Once my Mom married my Dad we moved out to "the farm". My Dad was and still is a wheat farmer. I loved the old farm house we lived in those first years. Around the time I was 12, my Dad bought a house from Kenneth and Clara Mae Briley. The State was going to pave - what is now high-way 58 and they had to move their house to make way for the new high-way. Dad wrote them a check for the house after church one Sunday and we moved it out to the farm. My parent's still live in that house but it has been remodeled.
I spent my time reading and playing! My Aunt Linda the one that is 5 years older than me, used to spend time at my house in the summers or I would spend time with her at my Grandma's house. She would often get mad at me because she would want to play and I would be reading! We would sometimes play "Dairy Queen" through a window in the "wash room". One would ride the bike up to the window, the other would make a malt! I spent time playing school or church with all of my dolls and stuffed animals. I always enjoyed playing "pretend".
I had a dog named Friskee, numerous farm cats and a pig named Ricky Nelson! - Not kidding. I was crushed when we ate Ricky Nelson!
Probably my very favorite thing to do - and I did it until I was way too old to be doing it :) was to act out the books I read. The best one to act out was Head of the House by Grace Livingston Hill. Not the only one I acted out, but my favorite to act out!
When I was around 12, my parent's adopted my brother Raymond. He was 7 at the time and I am the first to admit, I wasn't a very good sister. I had been an only child and was spoiled. I appreciate him much more as an adult than I did as a child. When he came to live with us I was only there for two years before I went to live in the dorm at OBA so I really never got to know him until we were both adults.
I went to grade school at Ringwood Public School - where I now work! And went to High School at Oklahoma Bible Academy in Meno. I loved my high school years but will admit that grades weren't nearly as important to me as my very important social life! I loved drama and worked on the school newspaper and was editor of our yearbook. Was never good at sports but always supported my team!
I dated the same guy from 9th grade until the end of 11th grade. Then dated lots of guys my senior year. Just had a good time and enjoyed my friends immensely.
My parents always took me to church from the time they married and that set a good foundation for my life. Attending OBA just made that foundation firmer and gave me memories to take with me throughout my life. In high school I always wanted to "grow up" and be a minister's wife or a missionary.
I worked during the summers while I was in high school. I worked in the Ringwood Drug Store, I babysat for the Jantzen kids one summer and the next two summers I went to Beeches Beauty College in Enid.
That first summer of Beauty School my friend Cheryl Brown and I lived in a boarding house in Enid! What an interesting summer that was for both of us! She was taking a high school English class at Enid High so she could graduate a year early. The women that owned the house were very strict (which was very good - even though I didn't think so at the time)!
Going to Beauty School was a very eye opening experience for this farm girl! My classmates were older - girls out of high school except for maybe 1 or 2 and they lived very "wild" lives! They smoked, drank and went out dancing!! What an education I got that summer! I'm sure they laughed about the wide eyed farm girl that was their new classmate!
I had a typical farm girl life except that I didn't have to help doing farm chores very much. I would help mom cook. As I reached "driving" age - and for farm kids in the 60's that was around 12 or 13, Dad did have me drive the tractor. May I explain that driving the tractor then was NOT like driving the tractor now! No cabs... PLUS my feet wouldn't reach the pedals so when I had to push on a pedal I couldn't set on the seat!
My growing up years were safe
and I consider them very ordinary.
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