When Mary Farrar married William (Willie) Best on October 2, 1902, they had no idea that 124 years later 200 people would follow. Picture “1” Willie & Mary with their 5 “Best Kids”, Mary Ella, Josephine, Wilhena, Farrar (my mom) and Francis. These 2 generations are now gone but not forgotten. In their lifetime they …
Tag: family
Lessons From The Farm: The Farm Shop
Mary & I went home to Hamburg last week for the 4th of July Celebration on the Square. The first place I had to check out was where my dad’s heart was... the farm. Dad called it headquarters. There were no tractors or farm implements present. The huge old oak tree that provided shade on …
Christmas Memories…
To some these are “just” Tupperware containers but to me, they hold precious memories of past Christmas seasons. Before Thanksgiving mother would begin her annual candy & cookie production. In the large round container, she would have layers of fudge separated by sheets of wax paper. Each piece was about 1 ½ “ thick and …
Stuck!
This is a familiar situation on a rice farm at harvest. The field is soft from standing in water most of the summer. Many fields have soft spots. As a young lad growing up on my dad’s rice farm, I stuck a few tractors. But never like this. Never! Dad didn’t find anything funny about …
“Look For Signs…”
If you deer hunt, you have heard the phrase, “Look for signs.” Good hunters walk through the woods constantly looking for where deer bed down, droppings, scraps, paths, natural food sources, water & tracks. If I am traveling down the road looking for a place to eat, I look for signs…pickup trucks. Long before website …
“And She Will Have A Handful of Those”
It was our first cup of coffee on a Saturday morning. Mary & I are sitting outside of our daughter’s home, grandson & grand dog sitting when I said, “We need a treat. I’m going up to the donut place.” A few minutes later I was there standing in line. In front of me is …
She Carried Sweet Memories…
Tupperware…the carrier of good things. These are 3 of my mother’s Tupperware containers. She used these to carry her pies, cakes, candy and other delicious foods to potlucks, church events and to the field at harvest time. When a person saw one of these sitting on a counter, table, or the tail gate of a …
I Had No Idea…
I must have been 6 or 7 years old the summer I spend with my dad’s Aunt Mary & Uncle Aldo (Doe Doe). They lived in the country outside Carlisle, AR, just down the road from the house my grandpa & dad built. I remember the first morning, before the sun came up, Uncle Doe …
Lessons From The Farm: His Hands
My dad had massive, callused hands. If he tightened a nut with his hands, you didn’t need a wrench. When my dad was a young boy, he and his dad built their house (probably 90 years ago – still occupied in Carlisle, AR) with their hands. Dad could build whatever he needed out of wood …
An Untold Story…
I have said many times, “I come from a family of storytellers.” Several weeks ago, the Best Family, my mother’s side of the family, gathered for our reunion of storytellers. The rich legacy of how people survived & thrived through difficult times. These are phenomenal stories of love wrapped in laughter. Through it all they …
