Fireworks for July Fifth
Fireworks for us cousins during the 1950s
meant Grandpa Neal’s birthday, which was July 5.
The clan celebrated with cake, homemade ice cream
and fireworks. Treats, served up by our moms,
and singing happy birthday came first.
Then we kids played with sparkler wands
and black snakes that squirmed out of the sidewalk
with an odd smoky smell, leaving black marks.
Our dads launched the real fireworks into a pasture.
One year a spark fell into the box of fireworks
resulting in a memorable finale, with rockets
shooting in all directions. After things calmed down,
Grandpa quipped, “I’ve never seen a bunch of
Presbyterians move so fast.”
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Black Snakes fireworks. Thanks to cousin Vince Wells for remembering Grandpa's comment!
Another post about Kenneth Neal.
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Great memories for the 4th, Joy!!
That was a funny comment. I never remember our family ever having fireworks of any kind. I guess our parents must have feared Dale and I would kill each other with them. As a young adult, my wife and I used to sit in our front yard and watch the fireworks display put on by the local volunteer fire department in the adjacent community park–until (like in your story) one time at the very start of the program one shot went into the cache waiting to be used. All we saw was a huge glow over the rooftops and a lot of noise. That was the last display the fire department put on. The next day, a young kid found an unexploded firework. It went off in his hand, taking several fingers. Liability was to great.
We used to be able to see them from our home here, but they moved them from the main park to a new bigger one that has an island. I hardly heard them last night.
Grandpa was quite a wit, wasn’t he.
He sure was, Don. Everyone knew him in town (he was a farmer), even my classmates. My next oldest cousin, Vince, inherited Grandpa’s wit!
Love it! Yes, Presbyterians have a reputation of not moving fast. 🙂
What fun!
“I’ve never seen a bunch of Presbyterians move so fast.” Just priceless!
Grandpa Kenneth was a wit, which I think he got from his dad. He’s in his Dexter Centennial outfit, 1968,
He wears it well!
Great memories-Grandpa Neal is a hoot! 🙂
I love those kinds of memories.