Abby, Dana and Donny

All ready to party-down at the devil fest.

Escape!

Last night Abby barked to get outside. There was nothing to bark at, but to let her see for herself I opened the door and waited for her to bark at the wind then come back. Little Donny (the kitten) saw the wide open door and scooted out onto the porch, down the steps and into the yard. It was pitch black outside and the cat is black. And fast! I took off after the cat, but my take-off mode isn't what it used to be.
I saw a black shadow dart across the yard, then turn and dart away. Abby took off for the side yard (we have the invisible fence for her so she can't leave the yard). I went over there and couldn't see anything. Then a shadow darted past me into the front yard.
Abby went after the kitten and caught him. Donny flipped onto his back to play with Abby. I told Abby to "get the kitty!" She looked at me and put her paw on Donny to keep him in place. I was almost there when the kitten got out from under Abby's paw and streaked toward the house. Abby was right after him, but I've never seen a kitten so fast.
Abby corned Donny on the porch, but Donny got around her and almost leapt for freedom off the porch when he noticed a flower pot. He LOVES flower pots.
Donny stopped and put his paws on the rim of the pot and I caught him!
Whew!
If it hadn't been for Abby and the flower pot, my little black kitten would have been toast. Tomorrow is Halloween and he would have been a great prize for any little goblin.

Sharing

Trick or treating in Detroit was incredible. We would take a pillow case and just about fill it every Halloween. I went with Denise when I was little, then with Sherry when I was a little older. When I was 12, my mom said it was time for me to not go out in costume anymore. We had Halloween parties at church or just as friends after trick or treating was outgrown.
Next to Winship Elementary School was an orphanage. The orphans weren't allowed to go trick or treating. Our school asked all the kids who went trick or treating to bring some candy in for the orphans. Every one brought candy in. I didn't like hard candies or suckers, so that's what I brought from my stash. Then I would feel a little guilty and include some chocolate bars, too.

Devil's Night

Devil's night in Detroit was a lot of fun when I was a kid. There was nothing malicious going on at all. We soaped windows and rang doorbells. One devil's night my parents had gone out leaving my brothers, Sandy and I at home.
My brothers were told that they could under no circumstances leave the house. So they did the next best thing; they rigged the front upstairs window to be ready for anyone who decided to 'trick' our house that night. Late October in Michigan is usually not exactly balmy; however, my brothers took the screen out of that window and opened it wide. Right underneath that window was the front door where the tricksters would ring the bell and run.
They filled balloons with water and arranged them within easy reach of the window. Then they waited.
It wasn't too long when the first 'devil' snuck up to the front porch to ring the bell and run. Dan and Dennis waited, waited until the guy got right under the window and threw the water filled balloons at him.
My brothers were the best at being inventive in their boredom. I don't know how many people they got, but I remember (I was about 7 years old) the two of them laughing their butts off.

Names

There are six kids in my family: Dan, Dennis, Sandy, me, June and Ted. My mother named the first 3 kids and my father named the last 3 kids. My father named me Katherine Joan - with Joan pronounced Joanne.
Mom was all right with the name Katherine, but she didn't want anyone to tag me with the nickname Kat. They shortened Katherine to Kitty.
When I was very small my brother, Dennis, called my Kiki.
I can remember my dad singing a song to me that was from the WWII era. It was supposed to have the name Katie in it, but he always put my name in it. It was:
K-k-k-kitty. beautiful Kitty,
You're the only one that I adore.
When the m-m-moon shines
On the c-c-cow shed,
I'll be knocking on your k-k-kitchen door.
I remember the song, but I feel the love that my daddy had for his little girl. I'll bet if I could see my own face, I would have reflected the love I have for him, too.

Closure

Bishop Miller heard about Bruce's mother passing. He wrote us an e-mail and said that he hoped Bruce could find some closure at her passing. I know Bishop meant well and didn't know what else to say, but how does one obtain closure?
Things were left unsaid, feelings were raw and a family was in disrepair. How does one find closure?
I guess this is what people are supposed to feel when they are victims and their attacker is put in jail. Closure. But the feelings are still there. A life has been changed.
I think the only thing that may help is time. Time dims pain. Emotions cannot be turned on or off like a faucet or a light switch. Feelings can't have a band-aid applied to them.
Time and huge doses of prayer along with priesthood blessings will definitely help.
Another good thing that has happened since Louise has passed is that Bruce's sister and he are communicating. She seems to be a lovely person.
As for closure - I think that's a 'psycho-babble' word used to not have to think of anything else to say.

Policeman

I had bought the cutest little Volkswagen bug to drive when we lived in Springfield. I bought it for around $500.00 from a kid who was going to college. This kid had taken care of this little car like it was his first-born child. It had a quick little engine, glass pack mufflers and a p.a. system.
Bruce drove it when we were all going somewhere together. Bruce would drive, I had a baby on my lap, 2 more kids in the back seat and 2 kids in "the way back". There were no seat belt laws back then, obviously.
Bruce was driving down State Street when we saw lights behind us and a short 'WOOP'. He pulled over and a policeman swaggered up to the car.
"Know why I pulled you over"
"No."
"This is a quiet zone and your muffler is way too loud. I'm gonna ticket you, but if you fix it within 10 days, take your proof to the courthouse and the ticket won't need to be paid."
Bruce was huffing and sputtering. He was furious. We never had any extra money back then.
The officer then poked his head in the window and looked around for a few minutes. He told Bruce to wait for a minute and went back to his cruiser.
When he came back, he handed out toy police badges to each of the kids.
Bruce was mad, the kids were thrilled and I was secretly giggling.