Name/Title
AU Harris, James Lowell - 1953-11-28 letter to Dear Brothers and SistersEntry/Object ID
1990.1.433Context
The First Presbyterian Church
620 W. GENESEE STREET
SYRACUSE, N. Y.
Saturday, November 28, 1953
Dear Brothers and Sisters:-
It is Saturday night and Caroline is in the kitchen doing the last minute pick-ups on the ironing and mending so we may all be in our places for Church tomorrow morning. Mother has been sitting quietly by the front windows of the living room where she loves to look out and watch the cars go by. Suzie and Jimmy are fast asleep in dreamland, and Diane has gone out to a slumber party with some of her girl friends from Central High School.
We had a very happy Thanksgiving Day. I took Suzie to Church for a combined service of the downtown churches, and rather than robe and sit with the dignified clergy I sat with her for perhaps the first time in a church service. About 1:30 we informed Mother that we were all going out in the country for an old fashioned Thanksgiving Dinner. Of course she thought of the Thanksgivings when she was a girl in the country. We were invited to the country home of the Mabon family. He is a Deacon in our church, a vice-president of Merchants Bank here and their three children are just about the ages or ours. Eleven of us sat around the big long table. I wish you could have seen Mother enjoy herself. We had a twenty pound turkey to eat and it did Mother good. She ate heartily and I'm sure it did her lots of good.
We hope you all had a fine day together. Dick, you probably had plenty of invitations out, and we can see Midgy and Skipper and Danny and John all contributing to the destruction of the turkey or chicken.
Today our boy we sent to Otterbein (his father an elder in our church) dropped in on us. He is crazy about the place and could not say enough good things for Otterbein. He made the football team and played in nine quarters of the games played this year.
Paul, we have very pleasant memories of our visit there with you and no doubt Midge and Skipper are looking forward to Santa Claus. Danny and John will also have an exciting time.
Dick, Mother apreciated so much your letter. The talk that you gave at the unveiling of the picture is a precious masterpiece and one that Dad would be very proud of through his youngest son. We are all proud of the way you have kept his high ideals -- this was evidenced further in your talk. Mother talks every day of you, and we encourage her by saying that we hope she will see you with us at Christmas. It will mean so much to her, and one never knows which Christmas will be her last one. Please let us know your plans.
Caroline handles Mother in a very wonderful way and is very patient with her. Once in a while we have to laugh off the things she get so confused
about, and sometimes she laughs with us. We must take these changes as a natural development at her age and make her as happy as possible. She talks about all of you, sometimes with some confusion, but the same love is there. I know you will all try to make this a happy Christmas for her. The various birthday remembrances meant so much to her. The other day she was quite anxious for me to have the words of the song she used to sing to us on Christmas morning: "Merry Merry Christmas" -- so I wrote them down for posterity. She has been in pretty good condition physically, but keep the letters coming to keep her mind occupied.
Our Church is surging ahead--- our Church School has soared to 520 children and youth. That is large for a down town church. We will soon know the challenge of enlarging our physical plant -- the people here are wonderful to work with and as soon as we can move to a new home in the spring we will feel more settled.
Aletha and Margie, wish you could come over here for a good old family Christmas, but we know how it cramps the pocketbook when it comes to transporting families.
Diane bus been elected as delegate to the National Assembly of Presbyterian youth at the University of Illinois the latter part of June. It will be quite an experience for her, and then she will join us in New Hampshire the second week in July. Jimmy is certainly active little fellow. Think I'll get him a pair of boxing gloves and a punching bag as he tires his daddy out sometimes trying to box and wrestle with me. Suzie loves her work as a chorister in our 50 voice youth choir. She is starting piano lessons, and I think she is full of rhythm and music. She loves to read to Jimmy and they are almost inseparable. Caroline baked three pumpkin pies this morning and our family has eaten practically all of them today. She keeps quite busy on the Women's Association work, keeping Jimmy busy and singing in the choir. Our Adult choir will be on T.V. here in a couple weeks.
Well, let's here from you! -- keep the letters coming to Mother! Tell us about your Christmas plans! Mother talks about going back to Oberlin, but she seems content to stay here through Christmas, now that we have assured her that we want her here for a while longer, at least.
With love from us all -- TO YOU ALL!
Caroline & Jim
