Family Finds Its Own Fun

Hello Folks. — The Barnes  Clan is a close - knit family that likes to go on picnics. They must know every canyon, gulch, creek and stream in the Gallatin Montana Empire. When they decide to go on a picnic it seems to me that the first one finds the picnic spot and the rest just scent their way; at least they can go to the most out - of - the - way spots and somehow they all find it and usually in time to get in on the food.

They think nothing of going to places that a greenhorn like me would swear the rest of them couldn't find and that if they did they might ruin their car in so doing. And if and when we do get there you couldn't get the car turned around to get back.

Yesterday we went to such a spot and when we got there sure enough the canyon widened out just enough for a picnic and to let us turn the car around. We ate fried chicken, beans, salad, jello, and watermelon until most of it was gone. then a bunch of them went somewhere to pick huckleberries; they seemed to just know were to find them.

When they got their containers full and still wanted more Nella took off her shoes and they filled them too. I don't think she minded walking barefoot. She is pretty much of a Mountain William anyway; in fact if the truth were known she was probably 17 or 18 before they caught her and put shoes on her.

I don't know if the shoes influenced the huckleberries or vice-versa but we are going to have a party tonight and we will be eating huckleberry pie and ice cream. The whole gang will be there and Ben says if there aren't enough berries to make the required number of pies to just put in a little more thickening as the huckleberries are plenty strong anyway.

At the picnic Neal had a good supply of his homemade juice he makes it out of chokecherries, lemon and pineapple. It is all strictly legal too, no added spirits or sugar. He made 50 gallons of it last year. It is really good too, especially the thick stuff in the bottom.

At the parties there is always plenty of playing, singing and dancing. The Barnes used to have their own orchestra and still do a little pinch - hitting for others. Neal has a $300 steel guiter that he really knows how to play. That guy has more talents than you can shake a stick at ... work shop with almost every known tool in.

Speaking of the party — it is going to be held in the old house. With the family growing like it is these parties are getting pretty crowded. There are the eight children, 27 grandchildren and a couple of great - grand children, ...eside all the in-laws of whi... m one.

One unique think about th... ...here is no smoking or drink and about the worst cuss word you here is heck or darn.

The family was discussing building of the new house. Wh... they got around to the heating they talked about forced - air. Grandma couldn't figure out why anyone would want four stairs in a home.

Giants Don't Use Strength

Hello Folks — T'is excellent to have a giant's strength, but it is tyrannous to use it like a giant. Shakespeare.

—o—

Graduation is over. For us it was an important occasion; Lowell graduated from high school.

As we sat there in the auditorium along with more than 1,000 others parents and friends, watching the orchestra perform, seeing the graduates march in and everybody in their best attitudes I got to thinking "Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could all reach the goals we set for ourselves, always be at our best, and everything be as beautiful as we would want it?"

Then I got to wondering why so few reach those goals. Perhaps none of us do. I believe it is because we don't make the things we have to do in life important enough. We lose faith in ourselves, we don't follow through in the things we know we should, and we very likely don't reach for the highest source of help we should.

I thought of the youths there and how wonderful it would be if by the concerted action of all of us they could be as wholesome and honorable as we would like them to be. I think possibly a few of them come pretty close to that goal, but certainly not enough of them. I am convinced it is the fault of all of us.

I think our teachers do a wonderfully good job of instructing them. Certainly there is a lot of room for improvement, but I believe that if we parents would do half as good a job with our children as the teachers do these young people of ours would get a lot farther in life than they do. Too often we fail to sustain the teachers and actually harm the teacher's ability to teach and the child's ability to learn.

I think the Commencement this year was the finest I have ever seen, the music played by the high school orchestra was exceedingly beautiful. The prayer was inspiring. The temperature was ideal and the speech was full of 'meat', and not too long.

—o—

They were discussing girls "How is it, Jim, asked Joe, "that you get along so well with the girls?"

"Easy," was the reply. "Try flattery for instance. The girl I was with last night got a fly in her eye. I said, 'I can't see how it could miss such big eyes as yours', after that I had her eating out of my hand!"

A few days later they met again. "H'm said Joe, "I don't think much of your flattery stunt. I tried it but it didn't come off so good."

"What happened?"

"The girl I was with got fly in her mouth."

—o—

The Corning glass works has developed a new family of basic materials, said to be harder than high-carbon steel, lighter than aluminum, and up to nine times stronger than plate glass. It is called Pyroceram. It is a finegrained crystalline material made from noncrystaline glass, but with a melting point near that of iron.

A Long Trip With Family

HELLO FOLKS! — It is vacation time again and that is just what we are doing at this writing.

A long distance telephone call from Grandma Barnes brought us to the realization that this was the year of their Golden Wedding anniversary and that they were expecting us all to be there.

Our family is so large that we hadn't expected to take another long trip together. However, this was to be no ordinary visit. After all, 50th wedding anniversaries don't come often.

We talked over a number of different plans and finally decided that the most practical plan was for us to pack all twelve into the station wagon, hook a trailer behind for all the luggage and take off. We would be crowded, but with proper planning and schooling the discomfort would be held to a minimum.

Haying delayed us a bit. We finished haying the afternoon of the 15th, then packed the luggage and took off.

We had decided to try traveling through the night. The children had tested out the idea of all sleeping in the car and felt that it would work. With Vera and I taking turns driving we got along pretty well.

The weather man cooperated perfectly and gave us the weather we wanted. We got to the Badlands at four a.m. The day was just beginning to break, Mark woke up and said, "It it getting daytime?" "Yes" said his mother, "Good, then I won't have to go to sleep again."

The trip was planned with the children in mind and especially for them. After all we don't expect to take such a trip again with most of the family.

They Enjoyed It

THEY ENJOYED the romp around the Badlands immensely. The sun was not yet up and I think that is the time of day when they are the most beautiful. The sun peeped over the horizon just as we left the place and the shadows of the car and trailer could be seen away over on the further slopes. The children got a real charge out of looking for them.

The drive through the Black hills was most memorable. The children had not been there before and by knowing what to expect we could prepare them for each exciting episode. The tunnels were the most exciting for the younger ones and the Cosmos was what the older ones enjoyed the most.

We picnicked along the way and for the benefit of those of you who are planning to take a trip and want to do a lot of eating out, remember that all along the way there are picnic grounds and that are really nice with many of them having water and modern facilities.

Roads are very good too, for the most part. A good share of the new roads are being built on new routes and do not interfere with the roads now used.

We spent several hours in Cody and went through the Yellow Stone Park. I'll tell you about it next week.

A Day For All To Remember

By Edwin B. Petersen

HELLO FOLKS – Attended Grandma Hansen's 100th birthday celebration at Trinity Lutheran Church on Mother's Day. I consider it a real honor to be considered one of her friends and to have known her for the past 23 years, not alone for the fact that she lived to be 100 but for the example she has set in positive living.

There are too many of us today who probably because we are afraid of being criticized, fail to be positive in our thinking and living. As a consequence we fall far short of our abilities and end up in a rut.

Not so with Grandma Hansen; if she has a view she expresses it, and it is pretty apt to be a good one.

I am sure that there was not another person who enjoyed the day more than Grandma did and I don't believe she was too weary at the end of the day either. I don't know if she had another meeting that evening but if she did have I'll wager she attended it.

I hope she has many more birthdays and from as active as she is she is pretty apt to have them too.

The program for the occasion was M.Ced by Dr. Ted Hansen, Which was very appropriate. The talk given by Pastor Jacobsen was right to the point with the right blend of wit, humor and spiritual- (missing text).

I don't know how many there were there that day but I believe it probably passed the 500 mark.

It is kind of nice to know that there will always be a little family tie with Grandma Hansen as my brother Clarence is married to a granddaughter. (Delona Romer).

—

IT IS ABOUT four or five years ago that I bemoaned the fact that there was not a course in our high schools teaching Family Relations.

It is a great satisfaction to me now to find a real good course of study in that field. My daughter Karen is taking it and I'll say it is a good one. She gets it in home management class.

One other course that I have been plugging for is a course in American Economics. It is sorely needed, if we are to successfully counteract the influence of the communist world. I doubt that one student in 100 knows what it takes to create a job, or how our economy operates and if he or she learns it is not in our high schools it is learned, unless of couse there is a new course in it that I am not aware of.