The woman sits at the small dining table and looks west out across the lake below; coffee in hand and calm in her heart. The morning sun is beginning to rise above the hill to the east of the house she has lived in for 37 years, and a red bird sits on the deck rail across from her window. It is a beautiful morning. A slight smile plays across her face as she thinks of previous mornings on this date, the journey is good.
She was born and raised in Kansas City, the youngest of three. Her parents were hard working, and had survived the Great Depression to start their own business, a diaper service. As a child and into adulthood, the woman had worked in the family business, as well as other business ventures. MLZ Corporation had been her company, delivering cigarettes and towels throughout the Lake Ozark area during the fifties. She worked along side her father, driving speed boats and perfecting the art of water skiing.
She had attended the French Convent in Kansas City, and had survived one horrible semester in college. She loved learning, and had a passion for reading. She married a man she had met at fourteen and they built a solid life together. They lived in Atchison, Kansas while he attended college, both running the local movie theaters at night. They had lived in Kansas City, and then the move to southeast Kansas came along, and here she was fifty some years later. She loved her home, but it still surprised her that this is where they had settled.
After attending a Catholic girls' school, modeling for Harzfeld's, and attending society events and charitable fund raisers in the city, she had never anticipated she would move to a small town, then move into "the country", and run a cattle operation with her husband, Nor had she ever thought she would learn to put up hay in the heat of summer, build fence, fix water gaps, vaccinate cattle, ride horses, drive tractors, heat a farm house with an old Ashley wood stove, and fight frozen pipes in the dead of winter. Looking back she sees the good times, the great memories, the laughter as well as the struggles, the disappointments, the challenges --- Life was nothing if not adventurous.
Her two children are grown, in their fifties. Her son lives around the corner, just three miles away, and she sees him nearly every day, as they now run the cattle operation together. Her daughter is a state away, but she visits when she can. Three grandchildren are in constant contact and all plan to arrive for the holiday in two weeks. She has a legacy, and a good one.
Her children see her as a strong, independent, compassionate, and determined woman. The last two years have not been what she had hoped, but things are getting accomplished, and she is moving forward. So many things to look forward to in the next few weeks: Christmas! The house will be crowded with people and a house dog. It will be anything but quiet with meals to enjoy, some coming and going to the deer stand in search of the monster buck, sleeping arrangements to juggle and packages to open. Of course the grudge card match, spades is their game, will continue through nearly every night of the gathering. Family comes first, this is as it should be.
She travels. She travels with a close friend and then with her daughter. It has been a delight to discover New Orleans, San Antonio, and the Civil War History of Maryland and Virginia. More trips are in the planning and making-of-reservations stage, and she is looking forward to these trips. She enjoys the planning almost more than the traveling. Seeing new places, trying new foods, enjoying new beverages, exploring new sights and museums--- true adventures.
Events and celebrations are in the future, a grandson will graduate college. Another grandson will be married, and the family will grow. She looks forward to all that lies ahead. Before the day is out, her grandchildren will call, or text, to wish her a" Happy Birthday," she will open the gift her daughter stashed in the office over Thanksgiving, and she will enjoy dinner with great friends. She knows she has accomplished a great deal, worked successfully at different careers, retiring from administrative law enforcement, made sacrifices, and enjoyed rewards.
The Christmas tree sits in the east window, the lights winking, as if to remind her of the things she wants to get finished before the holidays arrive. Maybe just one more cup of coffee and a few more minutes enjoying the peace and calm. A minute or two to wish herself a "Happy Birthday."
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| Photo by Ryan Tindle |
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