A TRIBUTE TO HER MOTHER
by Marie Curtis

 Probably Mother's greatest interest outside the home was temple work. Mother
started to work as an officiator in the Logan Temple when I was one year old.  Three
days a week she went with a smile on her face to the temple, early in the morning,
and came home with a smile.  This work gave her a great joy and satisfaction which
she shared with us.  For twenty-six years she did this work, winter and summer and
she always walked to and from the temple.

     In Mother's patriarchal blessing she was told she would have dreams and visions.
I remember one morning when she was getting ready to go to the temple she seemed
a little worried and finally she said,  "You know I had the funniest dreams last night,
I dreamed that a woman came to me and was so happy to meet me and she told me her
name. Three times I dreamed this but for some reason I can't remember her name
and it bothers me." When Mother came home from the temple that day she was all smiles
as she handed me the little slip of paper with the woman's name that she had done the
work for that day, and she said,  "This is the name of the woman that came to me in my
dreams last night."

     Mother also worked in the presidency of the Primary for many years and was a
member of the Relief Society and the Daughters of the Pioneers.

     Mother was very modest. She never wanted material things for herself. She
took delight in seeing the accomplishments of her children. She was more concerned
about our clothes and the material things that would make us happy. Mother was very
frugal - very saving. For instance, she made her soap for washing clothes. She would save
the grease from cooking.  The ends of slabs of bacon which couldn't be sold at the store
and the fat of pork. This she would render down, adding lye and water to make soap. 
This she would boil for hours in a huge boiler on the old coal stove in the wash house. 
When she thought it had boiled enough she would strain the hot liquid through burlap
into huge tubs to set into soap.  This procedure took a lot of patience and care which
Mother had an abundance of. I was always trying to persuade her not to make the soap. 
The last time she did was a week before I was married.  I had been helping her and when
it came time to strain the hot liquid one of us let the burlap get away from us and some of
the hot liquid splashed on us.  My legs got a few burns on the backs from which I made a
lot of fuss.  Mother's whole concern was for me and I didn't find out until much later that
her burns on her arms and legs were much worse than mine.

     I remember the days when we would husk the corn for her to boil and cut off the
cob and dry in the sun on large racks, turning it often during the day.  Mother loved
to cook and bake.  Her bread was delicious.  Making her own yeast, she would turn
out nine loaves of delicious bread every few days.  She kept big crocks full of pickles
and good things to eat.

     Mother had many friends who loved her. She was also interested in our friends
and always made them welcome.  We often brought our friends home after Sunday
School and they were always welcome.

     Mother had a keen sense of humor and it was fun to share incidents with her.
She was interested in my boy friends.  When I was teaching school at the Benson, I
was writing to a couple of boys. The back upstairs windows of my school room faced
our lane-way at home.  The mailman always delivered mail just before recess.  If
there was a letter for me. Mother would walk down the lane and wave the letter.  Of
course, I always managed to be at the windows of my class room at that time.  If there
was a letter I would run home at recess and get it and we would share it together.

     My Mother was a singing mother. She sang while she did her work - an art which
I think is lost today.  She loved the hymns.  It didn't matter whether she was cooking
or cleaning she would be singing snatches of some hymn.  I remember once when my
brother and I were throwing a ball in the kitchen - we were usually throwing something
or other - and as I threw the ball to Melvin or Merrill he ducked and the ball went
through the kitchen window.  Mother was ironing and singing "How Firm A Foundation"
and as the window crashed she turned around and in the middle of a phrase gave me a
swat and went on singing without even breaking the rhythm.

     Mother had a great deal of patience. I have often wondered when rearing my
children, how she put up with my brothers and me.  It seems we were always chasing
each other up and down stairs, having water fights, or something to send her to
distraction.

     Mother loved her home. Once when we were all grown up and on our own. Papa
asked Mother how she would like to spend a winter in Arizona as so many of their
friends were doing.  Whether it was in jest or not. Mother was horrified at the thought,
"Why, I could never leave my home, " she said.

     And oh how happy she was when the little grandchildren would run down to our
place for a piece of her good bread and butter with choke-cherry jelly on it.
Mother's hands were never idle.  In the evenings when she sat down to rest, she
would pick up her crocheting.  She made beautiful laces for table cloths, pillow cases
and sheets, my petticoats, and a lot of her lovely work she gave away.

     Mother never complained of hard work but took everything in her stride. Several
times when men came to our country from Sweden, they would locate Papa and he
would bring them home for dinner or to stay with us until Papa found jobs for them.
When Papa left for Sweden to become the president of the mission. Mother and I
became closer together and shared more time together. Again Mother showed her
unselfishness when Papa went on his mission.  She never complained when she had to
stay home with the rest of us.

     Mother had little or no interest in wearing jewelry. I once heard her say that her
children were her jewels.  She had a great love for all of us.  I am so very thankful
that she was my mother and that she numbered me as one of her jewels.

LINKS

Return to Annie Charlotte Eliason History Index
Return to Anderson History Index
RETURN TO ANDERSON HOME PAGE