Interview with my dad (and mom)
What are your favorite memories of your kids
D: Well, I remember collectively I remember how good a student they were. That was not a problem getting any one of the three of you to study and to perform well in school
M: I remember them playing out in the backyard in Dodge City with the neighborhood kids. I remember Dave burying his shoe in the sand when they were building the house next door.
D: Oh – I remember Dave hanging his glasses on the fence
D I remember you being sort of a judge or a referee with the neighborhood kids when playing especially when (what’s her name) (me – Shelly) – when all of you were playing together with Shelly – of course she was (me – down syndrome) retarded – she didn’t know what the rules were and how to play and I remember you sorting things out and keeping things calm and cool – nobody got hurt, nobody got in a fight.
D I remember Terry being a trainer for the basketball team and how important it was for him to do that job and how well he did it
D I also remember (him) going to the horse races and filming the horse races and how he thought at the time that was going to be his life work
D I remember him how proud he was when he bought his first car
M I remember Marcia getting her hood when she got her Masters librarian. And I remember I don’t know if it was your first date or what but you had a really pretty dress when we lived in Lincoln and you went out for a party (me – 9th grade formal – you bought me that dress in St. Louis when we went for your interview.)
M I don’t know if it would have to be a favorite memory but a very vivid memory was when Dave was in the hospital and they thought he had meningitis. He was strapped to the bed and they had IVs in him and he was literally strapped in bed and he was in isolation and we couldn’t go in and pick him up or anything. Just had to look thru the window at him (me – how old was he?) about 18 months – he had just gotten off the bottle and was dehydrated you both had had bad respiratory infections
D I remember picking him up out of the crib and trying to wake him up I remember picking him up out of the crib and he wouldn’t wake up he was so lifeless and it scared me – he was still in the hospital without a reason why he was there and I had to teach school and that was really tough.
Me – Did Dave go to an eye doctor in Emporia while we lived in Dodge City?
D – no
Me – Didn’t your bring him out here (Emporia) on the train?