The Autobiography of Ruth Tagg Caley

The feeling of family ties were more than words could express. Jim looked around theroom and started to sing. "Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home." I know we all feltthe same way to be together again. But it didn't last too long. I was wondering where my motherwas. We didn't have a tree or trimmings or holly on our door like we used to have, but we wereall happy. I can't remember the rest of the dinner. Father and the boys did the cooking. At anyrate we girls survived after, so I suppose the men did O.K. Soon after that Jim had to go back towork. Eva went back to Sandford's. Winnie, and I stayed on with father and Steve for a week ortwo longer.A Big SurpriseWinnie and I were in the house alone and a man on horseback came galloping up he said."I am very tired, my I rest awhile? I have ridden my horse all day. I have an important messagefor you." In the village which was two miles from our place, there were no telephones at thattime. The man had ridden twenty five miles to tell us our mother was in Cardston. She tried toget to us for Christmas but the storms and time had got her in the day after. (Boxing day inEngland). She asked the station master where she could find us.We were still twenty-five miles away. He said she could stay at his home until they couldget word to us. She had to wait about ten days or two weeks before our boys could travel throughthe snowdrifts. The blizzards came again before the first storm had cleared away. The timecame when the storms let up somewhat and our brother Steve and father took large rocks androlled them in the oven for a half a day, got the horses ready and put in some quilts. Theycouldn't make the round trip in one day on account of the roads. Even the mailman was lucky ifhe got to our town once or twice a week. Our mother got home ok.Our one room had to be enlarged so the men got busy and built a larger room on, with anattic making a large kitchen with a room over head and one bedroom down stairs. Motherbrought with her everything she could, and some things that were not necessary such as hersewing machine. We told her she should have sold it and got a new one in Canada. But sheliked her own and hated to part with it. She had a lot of her things sewed up in a tick (mattresscover). She had some beautiful linens that couldn't be purchased in Canada, also woolens.Wool in England was lots more plentiful and lower price than in Canada. She had our clothes, ofcourse, that she hid from us.I thought my parents talked with an accent or why did I notice it so much. The reasonwas I was changing. I had been to Packard's around the children and was getting more like theCanadians. Children learn faster. Mother would say she couldn't help but “laugh” when I madeher bed as I didn't get the counterpane on straight (the bedspread). She would smile at me andsay "cawn't you do a bit better my child."Mother didn't like those cold days as she couldn't get out like she used to in London. Iremember how we had to learn to do everything different. We had to learn to bottle fruit, makeour own bread. I remember the bad batches of bread that turned out and we hurried down to theRuth Tagg Caley pg 17