The coolest thing about Facebook is being able to find out how people you knew turned out.
For the first fourteen years of my life, we lived in a run down building that had cheap rent and attracted a mixed bag of residents. There were artists and writers, some people where it was just a stopping before place to somewhere better, people who stayed for the low rent and some people who had horrible situations.
The building itself was interesting, though I didn't appreciate it at the time. It was rumored to have been a hotel built for the 1893 World's Fair. It seemed like it might have been true about the hotel part as all the rooms in our apartment except the living room were similar in size and had closets. The living room was a double room which might have been a suite. A pocket door came out of the wall to separate them. We had a fireplace with real tile around it. The door knobs were brass and embossed. We had a bay window in the living room and the apartments on the other side had even more bay windows and circular shaped alcoves.
We knew all the neighbors, some very well like the people on the fourth floor who we spent holidays with, and others were more in passing like the family moved into the first floor for a short time. The man was White and his wife was Black and both seemed painfully thin to me. As a random thing, I remember that the father repaired washing machines.j They had two children, boys. I don't remember how I knew, but there was trouble, lots of trouble. I think the parents had terrible fights and it spread to the children.
I don't remember exactly how it happened, but my mother asked me to take the older boy out of there for awhile. I'm guessing she must have gone down there and said something to them. I was probably 13 and I was already babysitting a lot, so it wasn't a big deal to take him out. As I remember it, we just walked and didn't talk. The boy was probably around four.
They must have moved right after that because I don't remember anything else about them. We moved that fall and the building was torn down and only lives in my memory and some photographs.
I belong to a number of Facebook groups including one connected to my Chicago neighborhood. There was a photograph and a posting a few days ago. When I looked at the photo and the name connected to it, I realized it was the little boy I took for that walk to get him out of a bad place. He's not a little boy anymore, but he looked the same.
The posting was about a memoir he wrote describing how he managed to overcome a horrendous childhood-- worse than I even knew. His mother committed suicide in front of him when he was 9. His father never gave him any emotional suppor. He's had to deal with being bi-racial and gay. But despite that he managed to go to college and make a life for himself becoming a well respected veterinarian with a kind heart.
I couldn't have been happier than to read how he turned out, and I ordered his book to read all about his journey. In the Company of Grace by Jody Lulich
12 comments:
Good morning -- Great post -- that must have been an interesting place to live. How wonderful that that young boy was able to cope with all life gave him and do well. We lived in a nice Sacramento neighborhood when my kids were young but there was trauma there -- the mother of my son's classmate drove herself to San Francisco and jumped off the Golden Gate bridge -- a week later the father shot himself to death at their home in front of their four children.
I got "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" to read -- enjoyed the book -- I could picture Rex Harrison whenever the ghost was speaking but had difficulty picturing Gene Tierney as Mrs. Muir. The only part of the book I thought was out of place was her affair with Miles -- it seemed too forced, quick and out of character for her to just meet him, he says "I want you but not your kids," and she says "Ok, I'll leave them with my sister-in-law." Have you read books by Maeve Binchy or Rosamund Pilcher -- set in Ireland and Scotland -- I love the stories.
I've been crocheting a lot -- have to to get through my stash of yarn! I'm ahead of my goal of four blankets a month -- made six during April and finished the seventh last night. My daughter sent me a picture of a crocheted rooster -- asked if I'd like to make one -- I said "no, thanks." I told her I specialize in blankets, shawls and scarves -- she said she may have to learn to crochet and specialize in animals.
She has a new animal at her house -- always has feral cats around -- an adorable little calico kitten appeared on the porch. She named it Darby. There have been as many as 20 around -- they come and go.
Enjoy your day -- writing and crocheting.
Me again!! I told my daughter I have enough yarn in my stash that averaging three skeins per blanket and making one a week, I have enough skeins to crochet blankets through August 2024. She's a fourth grade teacher and said she was going to use that as her math teaser today -- let the kids figure out how much yarn I have.
TTFN
How amazing you found him.
I grew up on the northwest side of Chicago proper and lived in some grand old buildings. Like you, I didn't appreciate them at the time. Now i live in Florida where anything over 10 years is considered old.
It is interesting to see how people turn out. It is so nice when you find someone who has overcome some rough beginnings.
Happy weekend!
Patty,
My old building was an interesting place to grow up. As I said, the building was run down, but I still thought my home was the best.
I thought it was a little strange, too that Mrs. Muir was so indifferent to her children. In the movie she only had one child as I remember, but she did have a relationship with a married man.
Happy crocheting!
Miss Merry, I thought it was amazing too. With him, it was just by chance because of a neighborhood FB group I belong to. I have been more of a voyeur with tracking down some other people I knew back when on Facebook. If there pages are public you can look at their posts and photos. I found some old boyfriends that way. Didn't contact them, just saw what happened to them.
Sally, the old buildings are really amazing with all the decorative touches. I am lucky enough to appreciate them in the place I still have. The thing I loved the most was what's called a shaving closet off my bedroom. It actually goes between two of the bedrooms and has a small marble sink and the original tiled floor. There is also a beautiful stained glass window in the living room. It's crazy, but over the years some of the other apartments had them removed.
I was very excited to see that he made so much of his life.
You have a great weekend,too.
It's always fun to learn what has happened with former friends, and Facebook is often a good way to do it. Your experience is more amazing and inspiring than most I've heard of!
Good Saturday evening -- I was looking at some crochet sites and saw something that probably suits a lot of us. Have you heard the acronym SABLE -- Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy. My stash probably fits that category, but I'm working on it as fast as I can!!
Enjoy your weekend.
Linda O. Johnston, it really felt like a needle in a haystack to find out how Jody turned out. I am reading his book now and it is interesting to hear his memory of our building and the neighborhood. It was really startling to see photos of his parents and see that they looked as I remembered.
Patty, I have been trying to clear out a lot of my stash, particularly when I saw what moths had done to some of it. Better to give it away when it's usable.
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