Observations©

By Donald S. Conkey

Date: July 22, 2010 - # 1031a - Title: Finding one’s ‘Freedom of Soul’ in the family (4248)

The headline that read “Foreclosures drop, but uncertainty remains” (Tribune, July 9) brought back many memories from the 1930s when my father lost his job (he was a teacher) due to an economy and a federal administration very similar to the one we see in America today. Had it not been for dad’s father, my grandfather, owning a farm dad and his family would have been out on the street. But even then dad was forced to move his family out of a nice home into a four room ‘shed’ formally used for storing farming materials. It had no running water, no indoor plumbing, no electricity, but it soon became our home – and it was shelter. But dad and mom were lucky –they had a place to go besides the street.

Those were difficult days for Dad and Mother. Dad’s dreams were set aside by the deep and lasting depression. His dreams were never fully realized but he never quit trying - even up to his death at age 97. And they survived. The ‘shed,’ though small proved adequate, built with mom’s love for her family.

To survive every family member had a job to do. I milked cows, by hand, morning and night, before and after school, then separated the milk for the cream to make butter. My siblings all had similar daily jobs, especially in the summer when mom would gather her family and go out and pick fruit, bring it home, then spend endless hours canning that fruit, over a hot wood stove, and then put the cans in a dugout basement – food for the winter. After the fruit was canned Mother would then catch a few broilers, slit their throats, dunk them in hot water, pick off the feathers, gut them and then can them. More canned food for the winter months. The family was never short of food with a year’s supply of food in the basement. This was their economic security, their survival, and it gave Mom her ‘Freedom of Soul.’ There were no little leagues – only work, and more work. The family survived and eventually, because mother taught us that we could become anything we wanted to become, with hard work, all four children obtained a college education. 

Mother had moved into this ‘shed’ with a promise of a new house. It took ten years for Mother to get her new home. But it wasn’t a new house; it was a large addition to the existing shed, with a basement. There was no money to buy building materials so dad torn down old wooden silos, for the red wood planks, and old houses to obtain rafters and flooring for the addition. Dad even pulled the nails from the old houses and then straightened them so he didn’t have to buy nails. He set up an old buss saw, driven by the tractor, to cut the rafters to length. To dig the basement I would drive a team of horses hooked up to a scoop. It was hard, and hot, work, but the family built mom’s addition. This addition couldn’t have been built today – it wouldn’t survive today’s building codes. But for the next 54 years, until her death at age 93, Mother entertained her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren in this addition. She also entertained elected officials who sought her support for most of these years. Mother was politically active all her life. And when Mother died her “Freedom of Soul’ showed prominently on her face. Her faith in Christ, like mine, was unshakable.

Is there any wonder, with a family like this, why I strongly believe the family is the foundational unit of all free governments? Mother and Dad were proud of their family. This was always evident when we gathered as family, be it a reunion or for their marriage anniversaries. Now, as I watch my own family following in their footsteps, with that same firm faith in Christ, I better understand why my parents were so proud of their little family. I too share that same pride in my ever growing family.

Two events this summer reminded me of my family pride. The first event occurred in May when the family gathered in Oviedo, Florida to celebrate my son’s graduation from the University of Central Florida with his PhD doctorate – at age 54. Curtis never gave up on his dream to obtain his doctorate, and he did it. While writing his thesis Curtis provided me a family joy I could never have imagined, nor could have obtained any other way – he asked me to help him edit his thesis. Thanks son!

The second event was held in South Carolina last week when granddaughter Hope asked me to be involved in her marriage to Nathan. There are few things in life more enjoyable than participating in the marriage of a grandchild. The marriage was followed by a reception where the family gathered to celebrate the formation of this new eternal family unit. At gatherings such as this wonderful memories are captured on film. These pictures will remind me for years to come of the joy and pride that comes from a good family. Among these pictures is a four generation picture:  my son, my grandson, my great grandson named Sam, a seventh generation Sam Conkey, and me. Pride! You bet! Even my grandfather Sam would be proud. Where better to begin building one’s “Freedom of Soul” than within the walls of one’s own home – amongst family.