Dear Diary

Warning:  If diary entries bore you don't read any further!

I love diaries. They show us a little piece of how people lived and what they did years ago. Sometimes, if you are lucky they even reveal emotions that a person was feeling. Unfortunately, my own experience with keeping a diary has been rather abysmal. This has always slightly irritated me because I feel that as much as I like to write and read, I should have certainly been capable of keeping a journal for most of my life. However, that is not the case. I have three full years of diaries in my possession that I wrote. They are from 1973, 1978 and 1979. After that, I never kept another diary.

My Grandmother Kreider (my mom's mother) kept a diary for several years--1915, 1916, and 1921.  They are so interesting to read.  Here are several excerpts:

June 16, 1915 Wednesday. Clear. I picked the cherries from the early sweet cherry tree. They were awful specked. Just got about 6 qt. of nice ones this after. Helped to pick the big red cherries in the field. Got about 20 qt. of them. A gust this after but a light rain.

September 24, Friday. Doing the Fri. work. This after was pasting a few pictures.

January 1, 1916, Saturday. Threatening weather. We did the usual Saturday morning work. I was doing a little fancy work this after. Mother went over to Aunt Christie this after in the rain.

My grandparents got married on March 16, 1916. Grandma wrote in her diary every day up until March 12 and then there is nothing until March 25.  There is no mention of the wedding at all. She writes on March 10 that "Ada and I were baking nearly all day. The girls were cleaning up." and on March 11 she says, "We were baking cakes & icing them." Then on March 25, she picks up her diary again and continues to write as though nothing life changing had just happened to her although if you know that she got married you can read a little between the lines.

March 25, 1916, Saturday. Left Niagara Falls at half past five (So obviously they went to Niagrara Falls on their honeymoon). Reached Petersburg about 8 o'clock. Was up there all night. Surprised them & came down home next day.

Then on March 30 she writes:

We were up at Elmer's (her husband) home. They had the reception up there to-day. There were about 80 people there.

I am curious as to whether they had a reception the day of their wedding as well or whether they just got married on March 16 and then this was the one and only reception.  I guess if I researched it, I could probably find out the normal procedure for weddings back then, but it doesn't really matter. Grandma finished out that year and then quit journaling but picked it up again five years later for the year 1921. By this time, she had two little children, Elva and Mervin.

January 10, 1921, Monday. Cloudy till noon then cleared up nicely. Washed this forenoon and was sewing a little at Mervin's pink dress (it's bad enough that the little boys wore dresses but this one was even pink!) Did not get much done. Mervin was so fussy. He is getting more teeth. Elmer finished shredding at Dan Stoner's.

February 14, 1921, Monday. Clear and warm. Did not feel like washing. Did a little sewing. Elva got up this morn with chicken pox and was a little out of humor all day.

February 16, 1921, Wednesday, Mervin seems to be getting fever. The Health officer put the chicken pox tag up to-day. (Who was the Health officer?)

On April 5 she writes "Irvin (I don't know who this is) is in bed with the mumps and on April 7 she said "I'm feeling bomb." (What does that mean?)

Apparently keeping a diary and two small children, got a little overwhelming.  The last journal entry that my grandmother made was on April 27, 1921.

Clear and warm. Planted the potatoes in the lot & the peas. Cleaned the clothesroom this afternoon.

I decided to dig out my diaries and see what I had written many years ago. Here are some entries from 1973. I would have been 13 years old.

January 2, 1973 Tuesday. It was a little colder today. I can hardly wait till ice skating. I had school today but we didn't do very much. After school I had my music lesson so I had to get the eggs after supper. Then I watched a program on TV and read a book.

March 10, 1973 Saturday. Today was Lester and Lois' birthday. They are twenty-four years old....This evening we went to Lester and Marians to celebrate the twins birthday. The whole family was there. Duane and Stevie didn't know what to think of each other at first but then they got along pretty well.

March 15, 1973 Thursday.  I turned thirteen years old today. The whole school sang Happy Birthday. After school I played catch with Glen for a little while. Then I helped him take the junk down to the junk pile. He left me drive the tractor back.

April 28, 1973 Saturday. This morning I baked a cake and made dinner. This afternoon I washed the dishes, cleaned the kitchen and living room and washed my hair. We went to Lester and Marian's this evening. Duane was so cute and in a show off mood. We turned the clocks 1 hour ahead before going to bed.

June 13,  1973 Wednesday. This morning Mother and I went shopping. We left at 9:00 and got back at 12:00. After dinner Glen and I got the eggs and then Glen and Daddy went shopping. I washed the dishes and then helped Mother the rest of the afternoon. This evening Grandpa and Grandma came. Glen and I got the eggs and then I watched the Phillies game.

August 27, 1973 Monday.  We helped Lois and Jim pack all day. They will leave tomorrow morning at 3:00 am. Eugene and Glen went up in the morning to help carry the heavy things. At noon they went home to get the eggs. Daddy, Mother and I stayed until 5:00 pm. I will really miss them.

August 29, 1973 Wednesday. Daddy and Glen were away most of the day so Eugene and I got all the eggs. The automatic feeder in the block house wasn't working this morning so we had to carry the feed in buckets. Was that ever work! This evening Daddy and Mother went in to Penneys to pick up an order. Eugene and I watched the Phillies game.

September 21, 1973 Friday. I almost missed the bus this morning. I only had two minutes to spare. After school I baked a cake and helped Mother in the kitchen. This evening Glen  and I got the eggs. The one collector wasn't working and Glen really got mad at it. He came in and got Daddy and Daddy went out singing and the collector worked just perfect for him!

September 23, 1973 Sunday.  This afternoon Mother and I played a game of Scrabble. Believe it or not, I won!  I think Mother was trying too.

October 27, 1973 Saturday. Daddy is growing a beard. I don't see why because I never thought beards were that neat, but I guess he does. This afternoon I made some jello, dusted the living room and kitchen, swept the kitchen floor and washed my hair. I watched some football too. I washed the supper dishes and then read a little. At 8:00 I watched "Emergency!"

December 25, 1973 Tuesday.  This was rather a gloomy Christmas. I was sick all day. I threw up two times during the night and then right before dinner. Its a virus that has been going around. This afternoon Glen got sick and threw up twice. Nobody else is feeling quite right either so it was rather a dismal day. I went to bed at 9:00

I kept a diary again in 1978. I would have been 18 years old. Just a couple of red letter days:

March 15, 1978 Wednesday. Another year has passed and I'm a "big" 18 years old. I couldn't believe how many kids knew it was my birthday. Someone told Arnold Moshier and he made a big thing out of it and had Senior Chorus sing to me. I was so embarrassed! They also sang  at lunch. I skipped Youth Meeting tonight. Lesters were down for awhile. Gene and Glen are both caught up with buying houses. Gene might buy one in Willow Street.

May 20, 1978 Saturday. Wedding Day! Glen got me up at 6:30. Gene, Glen and I went to E-town church together. The wedding went beautifully. The baskets we had to carry were simply gorgeous and Glen & Marilyn seemed perfectly relaxed. The reception was at E -town fire hall. We got home around 3:00. Glen & Marilyn left right after the reception for their honeymoon.

June 13, 1978 Tuesday. Last day of school forever!!! I can't believe it. It really gives me a funny feeling. It seemed like school drug out today and I can hardly think that I'll never walk from class to class in that building again. It's sure been a good year. We seniors had a lot of fun.

June 17, 1978 Saturday.  Graduation day! We were supposed to have it outside but wouldn't you know it rained. We had just started the morning program when it stared pouring and everyone had to pick up their chair and rush into the gym. I was glad to graduate but in a way its kind of sad. I'll really miss the kids. Dad & Mom took Glen & Marilyn and I out to eat in Tom Grassel's new restaurant for supper. Then Glen & Marilyn stayed for the evening. We had a really good time.

June 21, 1978 Wednesday. This afternoon I helped Rhoda at the house. I did a lot of painting. We had one more boy in Bible School tonight. It went really well. Steve Lehman called tonight and asked for a date. I couldn't believe it. It doesn't suit me either night this weekend so we will do something the following weekend. I'm really excited about it. I think he's a nice guy.

June 24, 1978 Saturday . Wedding day again! The wedding didn't start until 2:00 so this morning Gene and I took his clothes over to his house. The day was just gorgeous. They couldn't have had a more perfect day. I really enjoyed being in it. John Horning was my escort and we really got along well. The reception was outside. I thought everything was well organized. Lester's came over this evening and Marian helped Dad get the eggs.

July 2, 1978 Sunday.  Tonight was my first date with Steve. We went to Sight & Sound. It went really well. We were both really relaxed and we just talked and talked. I have another one next Sunday night.

October 20, 1978 Tuesday. We bought a new car today! A 1977 Plymouth Volare. I really like it but can't wait until January when I can get my own car. This evening I worked on corn records awhile. Corn really came in tonight. By 11:30 the pit was so full they couldn't bring anymore so they left a truck load set. I left the dryer running and went to bed around 12:00.

December 31, 1978 Sunday. Had quiz practice this afternoon. It went really good. This evening Steve's youth group had a New  Year's Eve party at his place. We really  had a lot of fun. It's hard to believe that another year is gone, but it's sure been a good one. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Amazingly, I continued my journal writing through all of 1979. Again, just a few things that I wrote

January 12, 1979 Friday....When I got home dear mom was waiting up for me. She said she knows she shouldn't worry but she can't help it. It's nice to have a mother who cares so much.

January 15, 1979 Monday.  I got a job! I'm so excited I can hardly believe it. I just thank the Lord for it. First Federal Bank called me at dinner and I went in for an interview. He told me he'd let me know if I got it by the end of the week. I was barely home 15 minutes and he called and said I have it! I'll start Monday. I hope I like it but I'm scared.

February 28, 1979 Wednesday . I just really feel discouraged today. It's so hard to go to work among non-Christians and try to act like a Christian should. The people are nice but I just feel different. On top of that I have an awful cold and I've been miserable from that all day.

March 14, 1979 Wednesday.  ...Mom finally got her inheritance for the Kreider estate today. I can't believe that's finally ended...

March 30, 1979 Friday....A nuclear plant at Three Mile Island has leaked radiation that could be poisonous and cause cancer. It's all over the news and some people have actually evacuated the area. They said its dangerous for about a 5-10 mile radius. We're 22 miles away so I'm not worried yet.

April 2, 1979 Monday.  Today was just havoc. Everyone is so upset about this nuclear plant thing. The bank was just jammed with people coming to withdraw their money. On top of it all I was $100.00 off at balance time. We only got a 1/2 hour off for lunch and I didn't get off until 5:15. What a miserable day. They say the situation is stable but a lot of people have already evacuated. I hope everything turns out ok SOON.

May 24, 1979 Thursday Jonathan (my nephew) really isn't doing very well. He's still losing weight. Until he gains 2 days in a row the doctor won't let him go home. Dad, Mom & I went up to Glen's house and helped them. I painted & helped to put up wallpaper. They want to move in Monday but the house sure is far from finished.

June 27, 1979 Wednesday  Had today off. In the morning I got my hair cut and waited 1/2 hour in line for gas. Gas lines are terrible. PA is going to start rationing tomorrow....

July 1 1979 Sunday.  Steve and I went to River Corner tonight. We went back to Lester's afterward. Kendra suddenly took a liking to Steve and crawled all over him. I couldn't believe it but I'm glad.

November 4, 1979 Sunday.   I am engaged! I can't believe it. I'm so happy and yet so scared!...

November 24, 1979 Saturday ...Steve & I went to his brothers house for supper this evening. His two sisters and their dates were there too. We saw slides of when they were little kids. It was a lot of fun.

December 31, 1979 Monday  Last day of 1979! I had to work late because we had to balance after closing so I didn't get home until 6:00. Steve picked me up around 7:00 and we went to his youth groups New Year's Eve Party. Their adviser & Mel (Nancy's guy) collided in a game and the advisor knocked his front teeth loose. They took him into the hospital. So that dampened the party a little.

And that is where it stops. I believe I tried a few times after this to keep a diary, but never succeeded more than a few months. I wish I would have kept one when my children were growing up because it would be so interesting to go back and read now, but unfortunately like my grandmother, I also discontinued journaling when my life got busy with little ones and I never got back to it.

When we were cleaning out the house after my dad died, my sister found a diary that my mom had kept for the first half of the year of 1992. Recently, Lois gave it to me to read. As I began to read through it, I was swept with a feeling of sadness, not because of anything my mother had written, but because I realized it was just a mere two years before she was struck with that awful stroke that changed the rest of her life. She was so active and busy and each day was filled with ordinary things that she would have never guessed she would soon be unable to do. As I continued to read my emotion changed from sadness to thankfulness. What a blessing it is to have this memory of my 66-year old mother instead of the difficult last 12 years of her life that usually come to my mind. This was truly a gift from my mother that I received seven years after she died. It has brought back wonderful memories of a time when she was uninhibited by the physical and mental obstacles that took over her life far too early.

Here are some of her entries.

January 1, 1992 Wednesday The Lord privileged us to greet another year, asleep of course, but that's a blessing too when I sometimes have near sleepless nights. We enjoyed the day quietly at home, watched most of the rose parade on TV from 11 to 1, and ate pork and sauerkraut for dinner. Delicious! The weather was balmy enough in the afternoon for us to take a hike on the boardwalk. (She refers to the wooden steps going down to the park area on their property as the "boardwalk")

January 5, 1992 Sunday  I enjoyed our worship experience very much this morning. Lester taught our Sunday School class. Marian came in it too and added another dimension which we appreciated. Glenn Shenk led us in an impressive commission service for Duane as he enters VS at John's Island for a year. He also brought the message.  This afternoon I went up to Steve's and we ground the leftovers from their Christmas ham from Lobianco's (Steve worked for them). Then Mary and I had a game of Scrabble. She used all her letters first turn, but I gave her a good run at the end before she won. This evening we had a ladies' trio and a men's quartet lead us in worship at church. We ran out of gas going up the big hill on the way home. Dad flagged down the next car and they kindly took me back to Steve's and he brought us home and helped Dad get some gas and get in going again. The other good Samaritan's name was Via who lives on House Rock Road.

January 14, 1992 Tuesday.  I sewed patches this afternoon and after supper we went to Kendra's basketball game and what a game! They trailed by 8 points at the end of the half. But they really came back the second half. Kendra was the star. She totaled 24 points, 14 of them foul shots. We were really glad we were at that game.

February 3, 1992 Monday. The Lord gave me still another birthday, and it was a good day. I had several phone calls and an invitation to supper at the Clymers. I was working on the comforter most of the day. We enjoyed a good supper and then played several rounds of rook. It was a very enjoyable evening!  Soon after we got home, Glen called and we talked a long time. It is such a blessing to have a telephone.

February 16, 1992 Sunday ...Gene, Rhoda, Carrie & Derek were here for dinner. We had a good time playing Dutch Blitz and ping pong....

February 21, 1992 Friday...We took it fairly easy till 3:30 when we left for Black Rock. We helped with supper and clean-up. Got home at 7:30 just in time for Jeopardy.

March 11, 1992 Wednesday This is our 44th wedding anniversary. That's a milestone we didn't even think about 44 years ago. Although neither of us have had all our expectations met, they have been good years and we thank God for them and for each other.

March 29, 1992 Monday. Early this morning Elvin left to go down to Horning's in New Holland for some work on the car. The motor raced at times and they put a new control unit on the computer, didn't take long and didn't cost nearly as much as we feared it might. I cut out a new dress, am trying a new pattern. We had settlement for our last lot on River Road at 5:00...we are glad to be rid of it, but in a way I felt sad because it was like severing all connections with our home of 27 years. We ate supper at Dempsey's Diner ...

April 30 - May 7, 1992.  We drove to Florida. It was a very good trip. Enjoyed our time with Glen's family, met an interesting couple from Manitoba, Canada, who also stayed at Weaver Villa, and spent several hours with Duane and the V.S. Unit at John's Island.

May 12, 1992 Tuesday. I'm tired writing in this Diary now, so I'll just be sporadic for awhile. Too much work piling up on me.

And that is pretty much it.  Except for a few random entries in the next couple months, Mom stopped writing in her diary. Two short years later, her life as she was used to it ended. Although she made some recovery from her stroke, never again could she walk and talk easily or do other activities that she had enjoyed doing with ease. I am grateful for this little glimpse into Mother's world (pre-stroke) and I love the memory that it brings back of days long forgotten.

Maybe it's not to late for me to start keeping a diary....