Aunt Bice

The beautiful lady above?

It's my Aunt Bice.

Her real name was Berniece~

But I didn't know her real name until I was almost grown.

She lived in town.

But she loved to come to the farm~

For Sunday dinners and parties~

She brought a bit of class

To the hill top farm where I lived.

My father had 4 sisters that lived to adulthood.

And he loved all of them~

He had a special place in his heart for each of them.

And a special nickname for each one.
My understanding is that he gave Bice her nickname.

And as for her? Well, she absolutely adored him.

She always called him Bum~

I guess she had a way with nicknames too..

Although he certainlyWASN'T a bum!

She was a beautician that gave me a home perm every year.

Whether I needed it or not.

I usually did.

Remember how awful those old home perms smelled?

Even the dog couldn't stand me!

Every summer

Aunt Bice would take me to stay with her

And my cousin Mary Frances

Who operated the beauty shop with her mother

Down in the Valley

In a little town called Towanda.

Aunt Bice made me feel very special,

Maybe because I reminded her of my father.

Maybe just because she loved me.

She has been gone many years,

But she is never far from my heart.

I think she and my father are probably

having little Sunday parties in Heaven...

And, someday, if I mind my p's & q's~

We will all celebrate Sundays together again.

Amen!