COUSINS REMEMBERING GRANDMA PLUCKER

Here is a visit (via email) I had about three years ago (February, 2010) with two cousins. We are all grandchildren of Christina Rebecca Plucker. My father was Menne Elvin (MEJ), Lydia’s mother was Lydia Martha Verna and Don was the son of Alma Christina. Much of the information I write about regarding the Plucker side of my family comes from Eleanor Skoog (Engle Anna’s daughter).

 

 From Jean (MEJ’s daughter):

 I was "privileged" to be able to stay with Grandma and Grandpa quite often when I was little. I some fond memories. Grandma used to make her own cottage cheese and I watched that process. But mostly I remember everyone trundling off to their beds right after noon dinner, for a nap. Grandma in her bed and Grandpa in his.

It was a source of much interest to me when I was a pre-teen that Grandma Plucker had her ears pierced when she was young. What happened? Why did she do that? How old was she? What did her parents think? Did she have a bit of a “wild” streak in her? When I would question her about it, she didn’t want to talk about it. She would just say, “yes, I had pierced ears, but the holes grew closed a long time ago.” The subject really piqued my curiosity, but I knew better than to go on. When did she stop wearing earrings? What kind of earrings did she wear? Did her preacher father force her to take them out? Did her step mother? Was there a huge problem with that? Or did she have them still when she married Grandpa? Did he tell her it wasn’t good to have them?

From Lydia (Lydia Martha Verna's daughter):

I had no idea that she had pierced ears.  I think I did it after I was married too and was also a bit wary of what my mother would say.  But, of course, my mom always had lots of earrings; clip on type, so she really couldn't quibble over the piercing.

I often do think of Christina Rebecca and wonder what kind of person she was, what affect the step-mother had on her and how the preacher father acted (was he super stern, for example). I wonder if she was interested in fashion.  I know my mother was and had quite a repertoire of sexy (self-made) clothes and fashionable pins and jewelry from before she was married.

 

[And whenever they came for a visit, Lydia practiced her piano pieces on Grandma’s piano in the back living room.]

                                                                                                                                                               

 From Don Wadleigh (Alma Christina's son):

As you mention things, I get a vague recollection of that sort of thing, like the braiding of the hair and taking naps.  I remember that I was always sent to the little bedroom at the top of the stairs.  And there was also a green quilt with panels of tulips or bunnies on it.  I still have and use one of those.  It's pretty shop-worn now.

She always had a nightgown on or at least the same looking garment all the time.  I probably either have good memories or no memories. She was never anyplace other than in the pantry or the kitchen.  It was very difficult to get her outside.  Usually only for pictures.  She would lay out the garden I remember.

She was always just a presence, rather than a person.  She was always hovering around that little kerosene-burning stove in the kitchen. 

Some of the most pleasant memories were when she would get out the demitasse cups at tea time in the afternoon and we "little folks" could use them to drink tea.  And Grandpa taught us how to cool our tea by pouring it into the saucer and then drinking it out of that.  He also taught us how to soften the cookies by dunking them in our cups.

I remember that she explained to me how the dumbwaiter worked.  Maybe it says something that I didn't believe her, not until Grandpa explained it to me the same way and Dad confirmed it.

The other two main memories I have of her are her teaching us how to shell peas and break off the ends of the green beans and that she had this big jar of rock candy (big sugar crystals on a string) in the stairway to the basement.

And of course we all probably remember her in the hospital bed in the living room.

None of these helps get any insight into her personality or her as a person.  You may be right that she was influenced, perhaps in a negative way, by her step mother.  Mom used to call that lady "Helen Wheels."  [Pretty cute play on words, Don.]

Given all that, please realize that many of my memories are reinforced by the pictures that I have of events around that house, or items from that house that I still have.  And what is telling about the things I have is that I have nothing that "belongs" to Grandma, but lots of things of Grandpa.  I still talk to "clock" every day.  She is still running, just got a grease job about a year ago, and sounds just as good as ever.  She does have a tough time lasting more than six days on one winding where she used to run at least eight.

 

[Don has the “Grandfather’s Clock” that was in the Plucker kitchen behind the table. It was always Grandpa’s job to keep the clock on time.]

 

Grandma, Alma, Don, Grandpa (1945)

 

 

 This is Cindee, Jean's daughter, Jan. 17,2022.  Just talked to Eleanor Skoog on the phone (that's Aunt Annie's daughter who is 92.)  She told me that Great Grandma had really terrible arthritis and it was almost crippling, but she could walk.