My Sister Merle

My sister Merle was three years older than I was.

As a little boy I remember fighting with her occasionally. One day I hit her with something and received a stern "boys don't hit girls" message from my mother. My punishment was having to go in the house and let my mother wash or cut my hair, and I hated both! That sounds pretty stupid, I know.

One Christmas I had seen a little steam engine at the toy store, and really wanted it for Christmas (instead of the tools I usually asked for). Santa Claus brought it (although I never believed in Santa Claus).

I lighted the little alcohol burner, steam built up, and the engine started running! I was so excited! It had a short run. I accidentally knocked it over, it blew up, the alcohol spilled out, started a fire, and Merle's new doll's hair caught fire! She was so mad at me!

Her doll had painted hair under the other hair, so it wasn't a total loss. But, alas, my steam engine never ran again!

In our teen years we became good friends. I even double dated with her a few times.

Another time, I remember a beauty contest was being held at Clovis, New Mexico... nine miles away. Merle won it. She was so very pretty and we were all excited about it.

One day my Dad came to me and asked "Did you know that your sister is going to 'jump over the broomstick'?" That meant that she was engaged to be married. She married in our living room with my Dad officiating.

They lived in White Deer, TX, so we didn't see her very often. I remember when she would visit we were so excited and she nearly always brought gifts of some sort.

My senior year in high school I went to school one day and told everyone I had a niece!

Through the years we visited back and forth at Christmas, vacation time, etc. I always had a good relationship with her.

She died at 85, and we really have missed her!

A Note From Cheryl

As the baby of the family and the only girl, my perspective of my Dad may be quite a bit different than that of my three brothers.

Spoiled...probably....moody...definately...made Dad late...not too much.

Okay...My Dad was fairly easy going until it came to being on time and getting a task done right when he said to do it...whatever it was. About the only time I saw him riled up was when I was about to make him late for church or work.

I remember taking a load of makeup, hairspray and the like in the car to finish getting ready for church because we couldn't be late...even though we were always one of the first families to get there. I remember my Dad getting upset "on tape" when we were not moving fast enough in getting the car packed for a trip.

(Footnote on the trip thing...His idea of "getting up at our leasure" was 6:00 a.m. That does not fit into teen time which would fall in the neighborhood of about 1:00 p.m.)

Then there was the time when he was celebrating some landmark anniversary at work and the office was planning a surprise party for him. I was the perfect person to make him late. He was fuming, and my Mom and I were in the bedroom laughing our heads off. He felt kind of sheepish when he found out we were just giving the crew time to get everything ready for the surprise.

All in all though, if there was a merit badge which could be given for putting up with the antics of four children, he would get it.

What other father would go to the store for a panic stricken teenage girl and buy her a comb because hers just wasn't working. In fact, he bought me an assortment just to make sure I was covered. I'm glad he's my Dad...and I'm glad he's loved me all these many years...Thanks Dad.

A Note From Sarah

"I never had the awesome opportunity of being around Uncle Hassler a whole lot, but when I was around him it was always special.

I love the way his heart is towards the Lord and how the joy and positive attitude he has reflects Christ to others. I have always loved hearing his stories and the way Nana has always told me how special a brother he is to her.

I also really appreciate the encouraging notes and birthday cards as well as the verses and "counseling" my husband & I received from him in the mail. The marriage magazine subscription has also been great for us starting out this first year married.

Uncle Hassler is such an example to me of someone who wants to live life to the fullest and continue to run the race. No matter what struggles or losses he has experienced, he continually looks forward to his eternal reward and place in Heaven.

Thank you Uncle Hassler for being so kind and loving an example to me to never give up on the things I want and God wants with my life." Sarah

My Half Birthday

As I was rudely was awakened by my alarm, I was dreaming that a little penguin had followed me home, and was chattering to come in my house and help me celebrate my half -birthday. But, alas, no penguin. I had watched the penguin show on TV before going to bed.

My half-birthday? What is that?

The last few years I jokingly tell my friends that I am celebrating my half-birthday on February 1. I thanked God this morning for seeing me halfway through another birth year (I was born on August 1). I have previously prayed that the Lord would use me well into my 90's to help couples prepare for and maintain good marriages. Now, 90 is just six months away!

I will celebrate by going to the men's prayer group this morning to pray for each other and others in our church who are having problems. One of the couples I will pray for is a couple I met on the plane Christmas Eve. He has cancer,, and was returning from Mexico following treatment.

With the Lord's help I plan to make my half-birthday a pleasant and rewarding one.

My Courtship with Ann

I had been in the same church with Ann and her late husband for many years, but I had never had a conversation with her.

One evening I attended a "42" party to which Ann had also been invited. I noticed that she was a lot of fun, but still didn't get involved in any conversation with her.

A short time later, I was walking in the local Mall for my usual morning exercise. I saw her approaching me as we walked, so decided to turn and walk with her. We walked around and around the inside of the Mall, laughing and joking all the way! She was fun!

We accidentally met a time or two, walked together, and then meeting at 7:00 a.m. on Monday through Friday became a pattern. She was out of the city during part of December, but my January to May calendar pages are full of dates. Each page has this statement at the top: "Walked with Ann most mornings." The first person to arrive would walk around and around just inside the Mall entrance. I remember how I looked forward to seeing her smiling face. Then we would walk around and around for about two miles, tell each other "goodbye" and go home.

The January calendar had these entries: 17th, "Dinner at Ann's house 6:00 p.m." 26th "Ate supper with Ann (her 78th birthday)." 31st "Took Ann to Half Night of Prayer 6:00 p.m.and to Ann's at 8:00.
She gave me a pecan pie."



February. 4th "To Ann's house for choc. pie 8:00." 14th (Valentine Day). :Date with Ann 5:00 p.m. Steak and Ale." We met some friends coming out of the cafe, and they told us we wouldn't get in without a reservation. We walked in, and were seated immediately. (On our way back to my car, Ann took my arm, and I will never forget the thrill I felt from her touch.) 16th. "Started sitting with Ann in morning services." 17. "Spent evening at Ann's."20th "Hosted, with Ann, 42 party at my house." (She brought the desert.). 22nd. "Watched TV at Ann's house." On the 23'rd I was to have a birthday dinner with my daughter's family at Steak and Ale. I didn't tell them I was bringing Ann. My daughter was surprised, but gave Ann a big hug, and we had a great time.

Later that day, Ann left town to babysit a new great-granddaughter. She would leave on Sunday and come back on Friday. This continued through March, and I saw Ann regularly on the weekends. During the week we would call and write each other. The granddaughter with whom she was staying became vitally interested in our romance, and would say such things in the evening as "Did he call?" "Did you get a letter?"

Late in March, she discontinued baby sitting, and I saw her nearly every day of the week--at her house, my house, at parties, at church.

On April 26, I asked Ann to marry me! We called all our kids and told them! We purchased the rings on May 2, and married in front of the fireplace in her living room on May26. Our pastor, Dr. D. L. Lowrie performed the ceremony. About 40 people attended, with standing room only. We had the reception at our house.

We didn't have a formal honeymoon, but just beginning our life together in her home was all the h0honeymoon we needed.

This was a whirlwind romance, but we had a great marriage!

If I did something that offended her, I would apologize, and almost immediately she would end it with saying "I'm sorry I was ugly."

Following heart surgery, she died on the day after our 7th anniversary. The church auditorium was packed for her funeral. She was dearly beloved by all!

My Little Red Heads

My little red heads changed my life! They were my first grandchildren who had lived all their lives in the city where I live.

One evening when Ranae was about 18 months old, I went over to pick her up because both of her parents were sick. When I started for the car I couldn't find my keys. My daughter said, "Ask Ranae where they are." How could a tiny little lady know where my keys were. I found a key in my bill fold and started the car. I looked around, and Ranae handed me the lost keys!

She was a quick learner. She learned how to bat a ball, and it was not safe to get too close to her when she was at bat, because she could really hit that ball! She gave me a new grandpa name. She called me PaPa.

She was very observant of their pastor at church, and began to stand on a little stump in our back yard and preach away! When her little sister, Danielle, was born, Ranae was three. She asked me,"Who is going to be Danielle's PaPa?" When I told her I was, she replied "Oh no you're not, you are MY PaPa!" The rivalry had begun.

My wife and I frequently kept them over a weekend. Ranae liked to play like she was the teacher. She would be teaching away, and if Danielle did something she didn't like she would point her finger at Danielle to reprimand her. Danielle would "go into orbit" and refuse her sister's pointed finger. The girls played all kinds of pretend games--school, hotel, restaurant, etc.

When I would pick them up for a weekend, we would go to my house, make out our weekend menu, and then go to their favorite grocery store to buy the groceries. They knew their way around in the store.

My wife became terminally ill. One morning, I went up to the hospital to try to decide what to do. My daughter and girls came up. Ranae told me that she had a dream about Granni. She said that Granni was in heaven. I asked her what Granni was doing. She replied, "She was a dancing!" That broke the emotional log jam. We laughed and cried, and I knew it was time to let Granni go on to be with the Lord.

The girls continued to spend a lot of time with me, and I really enjoyed it!

The girls were very observant as I began a little dating after my wife died. Over a three month period I had three dates with a widow at church. One day she called me to come over, that she had baked some cookies. The purpose of the invitation was to tell me she didn't have time for me. When I told Ranae about this, she compared it to baseball--three strikes and you are out. She later wrote me a letter and told me not to play baseball any more. The girls later played a role in the courtship of my second wife.

Time has passed, and they are no longer my "little redheads." Ranea has married, and Danielle will soon be a senior in high school. Both have developed their own personalities, and are beautiful young women who are looking forward to the careers they feel the Lord is guiding them.

We don't spend weekends together, but family gatherings are always a great pleasure!

My Courtship with My Wife

Every time I go to my church I pass by the house where I met Butch.

In the spring of l936 I was dating a girl that lived in a light-housekeeping residence on Broadway. One day, while visiting my girlfriend, I met another resident at the house. Her nickname was "Butch."

Butch lived with her grandparents that summer. One day two guys showed up at Butch's house to take her out. While the guys chatted in her living room, Butch crawled out the window of her bedroom, and into the bedroom of her cousin's house next door, and solicited her help.

In a short time, both girls entered the living room where we guys were sitting. Each girl took the arm of one of us, and we went out on a double date. Butch took my arm, and I will never forget the feel of her hand on my arm! Our romance was under way!

We dated all summer, swimming, playing tennis, going to movies, taking a walk, etc. Just before college started in the fall, Butch told me that she would give me one week to make up my mind between her and my other friend when the friend returned to start back to college. I had one date with the other girl, and told her "goodbye." No hearts were broken, as she married the guy she had dated back home that summer.

Butch and I dated during the next two college years. We were in a social club at college, went to church, ball game, did all the usual things college kids do.

I purchased her engagement ring at a jewelry store in Lubbock, and we became engaged at Christmas, l937. Then she graduated in June, 1938, and we had a long-distance relationship for the next year.

She was hired to teach Home Economics in the Panhandle, TX high school. I was born in Panhandle, and she met several people who knew my family. I made a few trips to Panhandle, and she came to Lubbock a time or two, and of course we corresponded a lot. This was a rough year in many ways.

In about April or May, 1939, I received a little "Dear John" package. She returned her engagement ring and told me she was marrying someone else. I was broken hearted, but began dating other women. I took the ring to the jewelry store to cancel what I owed. The man there said, "You will be needing this again one of these days. We will store it in our safe, and when you need it, let us know."

I graduated from college in June, 1939, and moved to Amarillo to begin a summer job with a grain company. I went to work on Monday, June 12. After work on Wednesday, I decided to drive over to Panhandle to see if Butch had married that guy. She was not at home, but I was told she would be back shortly, so I waited.

On her return, we began talking, and kissed and made up. To this day, I don't know what the deal was with the other guy. I asked no questions, and his name was not mentioned.

On Friday evening, I went back to see her. We decided that evening to get married on Sunday, June 18. The next day, Saturday, was a busy one for us. She went back to her parent's house, purchased a wedding dress, but did not tell her mother she was getting married.

I sent a telegram to the jewelry store in Lubbock to put the engagement ring and a wedding ring on the bus to Amarillo that afternoon (and they did). I went to a doctor's office to get a medical certificate required; to the county clerk's office for the marriage license; and called a church to make arrangements for a Sunday afternoon wedding. The pastor was out of town, but they gave me the name of the seminary professor who was filling in the next day, and the telephone number of his brother's house where he would be staying. I called the number and made the appointment.

Butch drove from Panhandle to Amarillo Sunday morning, and we had lunch with another couple. At about 3:00 p.m. we four went to the address given me, and the marriage ceremony took place. The only thing I remember about the ceremony was that the question "do you take this. . .to be your lawfully wedded . .. ?" was asked in a question to which we answered "we do" instead of the usual "I do."

We were married! The "reception?" The four of us went to a hamburger place after the wedding.

On Monday, Butch found us an apartment. On the following day, we sent telegrams to our parents. My mother called the local Lubbock paper and reported the wedding. Her father was out of town, building a new home in another city. He bought a copy of the Lubbock paper and read in it the account of his daughter's wedding. We could have been in a lot of trouble with our parents, but they were pleased that we had married, and forgave us for not inviting them.

We didn't have one of those "full blown, with all the bells and whistles" weddings, but we were married in a Christian ceremony, and the marriage lasted until her death in 1995--56 years! She was born, married, and died in June.

I will have more to say about our wonderful life together in a later 89 and holding edition.