Reminiscences of and for the Family

But when I think prune picking, I think of the Red and White Store (our grocery store) because we always got new blue jeans to go prune picking. And the very first hour out under those trees we would crush and overripe prune into the knees of those jeans, and then, scrambling on our knees, we would accumulate prune-mud until we smelled of new blue jeans and dead prunes. And of course the inevitable would happen-- the nasty yellowjacket in the decaying prune. Nothing to do but put mud on it and hope we wouldn't expire!

Best time of the day was heading back to the house and knowing Aunt Alice and here Mom, Great-Aunt Rose (after whome I was also named!) would have made schwest-kuchen-- a coffee bread made with prunes on top. Heaven!!

8-22-88

Mr George Downs owned and operated the Red and White Store. It was where [?] is now. The big long counter was on the south side of the building. The customer would go up and hand the grocery list to the clerk and the clerk would busily accumulate all the things for you. No such things as the customer handling the goods ahead of time! We kids went to the store very seldom, and I doubt if the folks went more than once a week, if that. It would all be put on credit and at the end of the farm year, when Daddy has his money from the Grain Company, he would settle the whole bill. And Mr. Downs would present him with a box of candy and what a feast that was!

Edythe Rhodes was a clerk for Mr. Downs, always so friendly and patient with the kids. M. Downs had a beautiful voice, sand in the Methodist Choir and was much in demand as soloist at funerals. Later the Red and White store was sold to Bill Wallace, another general grocer. That continued into my teens, but unfortunately, he was was a Christian Scientist and fell very ill one day. True to his faith, he expired without medical attention. See his grave at Green Crest almost every year.

8-24-88