Houses

I grew up in South East Boise in the late fifties an early sixties. We had a small farm in the rural area of Boise. Lots of kids in the family and even though I don't remember our living as being 'poor', I think we were. Oh, we did not go hungry, ever. We raised our own beef and always had a huge garden and there was lots of canning we always had vegetables and fruit throughout the winter. Mom, bought our clothes from J.C. Penny's and Sear Roebuck usually on “Layaway”. The clothes were never the styles I would have liked but they were good sturdy clothes and shoes. So, maybe we weren't “poor” per se maybe we were just low middle class. I did not think about status much. I had the love and support of a huge family and the fun of living in a fun area and time. Still something was different.

I was in Cub Scouts, which I firmly believe, I would never have been except the program was pushed my our church and so u sort of had to go. The Cubs met in the Sister Hessing's home. Sister h was the wife of Bishop James B Hessing our religious community leader. Jim was partner in the local Plymouth Chrysler dealership. I don't know about anyone else in the ward but I thought the Hessings were rich the house they live in was huge but so was the Hessing family. The Hessing home was in the suburb Greenwood circle, a place where many professionals lived and the median income seemed higher then the rest of the South East Boise rural area.

I went to East Jr High located on Warm Springs avenue and I think for most of us rural kids,raised in the farm area it was the first time we were exposed to the “city” kids in the South East section of town. I did not think too much about it till the bus rides home. Our bus would head East on Warm Springs past these , what I thought were mansions. I would just stare in disbelief and wonder who lived in these places, these palaces. I knew these houses were where a lot of the students lived, I went to school with but it never registered. They just seemed like regular kids to me. On the bus I would look at these home and wonder what Christmases or Thanksgivings were like and thought to myself, these event must be wonderful. I imagined servants, huge gala parties and lives of grandeur. I was not envious just amazed.

I have become quite active on Facebook and Twitter and have re connected with a lot of the kids I went to school with before my accident and recently one of these kids, Ricky Hale has started posting images of some of these places identified who lived where. I have been fascinated and I have really appreciated Rick's effort on this project. I have even mentioned this and lso how I thought how wonderful it must have been to have lived in these places. I was pleased and excited when one of these folks actually responded to my comments by indicating living in these homes was just normal like everyone. Yeah, just like everyone. I am still intrigued by these houses and still wonder.