Sunday, March 15, 2015

Butter Me Up

Way back, when I was only three
and Aunt Loretta sat for me,
Uncle Erwin put me on his knee.
He taught me a crucial skill for life:
how to eat butter off a knife.


When I was little my parents hired Loretta Kleinschmidt to clean house and 'sit' for me on Tuesdays and Thursdays when my mom was at work.  She was strict, exacting, and loved me like a grandchild, and became my "Aunt Loretta."  She didn't drive, so sometimes my mom would get her, but frequently her husband, Erwin (pronounced Ervin) would come to our house to get her when he was finished with his work for the day, as a carpenter.  And that's when I learned about the wonders of butter.  Sadly, but maybe not surprisingly Uncle Erwin died of a heart attack December 26, 1985.  Aunt Loretta is dead now too, but I still remember them both with love. 
And this is for IGRT Sunday Mini-Challenge.  You should go there and check it out!

24 comments:

  1. So charming. I never had butter till 4th grade! It is a very sweet poem. Thanks so much for participating. k.

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    1. Oh, what happened in 4th grade I wonder? Thanks Karin, I had sort of forgotten about this until you prompt, so I thank you for it!

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  2. One skill that always comes in handy

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  3. Those people who teach us unlikely skills--which no one should live without--are the ones who stayed with us forever.

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    1. Forgot to say, "Mmm, butter!" I'm on this terrible diet (tummy issues), so I have to enjoy my butter through others *sigh*.

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  4. I remember how much I loved butter the first time .. what bliss compared to margarine.. but I have never eaten it off a knife :-)

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  5. Oh, wonderful, just made me smile and sigh at that fond memory.

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  6. Wonderful to have loving people in one's memories of childhood. I hope the little ones I look after remember me as fondly.

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  7. Good, Mary. But, ... my dad ate butter all his life and live to be 97? Sort of like my cardiologist's dietician warned me, "You can eat anything but do it in moderation." (I don't eat butter unless the cook puts it in. I eat
    ..

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    1. Oops, I looked in the fridge but this had posted. I eat Smart Balance.
      ..

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    2. Haha - you know I eat very little butter these days, but when one is 3...well ...

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  8. This is just delightful, Mary--and it's amazing I'm even still alive after all the butter and other substances I was regaled with as a child. (They say you never lose a fat cell once you make it. ;_)) I love the child's sense of being cared for in this--some just know how to make us feel that way--special, and loved.

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    1. Ha - I should say that I do not still eat butter off a knife! And thank you.

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  9. Always loved butter and knowing how to eat it of a knife is important! Lovely memories Mary.
    Anna :o]

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  10. Completely off topic but I'm reminded of the skit about Barbara Streisand and how she said "buttah". Or was that Walters? Either way, a charming pen ~

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