Tuesday, February 16, 2016

A Short Drive With Grandpa


Dad (Don) was able to go on a "Sunday Drive" with Grandpa (Val Jean) this week.  Dad wrote me this note to share with you all.

"These 2 photo’s are from a cemetery which is north and east of Wheeling, Indiana. The large rock was acquired by George Milhollin taking his horses down to the river and dragging it up from the river to serve as a tombstone marker for he and his wife. 
Dad, when he and Mother were first married, farmed the land around the cemetery. The owner of the land was George Milhollin and he also owned the Burgiss farm which was across the road from where Mother and Dad live. (also across road from Milspangh’s)
George Milhollin was the father of Ralph Milhollin who was a hunting and fishing buddy of Dad’s. Ralph was sort of iconic in our area as a hunter and fisherman. It was Ralph, Dad and myself, when I was about 7 or 8 years old, that gave me my first taste of Sassafras Tea. We were hunting on the land that Jan and I now own just south of Wheeling. Ralph smelled the scent of sassafras and went over and dug up some roots, shaved off some small pieces of the root and got some water, started a fire, and made sassafras tea. We call that 80 acres the Taylor Farm. Those sassafras trees are still alive today. 
The Olive Branch Cemetery was where Dad wanted to be buried. Mother talked him out of it by saying that none of us kids would ever come to the grave site, because we would never be able to find it.
When asked why he wanted to be buried here, he said,'When I farmed this land, Mother would always pack my lunch and at dinner I would take my fishing rod and go down to the river and catch yellow belly cat fish. I thought that, if I was buried here, that I could get up out of my grave and go down to the river and fish any time I wanted.” 
We had a great day driving around asking questions of Dad.
Dad’s school bus was light green with seats around the perimeter of the bus. The tail pipe ran inside the bus for heat. It was warm, so you had to watch and not put your shoes on the tail pipe for very long as to not burn your shoes.
Don Fallis"
 Thanks for sharing with us, Dad.  Everyone, I'd be happy to have your stories too!


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