Life in a Suitcase

My feature for Vintage Thingie Thursday with Coloradolady at http://coloradolday.blogspot.com will be more words than pictures. Also, it is a little longer than I normally do.








This true story was written January 16, 1948. It was a class assignment for a young girl a Junior in high school. The original copy of this story is in this suitcase along with MANY MANY more things of her life from the first grade until today. In her own words, "literally, my entire life is in this suitcase". She made an "A" on this assignment.

IN THE REAL WORLD

I know nothing concerning the background of my ancestors and very little about my grandparents. My father's parents came from Georgia into Cass County in the year of 1881. They lived at their home near Douglassville, Texas until death took them. My mother's parents came from Tennessee in the year of 1890. They are now residing in their home at Leary, Texas, near Texarkana.

I was born Thursday morning, July 2, 1931. I weighed ten pounds at birth. When I was six months old, I weighed 20 pounds. My mother said I was the prettiest little baby she had ever seen. She said I had long, black hair. One of my aunts combed it one hour after I was born.

When I was about twelve months old, I spoke my first word.which were "daddy" and "mama". I was about fourteen months old before I could walk. My mother thought I was never going to walk or talk.

When I was just a little baby an up until I was four years old, I had "fits". Mother said when I got hurt or mad I would cry, and lose my breath. She said I would get limber and look as if I were dead. Mother would give me anything to keep me from crying. In a way I wish I still had those "fits".

I had a narrow escape from death when I was about three ears old. I ate some boiled corn that was too hard, and I nearly died before Mother could get me to a doctor.

I started to school at the age of six, attended school at Leary, Texas. I cried when I had to start to school. I wanted to stay home with my mother. I always was and still am a "mama" girl. Starting to school was not too bad for I had my sister and aunt to help me get settled.

I spent most of my grammar school days going to different schools. But of all the different schools that I have attended. I like Atlanta the best. When I started to school here, I had real long hair, and I wore it in pigtails.

(7th GRADE)

Everyone thought I was very pretty. One day I came to school without my pigtails. Everyone wanted to know why I had cut my hair. My teacher said she would always remember me with my pigtails. I still have the hair I cut off and braided into a pigtail.

When I had my hair cut, a funny feeling came over me and I nearly cried. But I have not regretted having cut it for nearly everyone told me it made me look lots better.
One summer during vacation I visited my grandmother. My uncle, sister, cousin and myself went riding in a little cart. We were riding over country roads, and the horse was running. Suddenly he ran through a mud puddle, slipped down and over turned the cart. They all got out with just a few bruises and scratches. I got hurt very bad. The horse kicked me on the foot, and I thought for awhile it was broken. It was only bruised very bad. We haven't told our parents about that accident to this day.

The night I graduated from grammar school to high school I got my first evening dress. I was a thrilled and excited girl. At last I was really in high school, but I could hardly believe it was true. It still only seems like yesterday that I was just starting to school. I cannot remember very much that happened in my freshman year. It was during that year I joined the band. I had more fun being in the band, than I have have doing anything else. I get to go on trips, and see and do things that I did not get to do before I joined the band.

Nothing very exiting happened in my sophomore year. It was that year that I was neither absent nor tardy a single day. The night the Seniors got their diplomas, I was called to the stage. I received a certificate for not being absent or tardy. I was really thrilled. I was, along with the other sophomore girls, a waitress at the Junior-Senior banquet last year. We had to be dressed like Mexican senoritas. My best girl friend and I were dressed alike. Everyone complimented us. They said we looked very pretty. I really enjoyed being a waitress. It will be a time of my life I will never forget. This year I will get to go to the banquet without being a waitress. I know it will be lots more fun.

This year (Junior year) I have enjoyed coming to school more than any other year. I am taking subjects that I like this year, except plain geometry. I hate that stuff. The subject I like most is typing. One reason I like typing is because I would like to be a typist or a stenographer when I finish school. I can already get thirty-five words a minute, and I may enter the Intercollegiate Typing contest in the spring. Some of the students have so much trouble with typing, but I think it is simple.

My best girl friend and I are thinking about joining the Wave Corps when we finish school. We are having some trouble with our mothers though. If there is another war, I will join the Waves for sure. I h ope I will not have to join during war time. Wars seem so cruel to me. I lost an uncle and a cousin in this last war. If there is another one, it might be my husband or sweetheart, instead of uncle or cousin. Wars are cruel, but I guess there will always be wars.

What I will do when I finish school is too far in the future. But the above things are some things I would like to do. I may marry and not even have a business career. If and when I do marry, I would like to have two children. I would like a boy and a girl. But that is far in the future too.

The best thing for me to do is to just wait and see what the future holds for me.

THE END

She received this suitcase when she graduated in 1949. Inside you would find the following report cards from the first day of school along with the braided hair that was referred to in her story. Along with these items are many treasures, documents and mementos from that first day in school till now. Her entire life in some small way is in the that suitcase.

An example of the contents are these grade school report cards.





Outcome of her dream future:

She went to a Business College and excelled in typing and steno work.
Married.
Has a boy and a girl.