Oven Toast
When I was a little girl, we lived in Piqua, Ohio. I was the only child at the time. My mother worked at the Orr Felt Factory there in Piqua, and so did my father. My mother only worked there for a short time. My father's Aunt Essie watched me at her apartment while my parents worked. She was such a sweet and loving person.
Almost every day, Essie and I would walk uptown and go window-shopping. Sometimes we would actually buy something, but usually we just looked. One day, she bought me a little figurine of a monkey. It was so cute. I was probably about 4 then. I loved that little monkey so much, and I took very good care of it. It was a reminder to me of Essie and our good times and of how much she loved me. I loved her very much too.
Essie would make toast for me in the oven. She didn't have a toaster. It tasted so good. Years later, I tried making toast in the oven, and it never tasted as good as hers had. It is funny how good certain things taste so good to us when we are children.
When I was a teenager, my little brother, Ben was playing in my room and he broke the monkey figurine. I was so heartbroken.
Essie and her husband, Roscoe, had 2 children, a boy and a girl, and both of them died before they were 2 years old. They died from pneumonia. They both loved children so much, and it is so sad that they didn't get to raise a family. At least they had nieces and nephews to care for and Essie also babysat for other people and children always loved her so much, like I did. Having children die in infancy leaves an effect on people forever.
Roscoe died in 1979 from cancer. My Great Aunt Essie is in a nursing home now in Middlesboro, KY. She has sugar diabetes and had to have one of her legs amputated. She also has Alzheimer's and is confused most of the time. I haven't been to see her because she doesn't recognize people any more. The next time that I go to Kentucky, I think that I will go see her. Maybe seeing me will bring her some happiness.
By Charlotte Anne Seigler Miller
April 22, 2004