The Scholefields
As a child it is hard to appreciate the kindness of adults. As an adult, it's often too late to express thanks.
On the road where I grew up a nice couple shared their swimming pool with the neighborhood. More accurately, Gert gave swimming lessons to all the children on the street and Walt swam laps after classes ended. An entire generation learned how to swim in that pool. Parents contributed funds every year, but I am sure it was far cheaper than it would have been to send us to learn how to swim elsewhere. Gert actively encouraged us to make the most of using their pool and kept track of the miles we swam to motivate us to swim laps. One mile seemed a huge distance back then.
One of the stories told to me was Gert's allergies were the result of a serious car accident. Whether or not that was true, she definitely had severe allergies and routinely reminded us to leave plastic items outside the fence surrounding the pool. The steering wheel on their station wagon was wrapped in duck tape. The telephone was wrapped in duck tape. A house without plastic seemed a century out of place. It must have been very hard living that way. I remember how closely she inspected the smallest of things to determine if it would give her a reaction or not.
In the woods behind the pool was white school bus. Someone must have dumped it there before the property was developed, but it made for an odd sight as a child. Behind the bus was a bit of wetland and a pond nearby. They kept a bench and shovel there so in the wintertime anyone could shovel the ice off the snow and skate. A lot of people learned how to ice skate at that pond, but I was not one of them. However, I did help my father clear out some trees from the yard at the request of Gert. She knew my parents had a wood burning stove and my father offered.
As kids we made fun of the annual grapevine wreath sale. Gert made them every year and hung a sign up at the end of the street to advertise it. She also canvassed the street to raise money for cancer research. I don't know when it became commonplace for door-to-door fundraising efforts like that, but whenever that started I am sure Gert ran with it.
Walt seemed to linger around until there were not so many people around and then he would swim. I don't remember him in any other capacity but waiting for my swimming lesson to end. He was real nice and joked a lot. He enjoyed singing jingles from when he was a boy, which amused us to no end. "Pepsi Cola hits the spot, 12 full ounces that's a lot. Twice as much for a nickel too, Pepsi Cola is the drink for you!" A few times Gert and Walt played volleyball in the shallow end of the pool with a couple of us. It's always fun for a child when adults play games with them like that.
Walt died last week and was buried this week. I read his obituary online. He served in WWII, was a fireman, and an self-employed accountant - I never knew any of that. They were married for over 60 years. I am sure Gert will miss him. We probably never thanked him for letting all of us use his pool and spend all that time with his wife. I'm sure he knew we appreciated it, but it's a shame that was not properly expressed when it should have been.
On the road where I grew up a nice couple shared their swimming pool with the neighborhood. More accurately, Gert gave swimming lessons to all the children on the street and Walt swam laps after classes ended. An entire generation learned how to swim in that pool. Parents contributed funds every year, but I am sure it was far cheaper than it would have been to send us to learn how to swim elsewhere. Gert actively encouraged us to make the most of using their pool and kept track of the miles we swam to motivate us to swim laps. One mile seemed a huge distance back then.
One of the stories told to me was Gert's allergies were the result of a serious car accident. Whether or not that was true, she definitely had severe allergies and routinely reminded us to leave plastic items outside the fence surrounding the pool. The steering wheel on their station wagon was wrapped in duck tape. The telephone was wrapped in duck tape. A house without plastic seemed a century out of place. It must have been very hard living that way. I remember how closely she inspected the smallest of things to determine if it would give her a reaction or not.
In the woods behind the pool was white school bus. Someone must have dumped it there before the property was developed, but it made for an odd sight as a child. Behind the bus was a bit of wetland and a pond nearby. They kept a bench and shovel there so in the wintertime anyone could shovel the ice off the snow and skate. A lot of people learned how to ice skate at that pond, but I was not one of them. However, I did help my father clear out some trees from the yard at the request of Gert. She knew my parents had a wood burning stove and my father offered.
As kids we made fun of the annual grapevine wreath sale. Gert made them every year and hung a sign up at the end of the street to advertise it. She also canvassed the street to raise money for cancer research. I don't know when it became commonplace for door-to-door fundraising efforts like that, but whenever that started I am sure Gert ran with it.
Walt seemed to linger around until there were not so many people around and then he would swim. I don't remember him in any other capacity but waiting for my swimming lesson to end. He was real nice and joked a lot. He enjoyed singing jingles from when he was a boy, which amused us to no end. "Pepsi Cola hits the spot, 12 full ounces that's a lot. Twice as much for a nickel too, Pepsi Cola is the drink for you!" A few times Gert and Walt played volleyball in the shallow end of the pool with a couple of us. It's always fun for a child when adults play games with them like that.
Walt died last week and was buried this week. I read his obituary online. He served in WWII, was a fireman, and an self-employed accountant - I never knew any of that. They were married for over 60 years. I am sure Gert will miss him. We probably never thanked him for letting all of us use his pool and spend all that time with his wife. I'm sure he knew we appreciated it, but it's a shame that was not properly expressed when it should have been.
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