Lucy Rasar Crowl
Lucy Rasar Crowl was always petite. A hundred pounds was a maximum weight and not often achieved. Five feet, 3 or 4 inches was her height. She was small boned, had delicate features, brown hair, blue eyes and fair complexion. A very pretty woman who liked conservative but attractive clothes. Her hair started to turn white too early and Papa wanted her to dye it but she didn't. She had an artistic nature that colored all she did, even to her looks.
She was married March 31, 1897 and became eighteen years old on July 12, the same year. When it was said of someone, "she is too young to get married" she would always put in "not if she marries a man.” Papa was ten years older. She always tried to please him and he appreciated it and showed it, quietly. He tried to please her too.
She learned to cook and became a superb one. Although she always had help she knew good food and taught her kitchen helpers. Some of the girls who lived in and were quite young when they started have told me many times that she taught them all they knew. They lift to get married and took her recipes, advice and pattern for living with them. There were two sisters and a cousin from one family who were fine. As one get older and left another had become old enough to take her place. They are still my good friends.
Papa was a hearty eater and an odd one. Sometimes he would make a meal of one thing. A large bowl of raw shredded cabbage, a large number of ears of corn, many pancakes nearly early every morning. Fried much was enjoyed too. A normal breakfast would be a dozen large pancakes, meat, two eggs, coffee. One summer he bought Welch's grape juice by the case and wanted a pitcher of ice cold juice every evening. Other summers it was lemonade and orange juice. Mama seemed to enjoy seeing he had what he wanted. We often thought she didn't eat enough because she was so busy taking care of him. All meals were large but breakfast especially so. The rule was everyone was dressed and at the table -no matter how late you were out the night before. Joe used to complain that the later you were out the earlier breakfast was. A chapter from the Bible was read and a prayer said for years but finally everyone got in too big a hurry and that was discontinued.
In later life when we were all grown Mama had us all for Sunday night supper every week. What spreads she would have. As the children came along and the crowd grew Mama and Papa loved it and we all had such a good time. In later years after Papa died in 1946 she carried on but it became too much. The last year we had the Christmas Eve dinner at the Holiday Inn and there were forty four. We came back to her house for the tree and presents. Christmas was always special. A ceiling touching tree and presents all over and Christmas Day with dinner and supper as well as the Christmas Eve party. In the early years we went to the Church for the Christmas Eve party but after we were grown and Mama and Papa were in their second house they had the parties. The Church had quit having the celebration there. We always had a program at home with the Christmas story and little plays by the children.
Mama had special holiday dinners. Easter Egg hunts after we all had children and there were Birthday dinners for everyone as time went on. No one ever felt they had to come but we all looked forward to it. Later the Christmas Day dinner was discontinued as the children wanted to stay home to play with Santa Claus presents.
Again, later, we began to bring dishes and help put on the dinner. We'd spend Sunday evenings before the holiday planning the menu and always end up with the same one. Uncle Tom always wanted sweet potatoes as well as Irish and some would think we didn't need both kinds. Alice often brought wonderful potato salad. She would decorate the big bowl and it took a peck of potatoes and was a big bowl, with a poinsettia made of strips of pimiento with green pepper leaves for Christmas and daisies made from hard boiled eggs and green pepper stem and leaves for Easter. They were beautiful.
Later still, Paul and Dorothy took over the Thanksgiving Day party and it was delightful. Dinner at noon and left overs for supper with every-one gathered all day long.
As I have told, we had kin folk living with us all the time in the young years. Mama managed 'every one with ease it seemed. She worked hard and everyone could help. Papa was always 'bringing home things the farmers couldn’t sell. They would bring them to town and what they didn't sell they would take to the store and he would buy it. Mama would scold but be up early the next morning canning. One time, the worst I remember, he brought thirteen bushels of peaches when he came home in the evening. The whole neighborhood gathered to help.
Mama made butter. As a new model churn came out Papa always brought one home. We had thick cream all the time. Ii1 season she would make an Angel Food cake in the morning and we would eat it with strawberries and whipped cream at noon. In the afternoon she would make another one for supper. It was the old fashioned way, too Sifting flour and sugar three times and beating the whites of a dozen eggs in a large platter with a wire whisk.
Her bread was beautiful and so good. Paul and I would fuss over who got the heel when it first came out of the oven. She started cooking with a wood and coal stove and I don't know when gas came. We made Ice Cream by the gallon in the basement. She had an Apricot recipe that was perfect. She didn’t care for custard type vanilla. You could always look in the refrigerator and find plenty to eat. That was usually the first stop for Paul and Joe after they were grown.
I've told of Mama's china painting and Church work and simple social life. She was always home when we came in from school. She always had time for our friends. Everyone felt at home with her. Rugs could be rolled up for a little dance and there always would be refreshments.
Mama had life long friends and talking to them on the telephone was a great pleasure in late years. One of her greatest pleasures in late years - after Papa's death - was traveling. She would laugh and say she must have some gypsy blood. We took her and her sister Isa and her husband Dave and Clle on many lovely trips. East to Williamsburg, Va. and Washington D.C. and Niagara Falls. West to Las Vegas and California, Victoria, Vancover and Banff, Canada. South to New Orleans and the Garden Club spring tour from Natchez to Mobile and Bellingraph Gardens. She was a great companion and traveler. Papa made some nice trips to Estes Park and other Colorado beauty spots to Carlsbad and Roswell, New Mexico, and California but he didn't love it as she did. I have a poem she wrote - she loved to write poetry -to Levalle after we returned from a trip, and it ended, "Just give me twenty minutes and I'll be ready next time.
The boys and their wives were good about taking her for drives on Sunday afternoons and evenings. She loved to ride and explore new building and areas in the community.
Her last illness was nine months long. She had had little strokes along, as her mother had, and finally one that sent her to the hospital. She hated every minute of it but didn't complain. When she could come home we put a hospital bed in the dining room which she didn't like but knew it would be easier to care for her and accepted it. We were able to get good help and cared for her at home. It was October when she had the stroke and Christmas Eve she had another one that took her speech. That was bad. She loved to talk. I would read the paper to her and she would frown over something bad and smile over something nice or funny. She would pat a nurse's hand and smile to show appreciation and never seemed displeased. We had 1\0 trouble keeping the help. Everyone stayed with us to the end. Her two daughters-in-law were so good to her always but especially those last nine months. Paul's wife was Dorothy Hammond and Joe's Wife was Alice Otterson. She loved them dearly and always thought her boys had been so smart to catch such beautiful girls.
She died quietly June 11th 1970. Papa’s service we had at home but for hers we went to the Church Chapel. It was at 11 AM on a beautiful June morning. She would have been 90 years old on July 12th.