 | Faye Graves, a native Wichitan, attended school at Friends and Wichita State, concluding at Midwestern Theological Seminary. He has been active in media for many years with Channel 12, KIRL, KFDI, KOOO AM & FM (Omaha), KFRM & KICT 95, as an owner, manager, producer, director and announcer. He has served as President of the Haysville Board of Education. He has also served on several national boards of the Southern Baptist Convention. Faye currently serves as Executive Pastor and Director of Administration and Education at Immanuel Baptist Church, 1415 S. Topeka, Wichita. You may contact Faye by e-mail fmgraves@amenibc.org, or by phone at (316) 262-1452. |
Nostalgia
1969-12-31 18:00:00
Remember...
Answer: Wow…that’s a throwback question. I haven’t thought about Valentine’s Day, as a child, for many years. As I remember…
Quite often, we had deep snow in February…so a heavy coat, your scarf tied around your neck, and those goulashes that were hard to get on and off, were the norm. We generally walked to school because our families back then were one-car families, if even that, and that car was used for our parents to go to work. As I remember, I had my valentines in hand, all addressed and had carefully looked at the verses so there would be no wrong message of special endearment given to the one to whom it was addressed. I looked forward to the party and time out from the books.
I attended Harry St. Elementary and remember walking through the big white double doors and entering a large hallway that had valentine hearts on display which we had made during art class. We would go into the coat closet, find the hook with our name on it, take off our heavy coat, scarf, gloves and cap…and hang them up. We placed our goulashes on the floor directly under them, then headed for the class valentine box.
The teacher would pick some students to decorate the box. She or he also had hung valentine trimmings around the room. The box had a slot in the top for the kids to place their valentines addressed to their friends and that special girl friend (or boy friend). I always had a valentine for everyone in the class so no one would be left out. Later, I would watch as everyone counted to see if they had received as many valentines as others. It was sad when someone didn’t have as many. Otherwise, I remember it as being a very happy day. The mothers would always prepare the little party for the class. We usually had cookies and drinks, like Kool Aid or pop.
Valentine’s Day was always a big day for adults, too. It was a day to give your sweetheart a special box of chocolates or flowers or a gift of some kind. Yes, the weather was usually very cold and sometimes snowy, and the sound of tires spinning as cars got stuck was always there, but getting that special valentine from someone you really liked made you feel all warm inside.
Valentine’s Day was always one of the major happenings in the month of February. Today, perhaps it’s not as big as it was then. I hope that’s not the way it is with you. We should all have a great Valentine’s Day and a good month.
