We had a wonderful visit with Lucky (Frank) and Kathy St Clair yesterday, and we have to give them a big special "thank you" for doing so because we know they're on the road for long periods of time and probably wish that they could just stay home for a spell. Lucky is Bud St Clair's oldest son. They stayed for dinner, and we got to hear stories back and forth between the cousins. Lucky has got such a good sense of humor (St Clair trait) and he and Kathy are hard, hard workers...and well established in thier lives. Fantastic people! We hope to pay them a visit next fall when they have some time to afford it.
The visit was going along so well, them showing up around 4:00 pm, that it was after 10:00 pm when they left and still more to be remembered and talked about. Lucky remembers so many things about growing up that Rian couldn't. Like, Rian's father, Wes, selling Lucky his first bicycle for three pennies. And Lucky recalling the old mill cabins, and who lived where. Rian remembered some of the toys made of blocks of wood that Luck and Myron made, starting with Uncle Bud making them for Christmas gifts for the kids. Yes, they were homemade, but Rian thought they were much better than store bought toys.
They talked about fishing in the tiny stream down the hill from where they lived, and Lucky remembers catching a fourteen or fifteen inch fish in that stream, not having regular fish hooks, and using safety pins. The pins didn't have barbs on it, so they would have to yank them up on shore as soon as they saw them bite, otherwise...away they'd go!
Rian had found an old carosene lamp in the dump site up on Grandpa's place up by Drain when he was forteen years old, and has had it since. Luck thought it was interesting as it was from one of the first Ford cars ever built back in the early 1900s. It was attached to a platform which had a mechanical stick coming out from the middle of it. Rian says, some of the men folk will know what he's talking about. To Rian's recollection, it had to have belonged to someone before Grandpa and Grandma had bought the place.
I would have like to have spent more one on one with Kathy, but it's kind of difficult when the St Clair men folk are going at it, but she is a very down to earth person, very warm.
Rian has always looked up to Lucky and Myron like older brothers, and is good for him to be able to spend time with them. Rian hadn't seen Lucky for seventeen or eighteen years, so there was much catching up to do. There never seems to be enough time to get everything you want to say in, in the time allowed. We hope that they will be able to make the reunion.
Love to all,
Rian and Gina
