White station wagon and Whoppers!

I have given you a little story about my paternal grandparents and now I think it is time to share a memory from my maternal grandfather, Pappaw. My grandmother, Granny, died before I was ever born. She had ovarian cancer.....so ladies go get those check ups!!!

Pappaw was a wee little man. At his heaviest he might have weighed 90 pounds soaking wet. He fought in WWII and because of this he was deaf. He could hear a little...I think mainly he read lips....and he would always surprise you what he heard and did not hear. Just when you would use a quite voice he would respond....but if you wanted him to hear it he would pull the deaf card and just shake his head and say"Yeah" in a very mousy voice. Either he didn't like what you said or he really didn't hear you.

Pappaw loved to tinker with things. Most times when we would visit he would have something taken apart and strewn all over his kitchen table. We weren't allowed to move anything because he had it laid out just so so he would be able to put it back together. And he did, sometimes with an improvement!

He had the greenest of thumbs. The man could make ANYTHING grow. My mom cannot. I think he always wanted her to have this trait and finally succeeded to the fact that as green as his thumb was Mom's was that much not. And this is where my story begins....

Pappaw drove a white station wagon. That is the first vehicle I remember him having anyway. Being as he couldn't hear he would never announce when he was coming. Most times I don't think he planned it until right before he left. Many times we would come home from school and there the car would be in our driveway and a surprised look on my mom's face. These were the good visits! He always had a box of Whoppers for me and my brother to share. Sometimes he would bring Whoppers and Milk Duds, which meant I got more of the Whoppers because my brother liked the caramel better. While my brother and I were scarfing the candy Pappaw would take Mom around and show her all the things he had planted for her and what she needed to do to keep them alive. He would also tell her that he would be back in a few weeks to check on them! Poor Mom would worry and fret until he came back. When he was pleased she knew the visit next time around would be a little more pleasant because she wasn't being tested.

Sometimes we all would be outside working and would notice a new plant. Mom would then have to go in and talk to Pappaw to find out what it was, when he planted it, and what care it needed. It would be a long time before she came out of the house because as I said....he couldn't hear. Then about an hour later here would come that familiar white station wagon and Whoppers were sure to be inside! He would say "Well I couldn't understand what you were talking about and I knew these boys needed something sweet to eat."

~ just a side note: You read it correctly. I said boys. My Pappaw had 4 children. We all had nicknames. For some reason he always called me (my mother's name) boys. I am the oldest of 2. One girl and one boy. I do not know why he called my brother and I that. Mom doesn't either. He knew my name and new I was a girl but that wasn't what he referred to me as....EVER! The only rational explanation is my uncle(Mom's older brother) had 2 girls. Her sisters had some of each....so it must have made since to him for Mom to have 2 boys. Just a wee little quirk he had I suppose.