THANKSGIVING

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite Holidays. As a child I remember the hustle and bustle of my parents and of my uncle and aunt in preparation for the day. The feast of turkey and the numerous side dishes were a gluttons delight. Memories of those joyous occasions will remain with me forever. Eventually my siblings and I married and moved out of Southie to the surrounding suburbs. My sister went further into the State of Maine. We all tried to stay in touch but with growing children and our responsibilities as adults- that wasn’t easy.

 However, there was one day when we all returned as a family to our parents’ home and that of course was Thanksgiving. Our parents continued with the preparations of the meal until they no longer do so physically. But that wasn’t a deterrent. The slack was taken up by everyone and we continued the tradition. I recall when the number of us grew so large that we had tables set up from the front of the house to the back. Adults sat in the more formal dining room and the children at extension tables.

Eventually our parents passed and the annual trek to Southie ended.  We started our own traditions with our own grandchildren. The memories of our annual gatherings in Southie at Thanksgiving have always had a special place in my heart and that is why I consider it one of my favorite holidays. 

PINNOCHIO

I remember the first motion picture I ever saw. It was around 1941 when I was at the impressionable age of 6. The movie was Pinocchio. There were 2 movie theaters in Southie at the time, the Broadway on West Broadway and the Strand on East Broadway. The movie was not shown at either theater. To see it you had to go downtown Boston which was an adventure by itself.

It was the golden age of Movie theaters and the lobbies to a 6 year old were a marvel to see. I entered a world previously  unknown to me. The Paramount (which was recently renovated by Emerson College) was where I saw the movie.

Unfortunately at my age I thought what I was about to see was real. The scene where Pinocchio was changing into a donkey was an earth shattering moment and for years I tried to live an exemplary life because I thought that could happen to me. As I said at the beginning I was at impressionable age.

LAMPLIGHTER

Many of you may find it hard to believe but when I lived on West Fifth St. in Southie in the late 1930’s the street was lit by gas lamps. The lamp had a pilot light that remained constantly on. At dusk a lamplighter would take a long pole and adjust the valve to provide full illumination. At day break he would reverse the procedure and adjust the valve to the pilot level.

Today the streets are lit by sodium vapor lamps that are so bright that it is hard to distinguish day from night. Of course from a safety point of view that is exactly what you want. But my memory of a street lit by gas lamps can’t be beat. The lamps were placed at intervals that provided just sufficient lighting overlap. When I stood and looked down my street from Dorchester St. I paint a picture in my mind of a darkened street with just enough illumination to make out the outline of the houses and street.

Like all good paintings they are worthy of saving.