This 1906 picture of members of the Truman family comes from the National Archives. Mary Jane Truman, possibly one of the occupants of the canoe, was Harry Truman’s sister. I like this picture a lot. It’s got such a carefree happiness to it.
One of a series of photos from Mary Jane Truman’s Christmas Album, 1906. Blurred snapshot of four people, possibly Mary Jane Truman being one of the women, rowing in a canoe near the Grandview farm.
It reminds me of a poem my mom used to recite to me:
Love Many
Trust Few
Always Paddle Your Own Canoe
Words of wisdom for the day ahead!
old spirituals 
I’ve never heard that expression! I love hearing the different sayings people heard as children. I learned yesterday that “You catch more flies with honey than vinegar was first recorded in 1666. It’s fascinating how we pass them along in perpetuity, seemingly.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Anything that rhymes is likely to lodge into our memories. Maybe we need a new piece of folk wisdom.
Smile and say nothing
Even if your goals are unmet
A cheerful heart travels faster
Than a high speed corvette
A bully is a paper tiger
Is a fact you’ll recall is true
Stand up for yourself
And they’ll never bother you
Lifting weights builds muscle
Mountain climbing is free
You can do whatever you want
Better you than me!
Rhyming folk wisdom is much harder than it looks!
LikeLike
I love all the words of wisdom! I’m trying to figure out where the body of water was in the Truman family picture. I lived near Grandview in Hickman Mills, Missouri, from 1955-1962 and Hickman Mills was later incorporated into Kansas City. Harry Truman’s mother owned a farm near Grandview. I’m curious now!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t know that area of the world but just looking at a map, maybe Longview Lake?
You’ve lived in a lot of places! At least Missouri isn’t earthquake prone though they do have twisters and they’re much more frightening!
LikeLike
Love your mom’s wisdom! I’ve never heard that one!
LikeLiked by 1 person
She’s got some good ones!
LikeLike
Yes, I’ve lived in quite a few places. My dad worked for the Atomic Energy Commission and with each promotion, came a new location. We did have a massive tornado in Hickman Mills, Missouri, in 1956. Our home was spared, thank goodness. That’s why I love Las Vegas, Nevada. No crazy weather!
I don’t remember Longview Lake. There were lakes to the back of where our house was located, but they were owned by the Kernodle family.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s totally understandable. Anyone who lived through big natural disasters would probably be looking to be somewhere where you don’t have to worry about the possibility of ever being caught in a massive earthquake or twister again.
If I were in your shoes, I don’t know whether I’d feel so unlucky that I was present at multiple natural disasters, or if I would feel so lucky that I survived them. Probably depends on the day!
LikeLike
Judy, maybe you could settle a debate! I was at an event a couple of months ago and people were debating what is scarier: a strong earthquake or a powerful tornado.
But no one there had lived through both. As someone who has experienced both, what’s your opinion?
LikeLike
I think the Truman family boat was on The Little Blue River which seems to run through Grandview. A reservoir was made in that area in the 1970’s and became Longview Lake. I knew about the Blue River but I wasn’t sure of it’s proximity to Grandview. A Civil War battle was fought there. If it’s like a river we swam in near my aunt’s home in Arkansas, it wasn’t wide or fast flowing.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You can shelter in your basement or even a deep drainage ditch from a tornado, but you can’t shelter from a large magnitude earthquake. They are both incredibly frightening, but I think a huge magnitude earthquake is scarier.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That settles that! 🙂 Thank you, Judy!
LikeLike