Death is a presence in Florence Walrath’s journals, and from an early age. Death is hidden from us today,  the aging kept out of sight, especially from children. Death rarely happens in the home. But it was all around Florence, at every stage of her life, perhaps one reason for her determination to live her life fully and independently and to the end. She always seemed to grasp what was important, and lived with urgency.  The journals are  a collection of anecdotes without a clear timeline or structure. Generally, the stories move through life in chronological order, but not always.  Here, Florence describes her first experience with death. It was by no means her last:

 “There One other experience that stands out in my mind, it was the time Mother and I were coming home from Salem, driving the same horse, Lord Percy. As we came to the overhead rail road crossing, there was a train on the track. We thought it was switching tracks as we had seen it do many times before. We went on slowly and still the train continued to back. When we  reached the top of the over pass, the train was in under us. The smoke rolled up through the plank which was spaced with wide cracks. Each time the grain gave a chug, more smoke poured around us. There was plenty of chugging below us. Mother talked to Lord Percy and handled him with ease. It was hard to explain just what the horse did. I thought he was down on his knees, he looked so low and yet his feet seemed to hardly touch the bridge. He came out the other side, struck into a fast pace as though nothing had happened. My heart went back in place I found out that day that horses were something besides a body and four legs.

–

  “In the summer I spent part time helping Grandmother. Gramp as well as being blind also was on crutches. I thought I was a big help taking him for a walk each day. Also to the barber shop. There were lots of children on the street. They all became my friends. There was an early apple tree in the yard, chickens in the barn, a creek back of the barn. I enjoyed their old shelf clock with a dog picture on it, the cracker jar that always sat on the table. It was hard for her to keep it full, they taste so good. Blanche stayed one year with them and entered  high school. A few years passed by and Gramp became sick. Dad was up taking care of  him while the boys and Mother took care of the farm.

 One afternoon Mother, Blanche and I drove up to see him. He was  bad and Mother called the boys to take care of things at home and we stayed all night. We had our little toy poodle and she barked off and on all night. Gramp was breathing so hard it upset the dog. I did not sleep that night. The next morning about ten, Grand-dad passed away. I was with him at the time, my first experience with death.  Somehow, the visits were never the same. After Grand-mother gave up the house, I helped clean it. She gave me the shelf clock and the never to be forgotten cracker jar. Mother late gave me the parlor chairs. Aunt Mabel gave me the maple rocker that Gramp always sat in. Later I bought the old desk or secretary. Nice to have these things I remember so well.”

Next: The Great Cambridge Fair.