Grandma Reigstad Tonight I write about Grandma Reigstad (Clara Nygaard Reigstad). To me she was the engine that moved the family. She was not a large woman or talked with a loud voice, she was Grandma. As I’ve said before I grew up across the field from Grandpa’s and I lived with them three summers. I went to West Central School of Agriculture so I went to only six months of school. I started living with them after the 8th grade. She made out grocery list when somebody went to town and controlled the household. She took care of the chickens, feeding and picking the eggs. She supervised the watering of the flowers in the dining room and the lawn. Ruth before she got married and Bernice were the supervised. Many times when I was young I witnessed Ruth and Bernice pushing those old reel type mowers across that big lawn. When I got older guess who mowed the lawn but by that time there was motor power lawn mower, a reel type with a Brigs and Stratton motor. I don’t think Grandma ever missed church until she got older and fell and broke her hip. Grandpa would sit in the front row on the right side Grandma and Bernice would sit on the left side about ¾ way up front. I never saw Grandma and Grandpa sit together in church. Sunday was a important day, Church and then Sunday dinner, mostly chicken. I still don’t understand it Church and Sunday dinner ready at noon and nobody missed church. Norway Lake baseball in the afternoon in the summer. Summer Sunday’s where busy, get up do chores, eat breakfast, change clothes go to church, come home change clothes do chores eat dinner, change clothes go to the ballgame, come home change clothes do chores eat supper, change clothes go to Luther League in church come home go to bed, no wonder when I was fully grown I was 6ft3 140 pounds. After we went to bed at night Grandma would sit in the old rocking chair that grandpa used and comb out her hair. Then she would read from the bible, in Norwegian of course loud enough so we could all hear it when we lay in our beds. I think I was Grandma’s project. She wanted me to be a Minister, every morning before I would help with chores she would make me sit at the kitchen table and memorize one page of the Catechism. When I started to read for the Minister I had the whole Catechism memorized, reading for the Minister was a cake walk for me. I guess I let Grandma down; she died before I graduated from high school and I never became Minister. I hope someday in heaven I will see her and try to explain. The last year I stayed at Grandma and Grandpa’s, Grandma had a stroke fell and broke her hip. That was so hard her one side was partially paralyzed and she had a hard time talking. She still wanted to make out the grocery list but couldn’t really talk so she would try to write it down. That was so hard to watch, it will never leave my mind. Tomorrow I will write about Grandpa and Grandma Reigstad together.
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 03:42:07 +0000
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