Time Spent With Nana J!~

I remember my maternal grandmother, whom we always called Nana, teaching me many things as a youngster.  You see, she operated a daycare center.  My sister, brother, and I stayed there with her all day while our parents worked.  She taught us the Lord's prayer, The Ten Commandments, bible songs, secular songs, poetry, how to write our first and last names, how to color and "stay in the lines", and how to write our numbers from 1-10, as well as our ABC's.  When she taught us poetry, it was always one of my favorite times.  I remember poems like The Purple Cow, The Spider and The Fly, as well as the writings of Robert Louis Stevenson.  Reading over these poems bring back wonderful childhood memories of playing with my friends at nursery school and spending time with my Nana J.

I remember Nana having us memorize some of the poems of Robert Louis Stevenson out of his book, "A Child's Garden of Verses."  Below are some of my favorites and the ones she helped us to memorize.

My Shadow By Robert Louis Stevenson 

I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me,
And what can be the use of him is more than I can see.
He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head;
And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed.

The funniest thing about him is the way he likes to grow--
Not at all like proper children, which is always very slow;
For he sometimes shoots up taller like an india-rubber ball,
And he sometimes goes so little that there's none of him at all.

He hasn't got a notion of how children ought to play,
And can only make a fool of me in every sort of way.
He stays so close behind me, he's a coward you can see;
I'd think shame to stick to nursie as that shadow sticks to me!

One morning, very early, before the sun was up,
I rose and found the shining dew on every buttercup;
But my lazy little shadow, like an arrant sleepy-head,
Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed.

TIME TO RISE By Robert Louis Stevenson  

A birdie with a yellow bill
Hopped upon my window sill,
Cocked his shining eye and said:
"Ain't you 'shamed, you sleepy-head!"
 
 
THE SWING By Robert Louis Stevenson (another poem we memorized)
 
How do you like to go up in a swing,
     Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
     Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,
     Till I can see so wide,
River and trees and cattle and all
     Over the countryside--

Till I look down on the garden green,
     Down on the roof so brown--
Up in the air I go flying again,
     Up in the air and down!
 
 
THE COW By Robert Louis Stevenson
 
The friendly cow all red and white,
     I love with all my heart:
She gives me cream with all her might,
     To eat with apple-tart.

She wanders lowing here and there,
     And yet she cannot stray,
All in the pleasant open air,
     The pleasant light of day;

And blown by all the winds that pass
     And wet with all the showers,
She walks among the meadow grass
     And eats the meadow flowers.
 
 
She closed the daycare everyday at promptly 5:00 PM.  Her woodframe house was behind the daycare.
She would take us, her three grandchildren, home with her.  She always had Coca-Cola in the small 
clear green glass bottles or sometimes even Dr. Pepper.  There was no such thing as canned drinks 
back in those days.  She always had some kind of sweets on her table.  Sometimes it would be orange
slices, or maybe Hershey's kisses, Hershey Bars, Mr. Goodbars, or maybe 5th Avenue.  She loved to 
watch the Lawrence Welk show on her black and white TV that was in her bedroom.  We seldom went into
the livingroom.  That was reserved only for special occasions.  Her house was heated with gas space 
heaters.  It had the really high ceilings and seemed like it took forever to heat up.  She had her full 
size bed, a chest of drawers, dresser, and what she called her chifforobe.  Some chifforobes had drawers
on one side, but Nana's had two doors that opened up and that was where she kept her hanging garments.
She had a twin bed in her bedroom also.  That is where we would sleep when we visited her.  She would 
always take us to town with her on Saturdays.  She had two rockers in her bedroom, an antique table in which 
she kept her telephone, telephone book, and a lamp on.  She also had a hope chest in her bedroom.  I inherited
the antique table, the twin bed, and hope chest.  I treasure them.
 
Her daycare always did very well, so she never lacked for funds.  She loved spending her money on us, her 
grandchildren.  I don't remember ever having to do without anything because of Nana J.  My husband grew up 
with four brothers and four sisters.  He tells tales of having to walk quite a distance to get to school in 
the snow.  He was born in Denver and lived there until age 11.  He tells of walking to school with holes in
his shoes.  I never had to go through anything like that.  My husband's Dad was the only working parent, where
both of my parents worked, as well as my Nana J.  I had a wonderful childhood and loved spending time with my
sister and brother and spending time with my Nana J.  I knew we were much loved by both sets of our grandparents
and my parents.  I always remember having great Christmases.  Hubby said their christmases consisted of fruit and 
nuts in a stocking and a toy to share with his brothers.  The girls might also get a toy to share.
 
 
I knowI have been blessed.  Now it is time to give back to those who are less fortunate.  I know I have raised
my kids right because my daughter asked that we take the money we are going to spend on her and give it to a 
family who might not otherwise have a Christmas.  That is when you know you have raised them right. Because of my 
wonderful memories, I can always revisit my childhood.  I hope I have left my children with some of those great 
memories as well.
 
Merry Christmas!~