Beyond the South End

 

When  I’m  One-Oh-Three

If I live to be 100 I’ll…

Never forget this day.

If I live to be 101 I’ll…

Never forget this day.

If I live to be 102 I’ll…

Never forget this day.

Well today I’m 103…I’m still here.

A child born in the winter,

Who remembers winters at the top of Kiln Hill

On the West Meadow Road.

We were a big family of Winchenbaughs.

Six boys, three girls.

The horse and buggy couldn’t hold us all

As Molly trudged up that hill.

We all lagged behind.

Summer or winter we trudged.

Times were sometimes harsh,

But our faith kept us going,

Until one by one we came down that hill

To follow our own paths

To climb our own hills in life.

I found love at the bottom of the hill.

His name was Constantine Poletti,

I called him Con.

Others called him Mac.

He was a Navy man come to town.

I turned 31 on December 7, 1941.

That day lived on forever in my memory

As a day I’ll never forget

My own special “Day of Infamy.”

I followed my Navy husband

All over the country

During a war that brought

More hard times

But also good memories of the

People we met along the way.

Years passed as we retired

Traveling to Florida and

Back to the cottage in Spruce Head, Maine

I’ll never forget those days.

And who knows?

Maybe we’ll all meet here

Next  December 7

When I’m One-Oh-Four.

Happy Birthday, Aunt Virginia…I love you.

 

Virginia attended the Benner Hill School, a one-room schoolhouse, seen here about 1951, which was located on the section of the Mountain Road (above West Meadow Road) previously known as the Sherer Mill Road. The school educated students from 1873 into the 1950s. According to city reports it was erected to accommodate those who were too young to endure the fatigue of attending school at the Middle Street school house. Total cost of the building was $546.40. This photo comes from the Rockland Historical Society Facebook page.

Update:

Aunt Virginia enjoyed reading this but noted that she had six brothers, not five. Even if her memory is fading, she does remember that. They were: Gabriel, Benedict, Basil, Ensign, Exavier, and Emmanuel. She also had two sisters, Evangeline, my mother, and Eleanor, the baby of the family.