When I drove down to my home site where I grew up a few weeks ago to go visit little Surprise, the small berg where my grandmother lived and where I spent all my summers...I chose to also take a dip in my plans and drive by one of the locations we lived for several of my early years. My original mission was to take some pictures of the church where grandmother played the organ/piano during all those years. It was off Enos Road in Seymour, Indana. We had several acres and a huge woods next to our property and as a hobby, my father had a few pigs, chickens, a monstrous garden and I dont know what all. There also was a large creek that ran across the front of our property...and we had a little bridge that wed have to drive over to get from the road to our house. The creek was nice, except it was my older brother and my job to keep all the weeds, etc. cleaned out. We neither particularly liked that...but it was one chore we had to do if we wanted to play. One of my cousins lived next to us...and there was a fairly good size woods between us and them too. Another friend of ours lived on down the road in a log cabin (a real one!!!)...and wed all play together, all 4 of us...3 boys and me (a tomboy!) Well...I was very disappointed and almost sorry I chose to make that turn. My beloved woods has all been cut down and homes built to take their place. Our house had outside remodeling done with additions, etc. such that I hardly recognized it. Even the big shrubs cut down that were in the front of the house...where my oldest brother had thrown my teddy bear one year and I didnt find it until after the winter thaws. I had to throw that treasure away. The field between our house and my cousins...all the trees cut down and another house built in there. My friends log cabin...its gone too. I even stopped along the road to see if maybe I was overlooking it. BUT, no...its just gone too...replaced with fancy and new. I think of all the fun us kids used to have going back/forth from each others homes...playing in the woods until we HAD to come in; climbing trees and playing tarzan, eating paw paws, finding May apples. And, my favorite of all... respite place...King Arthur...the huge old tree that was home base when we were playing some form of tag or whatever....all gone now. And, only my memories...oh, what wonderful memories!!! remain. Did they want to destroy my memories with all this new stuff??? I seriously doubt it...but...makes me wonder. Ill never drive down Enos Road again...as I didnt like what it showed me. I much prefer my knightly memories just the way they were left some 50 plus years ago! Progress is not always good!
Posted on: Sat, 19 Oct 2013 06:33:50 +0000