Memories of Long Ago
Here's a memory from my childhood that almost became lost. I seldom revisit the memories of my childhood. I have so many things to think about today that I don't have much time to keep the memories of the past polished up. But here's a memory of how things used to be many years ago, and it's a "used to be" that I'm glad is left in the past.
Taking baths: Before we had our indoor bathroom set up and in use, we used a round wash tub for our baths. We filled it with water, carried in a bucket, and the hot water from the teakettle. Most of the time I had my bath in the kitchen. I remember that by the time the bath was over, I was cold. How comforting it was to be enfolded in a big towel and rubbed dry.
I have a memory of Mom bathing in the tub in their bedroom and the water was too hot. I brought some cold water to her, hurrying because the bath water was too hot for her. Then I threw the water right on her feet, to keep them from being burned by the hot water. She yelled with the shock of the cold water on her feet.
I remember, too, that we had to respect the privacy of the person bathing. The kitchen was strictly off limits to others when the Saturday night bathing ritual was going on.
I don't remember how the tub was emptied. It must have been too heavy to pick up and carry to a drain. Perhaps Dad or Mom bailed it out with a bucket and poured it down the drain in the kitchen sink.
I'm so glad that bathing can be an every day event now, and that the hot and cold water run right into the big, comfy bathtub, in the bathroom where it belongs.
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