The next one is Grace Walter, a girl who was two years ahead of me in our small town school. She was fun and funny, smart, and yes, graceful. Sadly, she died from a congenital heart defect shortly after graduation, much too young.
Little Grace Husmann, sweet and cute in her French-braided blonde hair, was always dressed in a little print dress and long brown stockings. In addition to the rest of the family, she smelled sweetly of Fels Naptha soap, always so tidy. She was so adorable and well behaved that she could have been an American Girl doll, “Grace from out at the edge of the prairie”.
There even is a two-decade old, award-winning children's book, Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman, about a charming little girl who feels that she can accomplish anything. Her mother and nana encourage her to be great, so she pretty much is great. What a good deal!
The Grace that fascinates and interests me the most is my real Aunt Grace. Grace Margaret Olson was born in 1897 and died in 1927, long before I ever saw the light of this world. As I grew up, despite the fact that she was my mother's older sister, we never learned anything about her. My sister, just a little older than I am, is named Margaret, which I now guess was in honor of Grace Margaret. Lucky for me, they didn't decide to name me Grace. I could never have lived up to that name.
Two of my mother's sisters, Mabel and Grace Olson, married brothers Clarence and Elmer Severson. When Mabel and Clarence got married, they lived with Grandpa and Grandma Severson on the home place, just outside of Montevideo, Minnesota. When Grace and Elmer got married, they first lived with my grandfather Olson on his farm just a few miles east of Glenwood, Minnesota, not far from the place where I was born and raised. Each family had two children. Mabel and Clarence first were blessed with a daughter, Loraine Mabelle. Four years later, Dona Margaret was born to Grace and Elmer while they were still living with Grandfather Olson. Following along only three weeks later, Roland Claire was born to Mabel and Clarence. About that time, Grace and Elmer moved to their own farm near the Severson home place. Two more years passed and a second girl, Marjorie Mae, was born to Grace and Elmer. Just about a perfect picture, wouldn't you say? In fact, there were lots of pictures of these four children growing up. But guess again, because when Marjorie was only about three weeks old, Grace suffered from a ruptured appendix and died quickly, which was the case in those days.
From that time on until Uncle Elmer died in 1973, Grace was never talked about again, not even to her own children. So did Elmer just call “1-800-Nannies” to help him raise his children by himself? Not at all. The family did what families need to do, take care of each other. At that point Mabel and Clarence and their two children moved into Elmer's home with him and his children. Mabel became the mother to all four of the children, and they had two dads. I remember Uncle Clarence as being lively and outgoing. But Uncle Elmer was quiet and retiring as though living in the shadows.
This family arrangement continued until the children were in their teens. Grandpa Severson died, so Mabel and Clarence and their children moved back to the home place with Grandma Severson. Poor Aunt Mabel, what a daunting job she must have faced with four small children, which included two two-year olds and a newborn in a small farm house with no running water, no central heat and just a cook stove in the kitchen. But she lived to the age of 84, which was in 1978, outliving both of the men. We never thought to question our own mother, who died in 1967, about any of this.
By the time Uncle Elmer died in 1973, all of the children were grown, married, and had children and maybe even grandchildren of their own. Dona and Margie really never learned much of anything about their own mother, that is, until the death of Uncle Elmer. It was then that they opened a trunk, actually an upholstered cedar chest, with all kinds of treasures. They had seen the trunk but knew it was off limits to them. It was heartwarming to find the answers inside: Grace's wedding dress made of brown silk with a beautiful lace collar and a wedding picture of Grace and Elmer.
Elmer & Grace Severson - honeymoon portrait, 1923
The girls had never even seen a picture of their parents together. There were lots of other pictures and letters from relatives to Grace and even a letter to Elmer from Grace's sister Annie, telling him to take care of himself because of the children. There were baby clothes, like a mother or perhaps a father, would save, even Margie's baby rattle. There were other items also including a lace-trimmed nightgown, but something of unbelievable interest to the girls was a long, thick braid of Grace's hair. It was almost like Howard Carter opening up King Tut's (or Queen Grace's) tomb. The pieces of the puzzle began to take shape and Aunt Mabel and others, so long silent, filled in the gaps. Why? Who knows why we lived as we did? The silence was finally broken. AMAZING!!! Grace, who once was lost, now is found. We were blind, but now we see.
