The house they built was where I discovered as a young kid that bees can get drunk.
It was a perhaps small (by today’s standards) three bedroom, one bathroom ranch with basement located in the farthest corner of Northeast D.C. The house was not too far from where Marvin Gaye was raised (I could actually walk the three blocks to his house).Two adults and four children all grew up in that house. My child now finds it amazing that we did all of that with only one bathroom. I always laugh at this and tell her it was because we had much better time management in those days. That and the fact we only had about five or six television channels.
The house cost about $16,000 dollars (less than my car) and my parents worked hard and long hours to afford the home. The payment was about $100 a month. As a gift my mother closest sister paid for a wall to be added between the entrance and the living room. Eventually my parents were able to save up money so that they could finish part of the unfinished basement. Bookcases overflowed in the library of the new renovations. Both parent encouraged reading in our household.
To “spruce” up the part of the basement that was unfinished, my parents allowed us to draw and paint on the walls and after all this time they refused to paint over the various figures. I happened to enjoy comics back then and so the walls were plastered with superheroes. My sisters choose various other literary characters.
We also had a garden in the back yard where we grew many types of vegetable. Plus we rented more land to grow more vegetables. With all this planting and cultivating I did at such a young age you would think I had a green thumb like my father. But no, all I can grow are weeds. I am still trying to do better though.
The bees that I mentioned before got drunk on the fruit which fell from the two pear trees that were growing in our yard. I forgot what type of pears but it was the kind supposedly better after you cook them. I also learned how to actually can fruit back then also as we did it every fall. Funny thing is the pear trees were “normal” for a few of the neighbors then. While we had only the pear trees; my neighbors to the left and right also had cherry trees, peach trees, walnut trees, blueberry bushes and even a sizable vineyard. Each neighbor would invite the other neighbors over whenever they wanted to share in the fruit. I would spend as much time in the other neighbor yard almost as much as I did mine. I would many times sit with the older lady next door as she told stories of the neighborhood during World War II.
My father, who never finished the sixth grade, was a landscaper for the government and took pride in cultivating his yard and planting several types of flowers; especially the rose bushes he planted for his wife. He also took pride in instilling in his children that education was the most important thing in your life. In fact he was an avid reader also and read many of the books in the library. One day a few years ago, after finishing his rounds and tending his garden he went to take his afternoon nap and never woke up again.My mother followed him by about five years later. She had wanted to be in that home until the day she died, but age and illness stopped her from doing that. As with my father, education was one of the most important things she would instill in us. That and going to church every Sunday. I always found it interesting that she would only go herself a few times a year. Her love of crossword puzzles, reading and the game Scrabble are legendary in the family.
Since her death the house had stood as it had always. One sister remained, but after a while it became too much for her to maintain. And perhaps the memories were a little too much for her. So the family got together and sold this part of our history. The young man and his new family will move in some time this month.Our pear trees are long gone now as they both fell to some decease. In their place, fifteen year or so ago, we had planted an apple tree and for many years enjoyed its fruit. Its demise happened in the form of a lightning bolt.
Now the yard stands bear (except for the rose bushes) and waiting for the next tree to be planted. In the house they build.
