Mary & Family,
We were sad to receive this notice. Although we are unable to make itin person, our thoughts and prayers are with you.
Olin and Sue
02 August 2009
Junior was not just an uncle to me; he was also a playmate and friend.
As a toddler, I lived for a while with his folks in a large house facing a highway across the street from a store (service station?). Perhaps it was in Mableton, but at that time I was not familiar with such things as town and city names.
Last year I made a sketch of the “Long” house as I remember it and think that Mae might still have it. Facing the house from the highway, there was a large shade tree in the front to the left side of the yard and underneath were large oblong circular metallic objects, perhaps six or eight inches in the larger dimension, which I seem to recall as having been told were parts from a magneto.
Enter the front door and a hallway ran straight back to the large kitchen at the right rear... The first room to the left on the front of the house was where Junior had his electric (Lionel?) train assembled on the floor, with a fireplace on the back side of the room. A flat iron or two were usually resting in front of that fireplace. Junior showed me how to place marbles on the tracks and roll them around.
Exit the right side of the kitchen onto a porch and down steps to the covered well. Don’t let the bucket drop into the well too fast and muddy the water. Wood for the stove was stored under the porch and behind the house was a corn crib. It was fun playing there during the day, but extremely dangerous at night. Junior assured me that there were tigers that came out of the woods and roamed the back yard among the buildings at night.
I am not sure when the name “R E” came into being as I knew my playmate as “Junior”.
He will be missed, but the memories will live forever…..
(Frank) Olin Long##imported-begin##Olin & Susan Long##imported-end##
