This is my fourth year working on this year-long 52 Ancestors in
52 Weeks prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow. I will write each week in one of
my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails into the Past. I
have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways.
My best memories of Valentine’s Day were during elementary
school when we would buy small cards, sign our name, and drop them off in the
decorated box in the classroom. Everyone gave cards and everyone received them.
Two classmates were in charge of delivering the cards to everyone.
When my mother was room mother, she always decorated an apple
or orange cardboard box she likely got from my father, who worked in the
produce department at the local grocery store, LoRay. The boxes were covered in
red, white, and pink paper along with lacy doilies, cupid cut-outs, and hearts
pasted to them. My mother’s boxes were beautiful!
I sure wish I had a photo of one of the boxes she made. I
tried searching on Pinterest for samples, but all of those boxes are too small.
The valentines we put in may have been store-bought, but
nothing like today’s cards with commercial superheroes, Hello Kitty, or Barbie.
They had cute kitties, puppies, hearts, and balloons.
The best part of the day was the class party with cupcakes, punch, and maybe those candied hearts with silly sayings: Be Mine, Forever Yours, etc.
It was lots of fun before boys and girls got too serious
about each other.
Valentine's Day parties at school were lots of fun. I wish I had saved many of the cards I received at those class parties. However, I doubt my mother kept them in the house even until March 1! I liked the rule that if you had cards to give out, everyone in the class had to receive one.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I don't think they were saved at our house either, not with at least three kids in elementary school at the same time. I might have saved some of my daughters' cards, but their school papers are in a box in storage.
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