Memories of growing up

I'm not really sure who the 2 little boys are in the picture, but my hunch is that they both are Gublers. If you look down on the farm, that is the house where Ovando and Edna Gubler lived, much later than this picture, my mom and dad bought the property east of the barns from the Gublers and built a home where I would grow up with my 6 brothers and sisters. The story of my dad buying the property is pretty cool, he agreed on some ridiculously low price by today's standards and signed a note with I believe the Gubler brothers Ovando and Horatio (I could have the story a little wrong, but bear with me). The note was to be paid off over a period of a few years, but as luck would have it back then, dad was working heavy construction and making darn good money for the times. He was able to pay the note off in under 6 months, which didn't return very much interest on the note to the Gublers, which didn't make them very happy. But it made for good neighbors over the years, except for those times that our cows got out and were in with the Gubler cows and other farming catastophes like that.

But the best thing about being neighbors, was I had one of the best friends and partners in crime PGB. I can't tell you how many times we crawled over the fences between the 2 houses or how many hours we spent gabbing, spying, playing trolls, telling fortunes, playing tag and football in the street, baseball at the square or getting in trouble for playing angels and devils....the Gubler house was the gathering place for almost everyone. Gubler's front lawn was the place to be on Sunday afternoons, Saturdays, weeknights and before the bus came in the mornings. Hard to forget the little purple violets growing in the lawn or that big yellow rose bush that hung over the fence onto the sidewalk. Jamie's forts and huts, the old shed out back, the big kitchen sink, scary Aunt Mae, hot melt in your mouth doughnuts, and the blue oldsmobiles. So many times we got in trouble for playing in the hay, not getting home on time, spying on people (remember watching Tom's TV from the tree out back?) and chasing boys...talking about boys, spying on boys.....

PGB's mom Edna passed away last night, it's like a part of me is gone. So many memories of growing up and seeing her everywhere-at primary leading the music, teaching classes, setting the example, singing in the choir-at all the town functions usually in the kitchen whipping up something yummy like the sloppy joes for the 4th and 24th of July-just always there, always part of whatever was going on. She even served up the wedding cake at my first wedding reception. She is someone like Irene Allen, Anna Mae Halterman, Helen Howard that was just part of all of our growing up. She was like another mom to me, and I loved her like a mom. I will miss her, but will always be grateful for the positive influence she has been on my life. I'm sure they were rejoicing in heaven today, go with all our love Sister Gubler, you are one in a million!