.
These stories were thrilling and we loved them. We always thought it was very funny when our little girl cousins would be scared and leave the stair well. They were always crying.
Grandma's stories were really folk lore stories from her past.
They were certainly impressive stories as I remember them from 70 years ago. I will never forget Grandma's stories. Once in a while my brother and I still talk about Grandma's stories.
So have you had the fantastic exposures to the oral story teller?
Grandma came to Canada in 1903.
We visited Grandma about once a week and a couple of times a year we stayed with her. Several times a year there was a large family do and our cousins were at Grandmas too.
Sometimes Grandma probably had enough with grandchildren tearing around her small house and she would get us together for a story. I guess she wanted to get control of the situation and calm us down.
Grandma would take us under the stairs which was dark and small. This was also on top of the trap door that led to the cellar. Did I tell you Grandma was four feet by four feet by four feet? So it was crowded and dark.
This was the place Grandma used for telling her stories. She certainly knew how to set the mood for her stories. She was also a master at using her voice to add to the story. She knew when a quiet voice was necessary or rapid speaking ...all techniques were used.
Grandma's stories were about wolves chasing people in Russia. Telling a story which is a chase is a standard pattern. Grandma had no problem with the story line being carried along.
Grandma's stories were always about wolves chasing people so there was always conflict.
Yes she had characterization too. The wolves were always sneaky,mean , fierce, evil beings.
Rising action was no problem. Wolves chased and got closer. The person being chased got lost or fell. Hunters came along to scare the wolves.
Sometimes there was a grisly conclusion and sometimes the person escaped. Grandma had a good sense of the horror story.
For a lady who'd never been to school she certainly knew all the elements of a short story. Her stories were always different. There were always surprises.
These stories were thrilling and we loved them. We always thought it was very funny when our little girl cousins would be scared and leave the stair well. They were always crying.
Grandma's stories were really folk lore stories from her past.
They were certainly impressive stories as I remember them from 70 years ago. I will never forget Grandma's stories. Once in a while my brother and I still talk about Grandma's stories.
So have you had the fantastic exposures to the oral story teller?
Friday, April 25, 2014
Betty Burned a Thousand Dollar Bill!
Some commenters can see that my cleaning is to downsize to make it easier if a move should come. I want things to be easier for someone who may have to clean up after me. We hear many sad stories of messes that were left for someone else to clean up.
My friend Betty and her brother were appointed to clean up their father's house and estate. Betty and her brother hadn't lived near their Dad but another sister had lived near her Dad and looked after him. Their Dad lived in a very small village without a bank store or other facilities. Their Dad had to go to the next town for his banking and shopping. He didn't have a car so his trips were infrequent. As a result, he was usually far behind in completing his business. He always had numerous checks in the house which weren't cashed. He used cash for all purchases and had cash in many parts of the house.
Betty and her brother worked all day finding cash and checks. They had to go through the whole house to find things. They planned to go to the bank in the next town. Before they left they started a fire in the garbage barrel to get rid of things they had discarded.
When they got back from the bank, the sister who had lived beside her Dad all her life asked, "Did you find the thousand dollar bill?" Betty replied," No! Was there a thousand dollar bill?" Then the awful truth hit her. The thousand dollar bill was in the trash barrel which had been set on fire. Betty raced out to the trash barrel and found that the fire had only smoldered. Going through the scorched and burned material she was able to find a very damaged thousand dollar bill. The thousand dollar bill was accepted by the bank.
So I'm trying to leave things in a condition that would not be too difficult for somebody to clean up. No, I don't have any thousand dollar bills. I've never had one.
I'm sure many of you have heard the horror stories of cleaning up an estate.
My friend Betty and her brother were appointed to clean up their father's house and estate. Betty and her brother hadn't lived near their Dad but another sister had lived near her Dad and looked after him. Their Dad lived in a very small village without a bank store or other facilities. Their Dad had to go to the next town for his banking and shopping. He didn't have a car so his trips were infrequent. As a result, he was usually far behind in completing his business. He always had numerous checks in the house which weren't cashed. He used cash for all purchases and had cash in many parts of the house.
Betty and her brother worked all day finding cash and checks. They had to go through the whole house to find things. They planned to go to the bank in the next town. Before they left they started a fire in the garbage barrel to get rid of things they had discarded.
When they got back from the bank, the sister who had lived beside her Dad all her life asked, "Did you find the thousand dollar bill?" Betty replied," No! Was there a thousand dollar bill?" Then the awful truth hit her. The thousand dollar bill was in the trash barrel which had been set on fire. Betty raced out to the trash barrel and found that the fire had only smoldered. Going through the scorched and burned material she was able to find a very damaged thousand dollar bill. The thousand dollar bill was accepted by the bank.
So I'm trying to leave things in a condition that would not be too difficult for somebody to clean up. No, I don't have any thousand dollar bills. I've never had one.
I'm sure many of you have heard the horror stories of cleaning up an estate.
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
What Evidence Do We Leave?
In a previous post I dealt with cleaning closets and that some of the things I found were old and not used anymore. I'm still cleaning closets. Well, I don't put in too many hours a day.
However some of the things you find bring back old memories. Today we were doing the closet with photos and various memorabilia. We got tough today and threw away many things. Who in the world keeps tourist brochures from 20 years ago? Okay, you don't have to answer that.
What I did find that brought back memories was a letter that I wrote in 1963 to my brother's gr. three class. I had just gone to teach in Inuvik , NWT. My brother's class was doing a unit on Eskimos. They decided to write me and each kid asked a question. I wrote them a very long letter. This letter brought back memories and also showed what I was like in 1963. I think I've changed since then.
I began to think about the 51 year old letter. How much of my written material is still surviving? How much material written about me is still on file? I would think that very few bits of written information about us remain.
Two days later! I've been at it again. I've found more boxes, folders and binders. I might have to change my mind. Today I found old school stuff and was surprised at how much I had. Here's a list: thank you notes, programs, awards, teacher evaluation reports, evaluations I did on teachers and student teachers, letters to my superintendent about me, professional development conferences. I was very surprised at how much I had. For most of the material , I would bring it home to show my wife and it would disappear. I naively thought it had been disposed.
Well, this material survived for a while but now it is gone. At this stage in my life I had no use for old information.
Then I started to think about the present time with the Internet. Much more material is left today. My blog leaves all kinds of information. I have pictures saved instead of lost in some box. Institutions such as government save much more information on me.
So in the future how much information will survive? Will people find more information about us? If there's more information left, researching families should give us much more information.
However some of the things you find bring back old memories. Today we were doing the closet with photos and various memorabilia. We got tough today and threw away many things. Who in the world keeps tourist brochures from 20 years ago? Okay, you don't have to answer that.
What I did find that brought back memories was a letter that I wrote in 1963 to my brother's gr. three class. I had just gone to teach in Inuvik , NWT. My brother's class was doing a unit on Eskimos. They decided to write me and each kid asked a question. I wrote them a very long letter. This letter brought back memories and also showed what I was like in 1963. I think I've changed since then.
I began to think about the 51 year old letter. How much of my written material is still surviving? How much material written about me is still on file? I would think that very few bits of written information about us remain.
Two days later! I've been at it again. I've found more boxes, folders and binders. I might have to change my mind. Today I found old school stuff and was surprised at how much I had. Here's a list: thank you notes, programs, awards, teacher evaluation reports, evaluations I did on teachers and student teachers, letters to my superintendent about me, professional development conferences. I was very surprised at how much I had. For most of the material , I would bring it home to show my wife and it would disappear. I naively thought it had been disposed.
Well, this material survived for a while but now it is gone. At this stage in my life I had no use for old information.
Then I started to think about the present time with the Internet. Much more material is left today. My blog leaves all kinds of information. I have pictures saved instead of lost in some box. Institutions such as government save much more information on me.
So in the future how much information will survive? Will people find more information about us? If there's more information left, researching families should give us much more information.
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Snow News
Here it is April 18, Good Friday, and my major news is snow. We received about 2 to 3 in. of heavy wet snow today and just for emphasis some rain. What makes this a bigger surprise is that it was not forecast.
Needless to say road conditions have been treacherous. The QE 2 has been closed south of Calgary because of too many accidents. North of Calgary the going has been very slow on the QE 2.
About half of our winter snow has melted so now we get a little new snow to top things off.
Today our sunrise was at 6:31 and sunset is at 8:39 so we get 14 hours and 8 minutes of sunshine. At one time today the ceiling was 400 ft. The ceiling is the bottom of the cloud layer. The low ceiling made for a very dull day. And also the high was plus 2 C (35 F).
At this rate it could be a very short summer.
And with that, a Happy Easter to all.
 |
| Muhgo pine and juniper loaded with snow |
Needless to say road conditions have been treacherous. The QE 2 has been closed south of Calgary because of too many accidents. North of Calgary the going has been very slow on the QE 2.
 |
| A yard full of snow |
About half of our winter snow has melted so now we get a little new snow to top things off.
 |
| Spruce loaded with snow |
Today our sunrise was at 6:31 and sunset is at 8:39 so we get 14 hours and 8 minutes of sunshine. At one time today the ceiling was 400 ft. The ceiling is the bottom of the cloud layer. The low ceiling made for a very dull day. And also the high was plus 2 C (35 F).
 |
| Slushy road |
At this rate it could be a very short summer.
And with that, a Happy Easter to all.
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Cleaning Closets
In a very weak moment, in fact , the weakest moment in my life, I agreed to help the Micro Manager with some spring cleaning.
Yesterday we bumbled into cleaning the main bedroom closets. There are two shelves above the rod where clothes hang. We found stuff to be very dusty so took it all down shook it outside, dusted the shelf ceiling and wall. As we cleaned things I looked over the contents of some boxes. I found two boxes containing items from my teaching career. There were certificates, programs, superintendent reports and principal reports. There were programs for all award ceremonies that I ever attended. Along with this, were my teaching certificates. There were those fancy certificates you get when you receive a degree. And oh ya...all of my school report cards! My Mom had saved my report cards and gave them to me. Now all of this stuff has to go except the certificates and report cards. I didn't say it's gone. It's back in the closet and who knows when it will actually be laid to rest.
The Micro Manager started on the clothes. All articles of clothing had to be taken out to shake off the dust.
This morning I was assigned shift on cleaning the clothes in the closet. Now the Micro Manager buys clothes very carefully, wears them carefully and looks after them meticulously. She also does not get rid of any clothes. You guessed it. This closet is more than full. Now I got to see a great range of styles. But when the pant suit with the bell bottoms came out, I was impressed! You've got to be old to know what pant suits are! So to say the least, there is a huge number of clothes, many of which should have been disposed of long ago.
We have lived in the same house since 1970. If you move you part with stuff rather than go to the effort of moving it. At this stage of life the Micro Manager is in panic mode as she knows that the big move may not be that far off.
If it was me, I would have little more than a suitcase of possessions. I am completely opposite of the Micro Manager.
So my weak moment has resulted in some interesting discoveries, some shocking realizations and some reflections on what we've been doing since 1970.
Yesterday we bumbled into cleaning the main bedroom closets. There are two shelves above the rod where clothes hang. We found stuff to be very dusty so took it all down shook it outside, dusted the shelf ceiling and wall. As we cleaned things I looked over the contents of some boxes. I found two boxes containing items from my teaching career. There were certificates, programs, superintendent reports and principal reports. There were programs for all award ceremonies that I ever attended. Along with this, were my teaching certificates. There were those fancy certificates you get when you receive a degree. And oh ya...all of my school report cards! My Mom had saved my report cards and gave them to me. Now all of this stuff has to go except the certificates and report cards. I didn't say it's gone. It's back in the closet and who knows when it will actually be laid to rest.
The Micro Manager started on the clothes. All articles of clothing had to be taken out to shake off the dust.
This morning I was assigned shift on cleaning the clothes in the closet. Now the Micro Manager buys clothes very carefully, wears them carefully and looks after them meticulously. She also does not get rid of any clothes. You guessed it. This closet is more than full. Now I got to see a great range of styles. But when the pant suit with the bell bottoms came out, I was impressed! You've got to be old to know what pant suits are! So to say the least, there is a huge number of clothes, many of which should have been disposed of long ago.
We have lived in the same house since 1970. If you move you part with stuff rather than go to the effort of moving it. At this stage of life the Micro Manager is in panic mode as she knows that the big move may not be that far off.
If it was me, I would have little more than a suitcase of possessions. I am completely opposite of the Micro Manager.
So my weak moment has resulted in some interesting discoveries, some shocking realizations and some reflections on what we've been doing since 1970.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Good-bye Murray
Today I attended a celebration of life for Murray and thought of the many things that made the man.
I first met Murray in '97 when I started senior skating. Murray was a very active skater and influenced others to skate and have fun.
Murray was lively, feisty and energetic. He was also kind, caring and thoughtful.
What I really liked about Murray is that he was a great story teller.
Murray had been a farmer all his life. He was a farmer from his boot toes to the top of his ears. Of course, his stories were farm stories. Since I was brought up on a farm I appreciated Murray's stories. It was easy to set Murray up to tell a story. Mention tractors and Murray had stories...green tractors , yellow tractors, red tractors. He had tractor stories! Mention storms and he had stories of snow storms, hail storms, wind storms, dust storms and thunderstorms. Mention crops and there were good, bad and bumper crops. Wells? He had many experiences with wells. Machinery breakdowns? He fixed them all. Cows? There wasn't any experience Murray didn't have with those darn cows.
So these stories were about a way of life and there was always something you could learn or take away from a story. Murray's stories were descriptive and memorable.
I mentioned Murray's story telling to his son today, and there was a big chuckle of agreement about his Dad's stories. He told me that his Dad had his first heart attack when he was 48. He said, "I don't think Dad thought he would have a long life so he lived and cherished each day that he had."
Murray was a great example of how to face challenges and live life to the fullest.
Murray and his stories will be missed.
I first met Murray in '97 when I started senior skating. Murray was a very active skater and influenced others to skate and have fun.
Murray was lively, feisty and energetic. He was also kind, caring and thoughtful.
What I really liked about Murray is that he was a great story teller.
Murray had been a farmer all his life. He was a farmer from his boot toes to the top of his ears. Of course, his stories were farm stories. Since I was brought up on a farm I appreciated Murray's stories. It was easy to set Murray up to tell a story. Mention tractors and Murray had stories...green tractors , yellow tractors, red tractors. He had tractor stories! Mention storms and he had stories of snow storms, hail storms, wind storms, dust storms and thunderstorms. Mention crops and there were good, bad and bumper crops. Wells? He had many experiences with wells. Machinery breakdowns? He fixed them all. Cows? There wasn't any experience Murray didn't have with those darn cows.
So these stories were about a way of life and there was always something you could learn or take away from a story. Murray's stories were descriptive and memorable.
I mentioned Murray's story telling to his son today, and there was a big chuckle of agreement about his Dad's stories. He told me that his Dad had his first heart attack when he was 48. He said, "I don't think Dad thought he would have a long life so he lived and cherished each day that he had."
Murray was a great example of how to face challenges and live life to the fullest.
Murray and his stories will be missed.
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