Monday, April 3, 2006

where I'm from

I saw this in Alphawoman's blog and decided to try it myself.  She got it from HERE.  

                                           WHERE I’M FROM  

I am from the farms and small towns of the midwest where chickens roam and scratch about the yards, and roosters start crowing two hours before dawn; I am from Allis Chalmers tractors and Maytag wringer washers.   I am from old two-story houses in the flatlands of Iowa and the rolling hills of Missouri.   I am from dandelions and violets and Maybaskets, from the lilacs and fresh-tilled earth.   I am from annual family reunions and hard-headed people, from Smiths and Allens and Stevens'.

I am from teetotalers and heavy-set women and huge dinners on Sunday; I am from men in overalls discussing farming techniques and the prices of crops and livestock over meals, after church, and at all gatherings. 

I am from Mother Goose rhymes and Heidi and The Brothers Grimm fairy tales.  I am from "no sex education until the sixth grade", when the school nurse told all us girls about it and everybody already knew but me.
 
I am from the Church of Christ, which believes any instrumental music in Church is sinful, and that no other church or denomination will make it to heaven; where songbooks are shaped-note and everybody sings alto, suprano, tenor or bass; and there is no choir because the whole congregation sings.   

 I'm from the cornfields of Iowa, from noodles, creamed turnips, strawberry shortcake, and cinnamon rolls.  I am from warm, foamy buckets of milk just drawn from the cow, and cream so thick that it stands up on the spoon in a heap.  

I am from a mother who had a birthmark covering her right arm and hand because she was "marked" when Grandma scalded her right breast while carrying her in the womb; from hot-tempered men who were likely to throw things when they were angry, like my paternal grandfather, who hit a draft horse in the head with his fist and put it to its knees, so I’ve been told.  I am from women who died in childbirth...  My daddy's mom, and his first wife.  I am from women who sewed and crocheted and quilted and wore their hair in buns and planted their gardens by the "signs".  

I am from musty attics and old diaries and photographs with the corners nibbled by mice; I am from cool cellers full of colorful jars of home-canned peaches, green beans, pickled beets and jam and jellies.  I am from winding creeks and gravel roads and wooded places, things that are priceless to me because they made me who I am:  a person who has remained a child at heart, who has enjoyed life more than any person has a right to, without a shred of guilt about it.

 I like where I’m from.

30 comments:

Anonymous said...

I like the sound of where you come from too.
And you write it so beautifully...
I always enjoy your journal... I don't always leave a comment. But i'm a lurking everyday...
Take care  :-)

Anonymous said...

what an outstanding post Donna!..  there's a lot to learn in that post.  

i am envious of the winding creeks, gravel roads and wooded places because i always felt thats where i belong.

yep, good post!

Anonymous said...

Ilove this. Wasn't it fun?

Anonymous said...

I like who you are and where your from too!  You described it all so well, Donna.  
The Church of Christ!  Boy do I remember being a member of THAT church.  Too rigid for me.. but then we emailed about that topic one other time...

Jackie

Anonymous said...

Great entry.
Missie

Anonymous said...

Like this entry very much. Paula

Anonymous said...

Good entry. I can relate to most of those things except the Church of Christ. I have heard about there not being any musical instruments in church but have never attended one of them. Helen

Anonymous said...

Wonderful entry!  I enjoyed not only reading, but seeing in my mind's eye where you are from.  Blessings, Penny http://journals.aol.com/firestormkids04/FromHeretoThere

Anonymous said...

A really interesting take on the meme and a fascinating look at some of the things that went into making you, you.

Thanks for stopping by my own attempt and many thanks for your kind words.

wil

http://snoozelets.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

I have learned that most people that are from some of the same places as you are WONDERFUL  people.  They are the HEART of America.  I am thankful for each and every one.  And as always your cool clear honesty has made another great entry.

Anonymous said...

another form of poetry, your entry!

Anonymous said...

Wonderful piece of work Mo. You made this so real I could see the sights hear the sounds and smell the smells.

Anonymous said...

This sounds like the way I grew up here in Virginia.  Thanks for bringing back such wonderful memories.

Pat

Anonymous said...

I am from the Church of Christ, which believes any instrumental music in Church is sinful, and that no other church or denomination will make it to heaven;

So are you saying...there is no piano or anything in your church?  And also are you saying only people who are members of the Church of Christ will go to heaven?  Just confused...

Anonymous said...

No no, my dear Robin:  This is not where I am now; it's where I'm FROM.

Anonymous said...

well written and very interesting

betty

Anonymous said...

I love this how interesing. My Grandma used to make the best pickles.

Anonymous said...

I like where you are from.

Anonymous said...

Weird that the one thing that stuck out in my mind after reading the whole entry was CREAMED TURNIPS.  Gahhhhh - none for me...lol.... always thinking about food, I am.

I miss the midwest, I'll tell you that....

~Amy

Anonymous said...

You sound like you are from where the people I am from are from-did that makes sense!  

I remember when I was younger-going to my grandparents and complaining because I had to churn the butter and hated creamed turnips (until I got older!)

I miss home canned stuff-the pickles, the beets, chow-chow, and most of all the home made biscuits.

Thanks for sharing this, it brought back a lot of good memories.  Jeff http://pointclickjeff.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

I'll join you in this meme, but I feel like I'm from where you're from, just a bit.  Perhaps we all have some of from in common.

Anonymous said...

http://journals.aol.com/mutualaide/LifeOnFlamingoRow/entries/1289  Here you go Mosie!

Anonymous said...

How wonderful, I can relate with some of your come froms.  Linda

Anonymous said...

I've been seeing these done in peoples blogs.... VERY cool.... you did a great job with it!
http://journals.aol.com/astaryth/AdventuresofanEclecticMind
http://adventuresofaneclecticmind.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

I showed your Where I'm From to a friend of mine and she loved it and did her own-thought you might want to see it

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.ListAll&friendID=5823703&Mytoken=20041126232702

I'm still working on mine-I'll send you a link when I'm done-thanks again for sharing yours-Jeff http://pointclickjeff.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

I really love reading these.  Yours is great!  I'm going to have to one myself.
Lori

Anonymous said...

BTW, I have Allens in my family tree, too.  My mother's, mother's mother.
Lori

Anonymous said...

This is beautiful. As I read it, I wondered if there are still musty attics and cool cellarss full of canned goods to explore. It's a great place to be from. :-) --- Robbie

Anonymous said...

So do I! Now I see where Mutualaide got her inspiration. This is beautifully written!
I just keep tracing back each journal where it came from. I'm having a ball! Blessings, Sassy Deb ;-) Happy Easter!

http://journals.aol.com/SassyDee50/SassysEYE

Anonymous said...

    This is beautiful.  I could feel your life as I read it.  And, you know, it reminds me so much of a fantastic woman I met while living in Colorado.  She came from a small town in Minnesota, and her background was much the same as yours.  Our histories were completely different, and yet we became the very best of friends.  I think we enjoyed the fact that our upbringing was so different, and yet in our hearts, we were so very similar.     Thanks for a real treat of a read.   Tina