Aliens in Bed and Gum on the Bedpost

Today is my sister Jeanne's birthday. She is 49 years young. While we lived on the farm she and I shared a double bed from my earliest memories until we moved when I was 10 or 11. A special bond was formed between us in that pink daisy wallpapered bedroom in the late 1960's & early 1970's. Being 6 years older than I, it wasn't until later that I realized how annoying it must have been to have a much younger sister in her hair all the time. I'm sure we had our sibling spats but I mostly recall the good memories. I thought Jeanne would like a little walk down memory lane of things I remember from our upstairs bedroom.

I remember...

...cutting out fashions from the Wards catalog and pinning them up on the bedroom walls.

...saving our wads of bubble gum on the round finial on the bedpost of the headboard only to pop them in our mouths again when we woke up in the morning. (I swear it gained flavor overnight!)

...pushing heels of our shoes around the edge of the room in the summertime to kill the crickets under the linoleum so their chirping wouldn't drive us crazy all night long.

...when I was sick, you would rock the bed by pushing your foot on the footboard until I fell asleep.

...watching "Night Gallery" or "Johnny Carson" from the grate in the floor that looked down into the living room.

...the night you scared me by talking in a monotone voice claiming you weren't Jeanne but insisting you were an alien in Jeanne's body.

...yelling then laughing when Jeff came into our room while sleepwalking and thought our mattress was the toilet seat cover and tried to lift it up.

...giving me sips from the bottle of Boones Farm wine you got for your 16th birthday. (I stole a few when you weren't looking.)

...that fateful night you sat up and then ran downstairs. I sat up listening to what I thought was laughter which turned out to be crying. The night Dad died. After that day there were lots of tears shared in that bedroom. I think I still have one or two of the feather pillows that harbor those tears from long ago.

...there were tears of laughter too. I remember giggling until Mom would yell up the stairwell at us. The threat of "Do you want me to bring the yard stick up there?" would always shut us up. (She never did bring the yard stick upstairs.)

The old house is gone now but our memories will stand as long as we do.

Thanks big sis! I love you, you are beautiful & I wish you a Happy Birthday!