Christmas 1958

In 1958 Crickett was 10 and I was 12. In this Christmas photo she is in the fourth grade and I am in the seventh. For me it was a watershed year that I remember vividly. This photo tells a lot about that year and that time in our lives.

First of all Crick got her record player as a Christmas present along with two singles and an album. The reason that is burned in my brain is because she played them non stop for the next several months. Frankie Avalon’s “Venus”….The Everly Brothers “All I Have to do is Dream” (both 45s) and the Elvis Presley album “Jail House Rock”. While this will be hard for my grandchildren to comprehend, we shared a room and would for another two years. A single bed on each side of a 10′ x 10′ room…adequate at the time. We would later move to Haskell into an old house that had 2 bedrooms and a utility space large enough for me to claim as my own.

My present that year was the .22 rifle I am holding. I wish there was a way to know how many rounds I put thru that over the next few years. I carried it walking thru Taylor, Haskell & Fisher counties on endless rabbit, rattlesnake and coyote hunts. Most of the ammo was spent sitting on red dirt tank dams shooting at turtles, frogs and snakes….or just shooting the water. It is my oldest possession or was until I had it refinished and given to my oldest grandson as a Christmas present.

Another thing this photos shows is the red satin jacket I am wearing. That summer as a member of the Abilene Dixie Little League All Star team we were stopped in our assault on Williamsburg, PA (Little League World Series) at the regional tournament in Corpus Christi. The jacket is my first sports jacket and was given instead of trophies. I’m sure you can tell when I wore it I felt very “Studly”. Also note the broad stripe shirt…very Kingston Trio.

It was a good time in our family life. Dad was the branch manager for Sunshine Biscuit and Mom had graduated from Abilene Beauty College and we (Dad & I) were converting our one car garage into a beauty shop.