The Goldenrod is butter yellow; standing there in shame as those who pick its beautiful blossoms are now off to the opening of another school term. I recall when those lovely wild flowers were laden with dust along the road where the Model Ts went merrily along dirt roads. I remember trying to walk within the ruts as I trudged toward the one-room schoolhouse. Fall, with its profusion of Goldenrod is a reminder of those days.
Those were lovely days in my early life: my worries were centered on “how could I get the attention of a certain little boy in blue overalls?” Another worry wrinkle might come when I wondered if Ma put enough fried chicken in my syrup bucket so I would have a leg left for the long walk home! Problems inside the books were nothing compared to those stinging problems in the girls out-house wasp nests and big black ants!
Ah, time has changed the school scene; roads are blacktopped, kids ride a bus to class, hot lunch is served in an air conditioned room and the 3 R’s seemed to have taken a back seat to higher kinds of learning. It seems, life is no longer simple…even halls of learning leave me in a daze!
Annabel Whobrey
Rogersville, Missouri
Back in 1955 a call went out from the editors of the then Capper’s Weekly asking for readers to send in articles on true pioneers. Hundreds of letters came pouring in from early settlers and their children, many now in their 80s and 90s, and from grandchildren of settlers, all with tales to tell. So many articles were received that a decision was made to create a book, and in 1956, the first My Folks title – My Folks Came in a Covered Wagon – hit the shelves. Nine other books have since been published in the My Folks series, all filled to the brim with true tales from Capper’s readers, and we are proud to make those stories available to our growing online community.