I have always known a lot about my mother's grandparents. Their lives are well-documented in books that I own and I am grateful to have them.
Sadly, I have known almost nothing about my father's grandparents. But this year, I have been working on a personal history of my grandmother and I have learned more about my paternal great-grandparents. What little I have learned tells me they were amazing.
Here is a picture of my great-grandmother, Valera Hawkins Hansen, far upper right, with her birth family. Her parents were William and Drusilla Fillmore Hawkins, seated in front. The picture was taken when Valera was nearly 30. What you can't tell from the picture is that Drusilla gave birth to 11 children but only 6 survived to adulthood. Something else you can't tell from the picture unless you look at her hands is that Drusilla had severe rheumatoid arthritis and was crippled for much of her adult life.
Now here's an amazing story as told by my grandfather (who would be 104 years old today if he were alive):
Just prior to my birth (in December 1912) a crisis was developing in the home of my mother's birth family. Her mother had been an invalid, confined to a wheel chair for a number of years, and it was discovered that she was going to have another baby. This created a great crisis because she was unable to even care for herself and it would be a great burden to have the care of another child. My mother being her eldest child felt that it was her responsibility to do all that she could do to take care of this crisis.
After a great deal of thought and prayer my parents decided that the only logical way that this situation could be taken care of was for my father to obtain employment in Provo and for us to move in with my grandparents so that my mother could be right there to take care of her mother and also the new baby.
My father obtained employment as an attendant at the State Mental Hospital, with the help of his father-in-law who worked there. So the move was made. At the time of the birth of the new baby, I was then six months old. Thus my mother was able to nurse both her new baby sister and her own new baby as well. I don't remember exactly how long this condition existed but sometime shortly after this we moved into a house of our own, but it was near enough to the home of my grandparents so that my mother was near enough that she could be near enough to go to her mother any time that there was a need.
Thus in my early years our two families lived almost as one family.
The little girl in the picture was that baby born when her mother was 47 years old and confined to a wheelchair. Here's something she wrote about when she realized that her mother was different from other mothers:
The first recollection is about being different than other children. I was playing with my special friend, Boyd Dennis, and noticed his mother was up and walking around. She was cooking and setting the table for dinner. I realized that my mother was sitting in her wheel chair all the time. I remember that I was angry over this. I ran home and asked my mother why she sat in that chair all the time. She explained to me that she had rheumatoid arthritis. "I love you Petty." she said, "and wish that I could do the things that other mothers do for their little girls. I hope that I'm always here do guide and direct you in the things you need to know, When Dad and I found out that we were having another child, I was forty-seven years old and had been on crutches for several years, we both felt that you were sent to us as something special in our lives. We felt that God must have sent you to take care of us in our later years." And the things I was taught; Mother was always gracious and kind, and never complained about the pain in her poor little crippled body.
I'm so impressed with these ancestors that I haven't known. They had big challenges in their lives but they rose to the occasion and held their families together. I look forward to meeting them someday!
Sadly, I have known almost nothing about my father's grandparents. But this year, I have been working on a personal history of my grandmother and I have learned more about my paternal great-grandparents. What little I have learned tells me they were amazing.
Here is a picture of my great-grandmother, Valera Hawkins Hansen, far upper right, with her birth family. Her parents were William and Drusilla Fillmore Hawkins, seated in front. The picture was taken when Valera was nearly 30. What you can't tell from the picture is that Drusilla gave birth to 11 children but only 6 survived to adulthood. Something else you can't tell from the picture unless you look at her hands is that Drusilla had severe rheumatoid arthritis and was crippled for much of her adult life.
Now here's an amazing story as told by my grandfather (who would be 104 years old today if he were alive):
Just prior to my birth (in December 1912) a crisis was developing in the home of my mother's birth family. Her mother had been an invalid, confined to a wheel chair for a number of years, and it was discovered that she was going to have another baby. This created a great crisis because she was unable to even care for herself and it would be a great burden to have the care of another child. My mother being her eldest child felt that it was her responsibility to do all that she could do to take care of this crisis.
After a great deal of thought and prayer my parents decided that the only logical way that this situation could be taken care of was for my father to obtain employment in Provo and for us to move in with my grandparents so that my mother could be right there to take care of her mother and also the new baby.
My father obtained employment as an attendant at the State Mental Hospital, with the help of his father-in-law who worked there. So the move was made. At the time of the birth of the new baby, I was then six months old. Thus my mother was able to nurse both her new baby sister and her own new baby as well. I don't remember exactly how long this condition existed but sometime shortly after this we moved into a house of our own, but it was near enough to the home of my grandparents so that my mother was near enough that she could be near enough to go to her mother any time that there was a need.
Thus in my early years our two families lived almost as one family.
The little girl in the picture was that baby born when her mother was 47 years old and confined to a wheelchair. Here's something she wrote about when she realized that her mother was different from other mothers:
The first recollection is about being different than other children. I was playing with my special friend, Boyd Dennis, and noticed his mother was up and walking around. She was cooking and setting the table for dinner. I realized that my mother was sitting in her wheel chair all the time. I remember that I was angry over this. I ran home and asked my mother why she sat in that chair all the time. She explained to me that she had rheumatoid arthritis. "I love you Petty." she said, "and wish that I could do the things that other mothers do for their little girls. I hope that I'm always here do guide and direct you in the things you need to know, When Dad and I found out that we were having another child, I was forty-seven years old and had been on crutches for several years, we both felt that you were sent to us as something special in our lives. We felt that God must have sent you to take care of us in our later years." And the things I was taught; Mother was always gracious and kind, and never complained about the pain in her poor little crippled body.
I'm so impressed with these ancestors that I haven't known. They had big challenges in their lives but they rose to the occasion and held their families together. I look forward to meeting them someday!
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