The best gifts EVER...

For Christmas this year and the previous, my parents gave me their personal histories along with histories from my grandparents and other ancestors. Included in this are copies of birth certificates, enlistment in the army papers, mission papers, newspaper articles, letters written in their own handwriting (such as from my grandpa to my grandma when he was away that begin, "my darling wife"), photo's, death certificates and copies of talks given at funerals, etc... They are contained in 3 binders. I LOVED these gifts... they are priceless. I am amazed at how things have significantly changed just in the time of my parents lives. For example, the house I grew up in my dad bought for $26,000 and sold for $95,000 17 years later. However that house went for over $300,000 (if I remember correctly) lately. CRAZY! My dad's salary when he first started working was a little over $4,000 a year. My grandpa bought land for $3.00 an acre. You can't buy a pebble for that nowadays.

Life back then was so hard compared to today. We have it SO easy. My grandpa talks of being called into the army at 21 during WW1. He was in the Machine Gun Division. My grandpa and father talked about living on the farm. No running water, no electricity, no bathrooms, etc... Growing up, I always wanted to live on a farm and was jealous that my sister and brother got to experience going to grandpa and grandmas farm... it was gone when I was born. Now I'm living on one.

My grandma loved to garden... I see where I got my green thumb. She talked about getting mad at the cows when they would walk down the lane to be milked. She said they would rub up against her hollyhocks and she'd have to run out and shoo them away. Funny thing is I have shoo'd some cows out of my gardens as well. I can relate. Ha ha.

Back even further the story of my great grandmother and how she came to America from Switzerland. She was one of 10 kids, 5 of which died as babies. She came to America at 15 to join her brother who came earlier. She didn't know the language, she spoke German. Her parents died before they could make the trip. She wrote of living in a dirt roofed little house and having frightening experiences with Indians. She was able to go to America because of her brother who went to America earlier. He was chosen by Mormon elders to go to 'Zion' and help a Mormon family on the farm. They would pay his way to America and provide room and board in exchange for 4 years farm labor. He agreed. His parents said that to be chosen to go to Zion and gather with the saints in Utah was their ultimate dream and that it would pave the way for the rest of the family. He was 14. After a few years he saved enough money to buy tickets for his sister mentioned above, and other siblings. They remarked that Utah was nice, but not as beautiful as their homeland.

I have always had a desire to see Switzerland. I will see it someday. Perhaps now I know why I love chocolate so much? Ha ha ha.