Morgan Pioneer History Binds Us logelhei Holiday Memories of the Rock Family THANKSGIVING DAY Wonderful holiday traditions grew with Peter and Janet Rock as their children married and grandchildren were born. None was more important than Thanksgiving Day. A week or so before, Peter obtained two huge turkeys, big enough to dress out at thirty-five pounds each. He would feed them for several days to "finish" them. He would kill them, scald them in a huge vat of boiling water to pluck the feathers off, dress them and hang them in the cold pantry for a day to "cool out." On Thanksgiving morning, very early, they were filled with Janet's sage stuffing and placed in the oven. (One may have been roasted the day before.) As the families began to arrive, the women would be busy preparing the food, And what food! There would be hot homemade bread or rolls, vegetables, spaghetti (from Aunt Leatha, the best ever), sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, mince, squash pie (some call it pumpkin), and plum pudding with Janet's special sauce. Some of us never knew what the "stick" was she put in it for the extra flavor. The children were fed first all seated around the big square table. That plum pudding was amazing! When each child finished the serving, a nickel was found in it. Just the right amount for the admission to the local theater, where a special matinee was held. All went hurrying down the hill in laughing groups, the oldest helping the young ones. Now it was time for the adults to eat. And eat they did until they were stuffed. After dinner the women would clear up and do the dishes. And visit catching up on all the family news. There was a lot of joy in loving companionship. The men, those who didn't nap, would go into the parlor for an exciting game of cards called "Solo" or "Sluff" as they referred to it. Generally there were four at a table. The dealer would be rotated and not play the hands he dealt. The three players with cards would compete against each other. Sometimes tempers would rise a bit in the excitement of the game, but no hard feelings were ever held. When the kids returned, goodbyes were said and the families would return to their homes glad to be a part of this family. For several years after Peter died, the family kept to the tradition, but as grandchildren married and families enlarged, they began to hold their own dinners. Janet was very proud of her dining set. She had at some point in time wanted this particular set, but the money was not available. She hired out to pick up potatoes for a farmer one fall to earn the money for it. MEMORIAL DAY Another big family day was Memorial Day, which we all called Decoration Day, a day for decorating the graves of our kindred dead. The family would meet at Peter and Janet's home to arrange for flowers to go to the graves at the North Morgan Cemetery. In addition to various vases, a number of beautiful, large wicker baskets had been saved from various funerals. These were cleaned of winter dust from hanging in the garage and stood on a table outside. Peter and Janet's flower gardens were in full bloom. If the peonies were late, Janet would cut them several days ahead, place them in buckets of warm water, and "force" them to break bud and blossom. They had several varieties, dark red, pink and white with a deep red "blood" spot. In addition, there were snowballs, lilacs, bridal wreath, flags (known as iris) and possibly others. When the bouquets were arranged to everyone's satisfaction, they were carefully carried in cars to the cemetery and placed lovingly on the graves. There would be lots of friends and neighbors on the same errand and lots of visiting going on as the groups circulated. If the kids became restless with all this talking, they would return to "Grandma's" to play games, roam the orchard and the hills waiting for the grownups and lunch; fresh bread, potato salad, and whatever else the families and brought. It was a wonderful time of life and one we all treasure. Dean Rock remembers a special experience: Laurel, Sherman and Dean would go to the Cemetery before everyone came to bring flowers, cleaning the ground from weeds and mounding the graves to make the cemetery look its best for the visitors. He remembers the flags (iris) planted to decorate the cemetery. ©9-