Some of my favorite memories when I was young was the long trips to Wisconsin to visit relatives. Not the least among those adventures was visiting my grandfather Herman Weber's brother, Philip and his wife Emma. They had a house om Sparta with a screened in porch and all sorts of nooks and crannies to explore. They had a heavy, huge wood cooking stove which we kids thought was quite novel. It was fun to hold the hook and pick up the burner covers and watch the wood flame up. But the most memorable thing was dinner time.
Emma could make the best fried chicken, potatoes and numerous side dishes that were both good and plentiful. The quantity was daunting. She made terrific crab apple pickles that were to die for and we ate our fill. However, just about the time that we thought we would explode, Emma would say, "Now eat up, there's plenty and you haven't eaten anything." I guess all her years of cooking for threshers and farm hands distorted her perceptions of what the average person could eat, not to mention kids! The sad thing in their life was that they never had any kids. They hadn't been able to do so and apparently at some point Emma had to have serious surgery that then made that impossible. But Philip was so relieved to not have lost his Emma that he adored that it became a bearable loss for them both. They were sweet and loving and it is too bad they didn't have the chance to raise children. They were good at it -- at least great with entertaining visiting grand nieces and nephews! Now whenever I think of Sparta, my mind travels back to hot summer evenings, sitting on their porch and watching the fireflies flicker in the twighlight. Such a sweet and loving couple. Their devotion to each other provided a wonderful example for us all.
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