Ooohh, I remember Saturdays when I was a youngster. Saturday was a busy busy day and that included mowing the yard, cleaning the house and shopping for groceries. I loved Saturdays.
Ah yes, shopping for groceries. My dad would always drive Mom into town to shop for groceries at the Co-Op Saturday mornings about 9:00. Mom felt that it wasn't as busy in the morning and she wanted to beat the rush. I often tagged along to beg for treats. Sometimes I got what I wanted and sometimes I didn't.
Mom never took a list with her. She always knew what she needed. I can still hear and smell the brown paper bags that were packed by the young man standing behind the cashier. He would always pack them ever so carefully into a shopping cart and push it out to the vehicle and load them into the trunk for her.
I always thought that when I grew up and would go grocery shopping, I too would have a young man take my groceries to my car. I think it happened to me once. Most grocery stores abolished the practice or thought I was in fine shape to take my own food to my car.
The smell of fresh-cut grass with oil and fuel is another fond memory. When I was 9 years old, my dad told me to jump on the tractor with the mower attachment on it. So I jumped into the seat of the running tractor, waiting for my first lesson. Dad, without a beat, put it into gear and off I was. Luckily I was smart enough, or lucky, to figure out how to stop and reverse the machine because clearly there wasn't enough time for another lesson. After that day, I was always expected to mow the grass after lunch every Saturday before I could go hang with friends or have any sort of fun.
It really wasn't so bad. Sitting on a loud whirring tractor for two-and-half hours gave me lots of time to think.
Mom would take the push mower and cut around buildings and trees and we'd always wave and smile when we'd pass each other. One time she was yelling something at me and waving her arms violently. I couldn't make out what she was saying so I stopped the tractor, turned it off and went running up to her and she calmly said "the tractor is on fire". I looked back and sure enough, flames were appearing from underneath the hood of the tractor. Luckily Dad or my brother fixed that situation and the lawn eventually got finished that day.
I'd always get sunburned when I mowed the yard. Skin cancer wasn't a concern back then I guess. The only thing I really hated about mowing the grass was the barn swallows that came swooping at me as I got closer to the chicken coop. Mom told me to wear a hat but I also carried a stick or broom with me too. I don't remember being scared of the birds as much as I was mad at them. I think they knew that.
Mom also reserved Saturdays for cleaning the house. It was a dusty old farmhouse so it always took quite some time to dust furniture and clean floors. Mom insisted on hand-washing floors until she got so old that she couldn't get up from off the floor. If anyone suggested she use a mop, they'd get the stink-eye. Mom was having none of that. It simply didn't do the job well enough.
The smell of Pine Sol hit you like a brick wall if you walked into the house on a Saturday and I loved it.
Monday was laundry day. Mom filled her spinner/washer combo with piping hot water first thing in the morning. She usually liked to get laundry going by 8:00. We better have had all our dirty clothes in the bathroom hamper because if they weren't in there, you're not getting those clothes washed until the next Monday. She pulled all the laundry into the front room and built piles according to colors and fabrics. Starting with whites, she used Tide, bluing, and a little bit of Javex bleach. She'd then spin the clothes with the spinning part of the machine then go on to the next pile and work through the dirty, and sometimes quite smelly, mounds of clothes. In really cold winter months she hung most clothes indoors by the coal stove and in warmer months out on the line in the backyard they'd go. Her evening, and perhaps the next day, was often booked for all the ironing she had to do because she didn't own a clothes dryer that made the clothing fluffy and soft like we're used to now.
I loved the sound of her washing machine and the smell of detergent and bleach in the house.
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| The wringer that sat in the pantry for as long as I can remember. I didn't see Mom ever use this one. She upgraded before I came along. |
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| The actual iron that Mom used when I was growing up. It's very heavy. |
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| I don't recall Mom using this washboard but it was always ready to go. |
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| This iron was used before my time. Mom had two of these. |
My parents weren't well off by any means but I remember they didn't skimp on certain items. Tide, Palmolive, Pine Sol, Pledge and an Electrolux vacuum cleaner--top of the line in the day!--were always in our household. No off-brands, if there was such a thing back then, were allowed in our house.
I can't remember what day was her baking day as that sometimes changed according to what needed to be done around the house and yard that week. Mom would always make several loaves of bread and several dozen buns. If she had time and was in the mood, there were pies, cinnamon buns, tarts or cookies too by the time I walked home from school. I could smell the baked goods long before I got near the house.
Every single day was something to do. Mom had a big vegetable garden to tend to, she'd be feeding pigs, chickens or ducks or cleaning after them as Dad was at work during the day. Mom was always dealing with something. She would make time for a nap after lunch, then keep on going.
I realize now that she drank an immense amount of coffee. Her drug of choice.
Sundays were her day of doing as little work as possible. Mom and Dad didn't do church services anymore so that also freed up some time on the Sabbath. She always made meals though and maybe worked on some mending. Mom liked to just sit outside or go for a stroll around the large property or play in her huge and beautiful flower bed. She liked to read when her eyesight was good. Mom was usually up for a game of cards with me or teaching me how to sew. Sunday was her most patient day.
During the week, it was business at the Enns house.
Mom never worked out of the home but was always working. She'd get up at 5:00 most mornings to get the house warmed up. Breakfast consisted of cereal, bread and all the fixings on the table for us to make our own meal. She always listened to the local radio station, waiting for the weather and accident reports. Funeral announcements needed total silence in the room as the announcer reported the recent deaths in the area. It's almost like she was waiting to hear about her own death announcement but relieved when it didn't appear.
I remember my mom at my age. I always thought we'd never be the same in any way. But we are. It's funny how that works.
Well, Anna, it's in my blood to work hard, have a nap then keep on working.
