Merry Christmas!

If anyone is out there reading this, I hope you have an excellent Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

See my great-grandma Ellen Shirreffs

Since there aren't any photos of Grandpa Stan here, I thought I would quickly post this photo.  I don't remember anything about the day this was taken in February of 1977. We are at the hospital with my great grandma Shirreffs, my grandpa Stan Shirreffs, my mom and me. I'm about year old or so. 

Ellen Shirreffs in 1936

On Saturday, Guillaume and I ventured to Randolph to see my parents and to celebrate my birthday and an early Christmas. We had a great dinner and some yummy cake, but more about that later. I'm waiting for my dad to send me the photos because I forgot to burn them to a cd before I left. 

While I was there, I looked for old photos to post here for everyone to see.  I grabbed a few photo albums and some photos that my mom had. I'll scan them over the next few months so you can all see them. The first one is a beautiful picture of Ellen Shirreffs that was taken in September of 1936. My mom said that my great-grandma Shirreffs really treasured it. On the picture in the corner, you can see that she signed it: "With love to Mother and Dad. Ellen."

Here it is:

REMEMBERING AUNT ISABEL

By Ron Offen

When I summon up memories of my dear Aunt Isabel, two images, a sound, and the memory of an occasion come to mind.

One image is that of a beautiful young woman who turned the heads of everyone when she walked by (and especially when we went to the beach).  The second was that young woman’s rather impish yet engaging smile, which transformed her entire face into a rare delight.  It sometimes seemed she held some secret behind that smile, a secret that really bemused her.

 The sound that I still hear is the almost girlish giggle that bubbled from those smiles and became a hearty but feminine laugh.  Often I would contrive some foolish action or childish joke just to evoke that winsome sound. 

Indeed, I was quite taken with my new Aunt Isabel when my debonair Uncle Stan married her.  So I often reveled not just in her gaiety, but also in any attention I could gain from her.

I remember many occasions with Aunt Isabel, but the one that stands out most clearly in my mind is the day when she took me to a local hamburger stand in Euclid, Ohio.  I had been staying with my grandparents in Euclid well into the school year, because my mother had undergone an operation and was recuperating with them before we could go home to Chicago.

 On the particular day I now recall, Aunt Isabel was to meet me at Shore Elementary School, where I was busy bedeviling my sixth grade teacher (who couldn’t wait for me to return to Chicago).  For some reason, my lovely Aunt was to take me to lunch.   It was like a date!

My favorite place to eat was the above mentioned shanty- shack near the school that sold hamburgers, hot dogs, French fries, etc.  It was my favorite place in Euclid to eat.  I sometimes snuck off there by myself to gobble greasy hamburgers on my own, but no adult would deign to take me there, no matter how much I pleaded.  I think they were afraid of being poisoned.

 When Aunt Isabel asked where I’d like to eat, I suggested this place.  To my great surprise, she immediately agreed to my request.  No only that: she seemed excited at the prospect of going there, beaming that wonderful smile of hers on me. On the way, I told her that the absolute best way to have hamburgers was with mustard and pickles. She mused out loud, “Mustard and pickles . . . never tried that.”

When we ordered our lunch, to my surprise, she ordered her hamburger— with mustard and pickles! And when it came to eating our burgers, she said how tasty the combination was and how she was grateful to me for introducing it to her.

 

So I was even more smitten with Aunt Isabel from that day on.  Here was not only a beautiful young woman, but also one who was fun to be with. Even more important: here was an adult that took my wishes and opinions seriously. 

 So that day provided a minor revelation to me and marked a kind of turning point in my life.  Even though I was a mere eleven-year-old smart aleck, and rather a trial to my parents, to my Aunt Isabel I was someone whose opinion was considered and valued.  It was a day I’ll never forget, thanks to my Aunt Isabel.  And, of course, I will never forget her.

 

A Christmas Past

Grandma Isabel came to celebrate Christmas with us in New Jersey some times. She would fly in a few days before and help us with the preparations. 

My Mom and Amy like to bake sugar cookies and decorate them.  Amy also likes to bake cheese cakes for family functions. My Dad decorates the house with all kinds of things that have been passed down from his parents and given as gifts from friends and relatives.  My Dad also spends some time wrestling with lights on our artificial tree.

On Christmas Eve, our extended family comes to have dinner and to open presents. As a kid, this was like pre-Christmas. I would get a bunch a gifts after the adults slowly ate their dinner and finished their coffee. I was the youngest in the family for a long time as my sister is 9 years younger than me, so I had no one to commiserate with. It always seemed like forever until we opened the presents. Eventually after the presents were all given, my parents and I would get into the car where I would fall asleep thinking of what I was going to get the next morning.

One of the most memorable Christmases was the last time my grandmother came. She was still feeling pretty good then and we had a great time. She was really friendly and personable and good at parties. Her laughter was musical and catchy.

 

On Christmas Eve, we exchanged gifts and hung out with my dad's side of the family. My second cousins, Jeff and Nicole brought their dogs, Mary and Wilma. My second cousins, Pete and Liz, have two little girls ages 9 and 11 who make the holidays more fun. My grandma liked to talk with my Great Aunt Kathryn (shown above). 

We'll miss her this year!

Just Checking

Hi Heather

Just checking that this works. Thank you for inviting me to join and I look forward to adding to it. It's a great idea!

Danny

More Branches of the Family Tree in Australia

A few years ago, I was in contact with several people in our family who have done extensive research. Barney Shirreffs sent me an email about Jack Russell's website, which has an extensive family tree and tons of historic photos of some of the Shirreffs family and others. 

Jack migrated to Australia (about an hour and a half from Sydney) from London in 1955.  The Shirreffs information comes from Lorna, Jack's wife's cousin, and Danny Shirrreffs who share a great grandfather and from John Shirreffs a son of her cousin Norman Shirreffs.

Take a look when you have a chance. It's really interesting!

There is a free lunch!

As you probably know, our family has many writers and a few musicians in it among many other skills. Ron Offen, a poet in our family,  recently wrote to me and reminded me of his excellent poetry site, called Free Lunch. If you have some time, you should definitely check it out. 

His idea for Free Lunch is fascinating. He realized how important poetry was to him throughout his life and how much it had given to him. To return the favor, he decided to launch this literary magazine to publish other poets as well as comment as best he could on all the articles that were submitted. He has nearly 1200 people on his list of subscribers. You can read more about Ron on his site. 

In addition, you can read more about Ron's own poetry. You can see samples of his past work and also see poems from his latest book, Off-Target. One poem that interested me is called "Bad Poet" and you can read it here. He has also been interviewed on the radio. Take a moment to hear his story and to actually hear his voice. You can hear that interview by clicking here.

Take a moment to read some of the poems from contributors in the past issues. They will take your breath away. When my sister, Amy, returns from Australia, I hope she takes some time to read through these poems as she writes poetry from time to time, too. One poem from a past issue that I like in particular is here.

Any other writers out there? Anyone have any comments to share about Ron's site? If so, post them below!