Tuesday, May 8, 2012

More Time Wasters!

The Dog Ate My Homework...
When all else fails...blame it on the dog!  I am still procrastinating.  My pioneer ancestor report is due Thursday at 1:30 p.m.  Yesterday, I sat down and got a good portion of it written.  What discourages me the most, is that history seems to favor men.  Poor Grandma Sarah!  In all of my research, I found only one sentence that mentions her as a person rather than a statistic.  My story of her will be taken from what I could glean from her father's history and her husband's history.  She was too busy living in the background...cooking, washing, raising chickens and children.  I know she was there that hard winter when they camped at the base of a rocky hill and people were living in dug outs and wagon boxes.  She was there when spring came and the rattlesnakes woke up and invaded their beds and cupboards.  Somewhere between 300 and 500 snakes...depending on the account...were killed that first night.  No one was bitten...so I know Sarah wasn't bitten. 

Sarah was married to a jolly, popular man who loved to fish and play his fiddle for dances.  What did Sarah do?  She nagged the jolly man! In Grandpa Harrison's papers was found this single notation..."April 9, 1873 she got up jawing me because I spit on the floor and would not milk the cows."  One sentence!  Do you see now why I'm playing on my blog and taking pictures of Daisy Dog instead of finishing her story?  I'm still stuck on the rattlesnake adventure.  I couldn't even find a picture of her...just her headstone!  It's a very nice one...but I would like to know what she looked like.  Do I resemble her in any way?  When did she go from being Sarah to being "Sally?"  Was that Harrison's pet name for her?  Did she call him Harry?  These are questions that I have to wait until I meet her in Heaven to ask.

 Please Remember Me...
Sarah Shoemaker Fugate was Grandma Zetta's grandmother.  Zetta wrote a history of her jolly grandfather Harrison Perry Fugate for the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, but never got around to writing about Sarah.  It only takes a few generations before no one remembers what you were like.  I am making a promise to both my grandmothers that they will not be forgotten.  And I pray that my precious granddaughters remember me and how much I loved them.

Be sure and get a good picture taken...your decendants will need it!











7 comments:

Tammy's in Love said...

You know dear one, that priceless Grama in the background probably cooked. Do you have any passed down recipes? It's hard to believe, but I know what you say is true, we will be forgotten if we don't make our own mark. I will heed your advice, get a picture and start the Legacy book I purchased to write my life story in!

Tammy

Unknown said...

Whoa! 300-500 rattlesnakes??!! And they killed them?? You come from some good stock, I would have been on the first horse headed the other way!! :0
~~Dorothy~~

vintage grey said...

I can see why you want to finish!! So sweet!! I am taking your advice, too!! I am sure your granddaughters will, and already know!! Have a great day, Shirley!! xo Heather

Pollyanna said...

I just have to say, that I love your dog's scarf, and somehow it looks familier ... lol Also, don't be too worried about there not being a DUP history about her, if there was one, it would likely have a lot of 'made up filler' in it and you still wouldn't know the truth about her. I can't tell you how many DUP stories I have run across where an Indian came into the cabin when Grandmother was cooking and she ... well you get the gist. Just glad you are making a difference now!

LBP said...

I sometimes look at photos of long ago ancestors and wonder what was their favorite food, what were they like, what did you do for fun...

I do have tales and stories of my great-grandmother, whose name was Sally and she passes away a few years before I was born. I apparently look so much like her and my aunts and uncles say I act "just" like her, that they call me Sally!

Lynn said...

I love reading your stories of your ancestors and the stories you make up too!! I hope you can find all the info you are looking for! I hope all is well with you!
Hugs,
Lynn

Betsy said...

Hi Shirley,

I'm afraid I'll have snake nighmares tonight! Yikes! What you said is so true though. I have started a book of memories that I hope someday to self-publish for my family. My memory isn't the greatest, so I'm afraid if I don't do it now, my story will be lost.

I hope you're having a good week!

Betsy