Toilet Water

FORWARD: Every other year the Morrow's get together for a reunion. There are 7 siblings and we each take our turn producing the event. We move it around the country. We meet next week in Estes Park, CO. One of the highlights of the event is the banquet, followed by entertainment. Our family has more than it's share of people capable of 'stand-up routines'. We have cowboy poetry and stories from memories. But best of all we read our updates. Each family will bring a letter, detailing their family's changes in the last 2 years. These get put into a booklet, thanks to a Sister of mine, and she mails each family a book. Very, Very Nice. My update from 2001 follows and nearly got me shot. I have edited it to remove family names who may not want to appear in this blog. Here it is.


From Cliff Morrow on the preceding 2 years. Aug. 2001

On July 13th of this year I was cultivating soybeans just south of my house. The mood I was in was nearly euphoric. Corn had climbed about 30 cents per bushel in the preceding 30 day period making it seem that with another 30 cent rise I might be able to postpone the inevitable. I needed to stop in the house for the type of nature call that farmers go inside for, if at all possible. I finished and as I stood at the sink washing my hands my eye was grabbed by the color of the water circulating in the toilet bowl. A dark reddish purple. I stared at myself in the mirror. The first thought was of Evelyn and the night she called to say that "your Dad wants you to come down, he has a lot of blood in his stool". The beginning of the end for him, I thought. Then my mind went to Marilyn and our planned outing to couples golf that night. Maybe I could just not tell her and go through the weekend silent. Could I survive that long. It doesn't do any good, I thought, to go to a hospital on a Friday, they would wait till Monday to see me anyway. As I stared back at the face in the mirror, I observed that it was thinner than a year ago. I thought, maybe my Mother in law was wrong when she told someone "No he's not on a diet, he's just working for a change". Just great, my corn is finally going to get to $3, and some attorney will get to sell it for that. Well I thought, nevertheless, It's been a pretty good run. At least I was able to see my oldest son get married to a really nice gal, they seem so happy in their house they are buying in Lincoln. I think some times they work too hard but won't time and maturity take care of that? My family had all traveled a good distance to attend their wedding and it was good to have seen them one more time.
And of course our daughter, what a Joy. She is also hard working and I have no doubt that she will go far. Our Grandson turns up the brightness in the room by several shades when he walks in to Boppa's House (as he calls it) It's hard to imagine what life would be like without him living just down the lane
And hasn't my youngest Son been a pleasure to be with. Since he graduated high school he has kept himself busy driving a semi trailer, finished his first year of a transfer program at Northeast Comm College. Bought his own car, jet ski, and is putting himself through college. Oh how I loved playing golf with the kid.
And man, I've saved the best for last, Marilyn. The kennel, our Grandson, golf, and church activities keep her so busy. She is always there with a cheery greeting when I come in from the field or from trucking. And of course she just loves gardening. Why just last night, she fixed a great home-grown meal of fresh creamed peas and potato's, chickens she had raised, green beans, sweet corn, and of course that huge helping of fresh beets from the garden. Dark reddish purple beets. Oh yeah, beets. Never mind.