I'm not really "alone" on this Thanksgiving 2024!

Aunt Vi at left with my mother Martha

Very peaceful sitting here at home on Thanksgiving morning. I can celebrate the day from my memories. My family for so many years joined my uncle and aunt from Glenwood for the occasion, Howard and Vi. Howard was my blood uncle. His claim to fame in Glenwood was as a banker. I think banking was a whole lot different back in his day. 

The two families got together for the major holidays, going back and forth between the two residences. When my uncle came here, our dog would help "host." We had three small house dogs through the years. Howard and Vi had no children and no dogs. Howard noted, at the time of establishing a fund to benefit 'Waska students, that the Glenwood community was their "family." 

I work to keep alive the spirit of giving here in Morris. Whether this is really prudent for me to do, I don't know. But it feels totally right. You cannot beat giving in the present. The future is so hard to forecast. So in the last few days I sent off another check to the University of Minnesota Foundation. This is to benefit music at our U of M-Morris. 

It is true that generally speaking, yours truly and UMM have rather mixed like oil and water. That does not matter. The U was a defining element in my late father's life. It was an important brick in Mom's life too. And I know that colleges everywhere are dealing with headwinds now. 

It will get worse before it gets better. My friend Michael Lackey of the UMM faculty said that everyone who works in higher education knows full well about the rough seas. And the belief is that these challenges will reach their maximum in 2026. I did not ask him if things are expected to get better after that. 

There are fewer kids out there to begin with. My generation swarmed on campuses when we were young. True salad days. But the numbers thinned. Young people find the cost of higher education daunting. The kids who do seek higher education often get a head start through this thing called "PSEO." I have never really cared for that. College is about more than measured achievement in learning, IMHO. It's supposed to have value as an all-around experience. But "it is what it is." 

Listen to Ron Paul talk about how inexpensive his college education was. My father could recall in the same way. My father paid most or all of his expenses through working at Glacier National Park in the summer. He was a "cowboy" during the day and then put on a tux to direct the dance orchestra at the lodge in the evening! He got a kick out of telling about that. 

Mom attended Hamline but then she had to return home to Brainerd after her father Andrew died from a stroke. Andrew started a family of three children when up in years. He worked for the railroad as did many people in Brainerd. 

My father Ralph at left with his brother Howard

Howard and Vi lived in a modest middle class home in Glenwood. Such a peaceful atmosphere over there when we'd visit on days like Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter or New Year's. 

The last time I saw Howard and Vi was on Christmas when we had canceled the usual get-together because of someone having an illness. I forget the details but I had reason to scoot over to Lowry to drop something off for the Morris newspaper. You might remember I was quite involved there at one time. Lowry is a stone's throw from Glenwood. I was driving the newspaper van. 

I showed up at Howard and Vi's door unannounced. Their health was getting brittle at the time. They never wanted to concede to age with their lifestyle - it was a mistake on their part. I rapped at their front door. And there they were! I stated loudly "I'm Brian" in case they floundered with recognizing me. This would be due to age - I think you know how it is. A glint of recognition crossed their faces. 

It didn't matter that I was unannounced as we were all joy-filled. Vi was able to prepare coffee and snacks as she'd done throughout the years. And we had a most fun conversation. I was so happy to tell my parents about it when I got home. Howard passed on within a few months after that. Vi ended up in the Glenwood nursing home and later passed herself. 

So it goes with life, and death. "Death is a part of life." 

My grandparents Martin and Carrie

My father and Howard were among five sons of Martin and Carrie Williams of Glenwood. The Williams family had good standing over there. The five boys were so dissimilar with their talents. Money and banking were what made Howard tick. You probably know my father's raison d'etre was music. It's "raison" and not "raisin." It's not a breakfast cereal! 

My father was the youngest of the five. He got his diploma from Glenwood High School in 1934, totally John Dillinger times. And the Great Depression was in full swing. 

Howard left us a box of mementos when he passed on. In that box was the graduation program from when he was class speaker. The program was so well-preserved, it might have been issued yesterday! 

You'll see a slab of stone with "Williams" on it when you enter Glenwood Lutheran Cemetery by the old part. That's us. There's the one master slab with "Williams," around which are the plots for my grandparents Martin and Carrie and then Howard and Vi on the other side. Never to be forgotten through eternity. 

The memories of past Thanksgivings are vivid on this day in 2024. I am alone and it does not matter. You are never alone when you are embraced by family.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com