As a child, I personally interacted with Grandma M. . Our paths began to diverge in my early teen years. I'm ashamed to admit, I lost touch. Though, I never forgot her; and know her better now through family history research. Recollections are those of a little kid, tempered with adult understanding.
Grandma M. was born in Sogndal, Norway in 1889. She immigrated to Montana in 1910. There she lived with her first husband and their son. She married grandpa m. in 1912. With no muss or legal fuss, her first child became one of us. And so it began.
I saw Grandma M. only at family gatherings in her home. For these events she prepared the food. And she was a superior cook. A couple of her ethnic dishes were favorites of mine; Lefsa and krumme kake. Grandma M. taught me Norwegian for "A thousand thanks for the eats, little girl."
An amazing thing about Grandma M.'s cooking was that she used a wood burning kitchen range. And she chopped and split her own kindling. Thank you very much! In later years, her children forced her to go electric. She hated the new stove for its lack of control (no finesse).
During those family gatherings, grandchildren were "ordered" to play at the living room's far end. This separated parents from children; allowing parents to talk about adult stuff. This was no fun, there was just an old Chinese Checkers game (without rules) to occupy 5 antsy kids. Grandma M.'s bedroom was next to Checkerboard Square. I liked to sneak peeks into her bedroom. It was strictly forbidden, of course. I don't know why. It was always neat as a pin and the single bed was always made. Us kids never asked why grandpa m. slept up in the unfinished attic!
It's fair to say Grandma M. ruled the house. She forbade smoking indoors, decades before it was fashionable. Smokers retreated to a screened-in porch to pursue their habit. And, I never saw alcohol served in Grandma M.'s house. However, I once saw Dad and grandpa m. sharing a 1/2 pint of whiskey, outside on the cellar steps, while Dad cut his father's hair.
Grandma M.'s flowers were a hobby. Her dahlias flourished growing taller than she . I could go on but will simply note that Grandma M. and Grandpa M. are buried in different cemeteries.
