Growing up in Boone, Iowa

for me, was a blur. My childhood was just sort of "there"... but, I do remember Marion Street and the Marion Street United Methodist Church, pretty well. I remember Reverand Hoyle. And I remember that he was killed when a tractor he was driving overturned on him.
I can vividly remember the cool cement basement of the church where I went to Sunday School. My mom was part of the ladies group and she and I would be in church on Sundays. My dad only went on Easter back then. I remember that it's the first time I ever heard that Jesus loved me. Although I wasn't sure about Him! :-)

I walked from our tiny little house all the way up Marion Street, past Lyle and Goldie Dorrel's place and the Thompson's (the local drug store guy) and Carrel's (on the corner)... and then straight East a couple of blocks to Lincoln Grade School. It's where I started. I just heard that they will be doing away with Lincoln School soon, which saddens me. So much of the few memories I have are tied into the time worn landmarks and buildings there, and they seem to be disappearing one by one.

It was a good place as I remember, where a kid could be a kid. Where teachers actually cared about whether you learned something or not. Miss Ball was the principal, and I remember Miss Maroff, the fourth grade teacher (I think). She's the one that caught me and Larry Phipps and Bill McBirnie making fun of her and made us stand out in the hallway for the duration of class! We really did deserve it. And I walked to school with Chris and Candy Culver and Ted (Thurlow) Deal. I remember seeing President Eisenhower and Mamie traveling East bound through town one year...I might only have been in kindergarten or first grade then.

And I remember downtown West Boone! Maggie and Max's corner drug store where a kid could go and get a scoop of chocolate ice cream with marshmellow sauce and Max would always put a cherry on top, for a pittence! My favorite time was meandering my way to Maggie's Drug store and spending the pennies and nickles on that fantastic green spearmint flavored taffy and Walnetto's, and pink candy lipstick! And of course listening to Max's worldly wisdoms.

Yep! My very young years I remember with some measure of joy and warm fondness. And I feel sad that today's kids don't have the opportunity to experience that simple life, that gift of being able to just be a kid...without the heavy demands and responsibilities that they seem to be loaded up with today. No rush to get to this ball game or that lesson, only a rush to get home, peel off the school duds and shoes and run barefooted in the grass until suppertime acting out whatever our imaginations could conjure!

West Boone was home. And a fine place to foster the hopes and early dreams of one little girl. I'll write more about it later...what about you? Was your home town a nurturing place or a nuthouse you couldn't wait to get out of?