by Elaine Thomas | Jul 10, 2023 | Old Times, Rural Life, Western Canada
When I write stories about old times, it’s important that my facts are accurate and my descriptions correct. So I’ll share a secret with you. My go-to authority on rural life in the last century is not the internet; it’s 101-year-old Ed Poffenroth. ...
by Elaine Thomas | May 26, 2023 | Rural Life, Saving Stories, Vietnam
For Vietnam War veteran Wayne Givens, every day is Memorial Day. That’s why he searches for opportunities to gift the beaded mementos he creates. The keychains are free. However, they didn’t come cheap. “They were paid for years ago in the jungles of Southeast Asia...
by Elaine Thomas | Apr 21, 2023 | Rural Life, Rural Texas
What better time than spring to put the urgencies of everyday life aside and slip into an old Texas cemetery. Wandering between the rows of graves, many very old and some more recent, we feel the rugged tranquility of this quiet place. New Life Amid the Markers An...
by Elaine Thomas | Mar 10, 2023 | Old Times, Rural Life, Rural Texas, Saving Stories
Jimmy Helms is the old philosopher of New Dubina, Texas. He’s also his rustic little town’s sheriff, mayor, dentist, postmaster, banker, cobbler, bartender, preacher, teacher, etc. As the 84-year-old retired Houston dentist makes the rounds at his 1857-1900-era...
by Elaine Thomas | Jan 20, 2023 | Family, Old Times, Rural Life, Western Canada
In February 1973, the days of hauling small bales on a wooden hayrack pulled by a team of heavy horses to feed the cows were almost past. However, Millarville, Alberta, rancher Winston Parker still adhered to the old tradition with help from my brother, Art. I jumped...
by Elaine Thomas | Nov 18, 2022 | Family, Rural Life, Saving Stories
Trudy Thomas is the name, and savoring security is my game. Last November, when I was a seven-month-old kitten, my three siblings and I were abandoned on a deserted lane in rural Texas several weeks before Thanksgiving. For a couple of hours, it was fun playing in an...
