While in Kansas City visiting the Seago's, I decided we'd take the hour or so trek to St. Joseph MO which is where my grandpa Charles was born and raised. While staying with him earlier this year, I got to look at old scrapbooks and photo albums that I'd probably always seen as a kid, but now I got to hear all the background on them from Grandpa. He has a very good long-term memory! He had a panaramic frame of St. Joe Ave, the main drag in town. He told me about how once he was old enough he and his brother knew they had to get out as there "was nothing out there for young people", so they moved to California and worked hard at various jobs and lived wherever they could to get by and make something for themselves. He met grandma Emma at church, they married and had 3 boys and they eventually saved up to buy the house he currently lives in, for which he paid $13k! He's had a very interesting life, full of hard work and great memories. He always made a point to say "You know what the population of St. Joe was when I was a kid? 70,000...Do you know what it is now? 74,000...that should tell you something!" There really wasn't much out there for anyone, and the town hasn't really expanded, but I can tell it was still important to grandpa, and I really wanted to see it for myself briefly too.
It was pretty cold that day, most likely in the 40's, so we didn't get out of the car, but it was cool to recognize things grandpa had talked about like the Orpheum- a blacks only theater, Roubideaux Row, and Krug Park--a one time happening, beautiful park. Here are some pictures:
It was sorta sad to see the town so old and abandoned as grandpa talked about. But then I suppose people driving through my hometown would feel that way too, whereas I still have a lot of memories tied to Littlerock that make me still like it despite all the druggies that live there now.
Anyway I hope you enjoyed the pics grandpa. Thanks for all the stories!
On the way back to Shawna's the babies woke up happy :
So welcoming huh?:
2 comments:
OMG in that last pic of Lucas, he looks nearly 5 years old! What in the world! He grew up so fast!
yeah a lot of people think he's older...which honestly kinda bothers me because they expect him to interact/talk more...which he is starting to. He's still my baby...and I realized that whatever routines I do with them, I always end up treating the other wrong...like, I am either expecting too much of Olivia, or not enough of Lucas for the sake of my sanity in a routine...gonna work on that!
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