Reunions And Letters About Rondo

 Betty watched her little boy with his trucks and cars playing a game with them that only he understood. She was holding a book that she had checked out at the library. She had a feeling that she was about to read about folks and their memories of other people and a place that she would never understand. As she read about the Reunion she had a far away memory of a reunion she had gone to when she was just a little girl. She wasn't sure, but it was not a reunion of classmates like her high school reunion was. Her school reunion was kind of fun. She had kept in contact with a lot of her classmates, so she enjoyed getting together with them.  The other reunion if she remembered correctly may have been a family reunion. "Oh well, that was a long time ago. I don't remember much about it except a lot of hugging and a lot of food. I wonder whatever happened to those people. I have lost touch with them after all these years. My folks died and I moved a long ways away."

As Betty read through the pages there were letters written to the author about memories of their childhood, weather, church plays, and most memorable it seemed was the trip to the cemetery to remember their family members and friends. And flowers mostly roses. So many roses.

She smiled when she saw some of the pictures that were taken in the 1800's. "Hmm, I have some of those old pictures. Mom saved everything. The thing is a lot of them have no names or dates on the back of them. I have no clue who they were or where they lived. It's nice these people have preserved these pictures with names and dates."

Betty smiled as she scanned through some of the letters and articles about folks that had lived and some had died in this little town called Rondo. Some of their names were unfamiliar. Choices of names change over the years, and some names were family names handed down from generation to generation. Her mother had told her that her name was one that had been one of those. Her mother said that the name Betty had belonged to a cousin's granddaughter. She had been lots of fun and well liked by a lot of people. It was fun to think about this other Betty that she would never meet. Then she remembered that lady at the library; Grandma Lu. I wonder if she ever knew any of my family or my mother's family. Probably not though. My family was originally from Iowa. Oh well, I will ask about searching for my family someday. It would be fun to do when Joey gets older and is gone during the day to school. I like these people in Rondo. It seemed like everyone knew everyone for generations!

Oh this tells about a terrible snowstorm in the 50's. I remember hearing stories about those terrible snowstorms from my mother too. I guess even though folks live in different states and many many years apart in age they seem to go through some of the same things. Interesting book. I wish I knew some of these people. Some of them sound they were a hoot! 

Okay, Joey. Would you like to help me make supper? I'm getting hungry, how about you?"

Betty Steps Into The Past With A Book Called Rondo Items

 Joey's mom walked over to where her son and the lady people called Grandma Lu were talking. "Hello! My name is Betty. I am this young man's mom. The librarian told me that folks call you Grandma Lu. What is your real name?" Grandma Lu smiled and said, "My real name is LuAnne. Children and their parents and even strangers started calling me Grandma Lu years ago about the same time my own grandchildren started calling me Grandma Lu. Then my friend, Bonnie, also was called Grandma B told me about an empty building that was going to go to ruin if it wasn't kept up to date. The rent was cheap, but it needed a lot of work and painting etc. It was in a small community not far from here. The community all came together and helped us. B started calling me Grandma Lu and like most nicknames, it caught on and even now most folks call me Grandma Lu."

"Grandma B had a very small granddaughter at that time. Her name was Marlee.  B or Bonnie and I decided to rent the building from the town and I eventually referred to it as Marleewood. We remodeled and added rooms and it became quite the community center. Folks came to listen to my stories, shop, drink coffee, and we even had a room where you could just sit in a comfortable old chair and read or take a nap.

And oh, I forgot to tell you about the parties. Mercy did we have parties. But that was years ago. I don't even know whatever happened to Marleewood nowadays. There was a mayor that had it auctioned off for back taxes. I haven't been back there in years. I have lost touch with a lot of those folks since my husband and I moved.

Betty told Grandma Lu that she was glad to have met her and she and her young son, Joey, left the library only after checking out a book that might give Betty some insight into the area where Marleewood used to be and other communities that was chock full of pictures. Joey might like the pictures too.

When Betty and her son got home she got them both a snack and asked Joey if he would like to look at the book she had checked out at the library. He said that he would rather play with his trucks, but maybe later he would look at the pictures in her book if there were any good ones.

Betty opened up the book called Rondo Items with a feeling that she was about to step into the past as well as the future. As she took a sip of her cold drink she felt a shiver of something that she couldn't identify. It was a feeling of family and friendship. She somehow knew that she should include Joey in this book, but right now she needed to read about the lives of the folks that were connected by what looked like a school, a church, and maybe a woman who kept a diary of daily happenings. 

Betty looked at the clock and checked on her little boy. She had about two hours before she needed to start supper, and Joey was content with his toys.

As Betty started to read about the author of the book and some of the dedications she thought about Grandma Lu. She may have to find this older woman again and perhaps gain a little insight into these people in the book.  "Yes, Grandma Lu. I think you and I just might become friends, if I can find you again. I wonder if you know the author, Ruby Sharon Downs."

She started by reading a big title called A Great Reunion!!

As Grandma Lu Returns Her Book She Is Talked About...

 Grandma Lu had decided to finish the book called Heidi out on the patio with her morning coffee. She thought about the story; a small orphaned child, taken to her grandfather who lived on a mountain. Just a little girl that loved the goats, her grandfather, fresh goat's milk, a friend named Peter, and his grandmother whom was blind and dirt poor. She seemed to have loved everything that nature provided on that mountain. The fir trees and those beautiful wild flowers. She also loved the kittens in the city. She did love Clara, but almost died of homesickness living with her in the city.

She learned to read by imagining the ABC's as pictures that spelled out a story. That was thanks to Clara's grandmother and the children's Bible that she gave to Heidi. She learned to pray there and accept the Lord's time and ways of answering her prayers.

Clara's doctor recognized the seriousness of Heidi's homesickness by her sleepwalking and loss of appetite. He ordered the servants to get her returned to the mountain as soon as possible by train.

Clara did not want her to leave for years and years, but her father promised Clara that if she ate her vegetables and did her studies that they would all visit Heidi and her grandfather on the mountain. And that they did. Heidi's grandfather insisted that Clara do all kinds of exercises. It was lots of work and pain of her muscles. After several weeks and lots of work she succeeded.! She surprised her father by walking to meet him when he visited the mountain. He was so surprised. So was the doctor. 

Heidi learned not to listen to other people (even friends like Peter) that said that reading was a waste of time. No, reading is a way to learn new things and travel to far away places. It is the very thing that can make you aware of things that you never in the whole world knew about. Reading can make you laugh and make you cry. Reading can help you cook because you read a recipe.  It can make you try to figure out a mystery and it can help you keep up with the news. In Heidi's case, she learned the Bible stories and eventually was able to read to the blind grandmother which made her so very happy. Of course, when you make other folks happy you in turn get so very happy.

Heidi's grandfather finally said that Heidi could go to school in the village and at long last they moved down from the mountain in the winter time. He even let Heidi go to church. The village found out that Grandfather was not a mean man at all, but a very sad and lonely man having lost his son and daughter-in-law years ago. Heidi was the only family that he had left. He loved her so very much.

Grandma Lu decided that it was time to return her book to the library. The library wasn't that far away and she looked forward to looking for a new book. She wondered if she should look for another book that she had read as a child or if she should get something new. She missed telling stories to the children at Marleewood. The children were almost grown now. Some were moms and some were in college. Some were still in school like Marlee and her sister, Whitlee. How she missed them and their adventures. Oh and the tea parties and the treasure hunts. 

As she found a book that she might like she settled herself in an easy chair by the window to read a little of it. A little boy walked up to her and said, "Are you still reading a book with no pictures? What fun is that?"

"Why yes I am young man. What is your name?"

"You must be old. I told you that my name was Joey the last time I talked to you." Grandma Lu laughed and said, "Yes, you did. I remember now. Did you find a book today?"

Across the room Joey's mother was talking to the librarian. "Who is that older lady that Joey is talking to? She seems like a nice lady. Joey seems like he knows her."

The librarian smiled. "Yes, that's Grandma Lu. I would have to look up her name on her card, but everyone calls her Grandma Lu. She used to tell stories at Marleewood. That's that big old building down the street. It's been empty for a long time since the mayor insisted that it be auctioned off. He was a piece of work, that one."

"Hmm, tell me more about that place. Who owns it?  That must have happened long before we moved here. Surely more happened than a story hour place. What made it so special?"

Homesick + Sleepwalking=Going Back Home

Grandma Lu was so glad to pick up the book called Heidi. It had been a very busy two weeks with company coming and going for her husband's birthday. She loved company, but she also missed her quiet time of reading. "Well now. Where was I at? Oh yes, here is a chapter that I remember. The poor little girl was so homesick for the mountain, the goats, and her grandfather that she quit eating. The mean housekeeper had told her that she couldn't cry. The mean old woman. She deserved to think there was a ghost in the house." Grandma Lu laughed. When she had picked up the book she had read that Clara's father and his friend the doctor had waited up to see what the staff was scared of. Sure enough late in the night there was little Heidi in her little white nightgown at the door. The mystery was solved. It was not a robber, but only a little girl sleepwalking.

The doctor determined that she was wasting away because she wasn't eating and was so sad that she might never recover if she wasn't sent home the very next day. Of course, Clara was upset because she loved her little friend, but her father promised her that she could go visit her in the spring if she minded the doctor's orders and did her school work.

Clara insisted that Heidi's trunk be packed in her room. Guess what was packed in the trunk. Her very special picture book that Clara's grandmother had given her, and twelve soft white rolls for the blind grandmother who lived at the village at the bottom of the mountain. Heidi ran back to her room and gathered up her little belongings like her red shawl and her little straw hat.

The butler was given strict instructions on caring for Heidi because he not only had to watch and care for her on the train, but they had to stay overnight at a hotel half way there. He had to make sure that Heidi didn't sleep walk again. Sebastion, the butler, managed for a man to take Heidi and her trunk to the village. He handed Heidi the basket of rolls a letter for her grandfather and a huge roll of money for him. The butler was going to  miss Heidi. He had become very fond of her in the months that she had lived in the big house.

Heidi caused quite the stir when people in the village saw her. They thought for sure that she would never return.  And Heidi thought for sure that the blind grandmother was dead it had been so long since she had seen her. She went running into the little cabin and surprised the grandmother with the soft white rolls. The grandmother thanked God for the return of the little girl who she had come to love so very much. The grandmother cried many happy tears.

Heidi left her fancy dress and hat with Peter's mother. She remembered what Grandfather had said when her aunt had left with her. She told the blind grandmother that she would return the next day, but that she must go see her grandfather now.

The climb up the mountain was beautiful. She saw her fir trees and the beautiful rosy clouds. The grass looked like gold and she started to cry she was so happy. Then she saw her grandfather sitting on the bench outside his cabin. She called his name over and over as she ran to him. Being grandfather he asked if Clara's father had sent her away. She said, "No. I think the doctor said I needed to come back to you. Here is a letter from Clara's father and a roll of money. He told Heidi that the money belonged to her and after he read the letter he put it in his pocket.

The first thing Heidi did was to climb the ladder to see her bed it was gone! Grandfather told her that he wasn't sure that she would be back, but her would get her another one. But first she must drink some milk! It was the very best that she had ever tasted. She told him that she was sure that it was the best milk in the entire world.

Grandma Lu grinned and thought. "There really is nowhere as good as being home with the people that you love. I'm sure her little goatherder, Peter will be glad to see her. If I remember right, Heidi has some things to share with him. Grandma Lu put the book down, said goodnight to her husband, and laid down happily on her nice soft mattress. As she got her soft pillows and blanket gathered around her she wondered what a bed of straw felt like as she drifted off to sleep.