Thanksgiving Season and more

Thanksgiving reminds me of my connections to the Mayflower, which I will repost here:

James Chilton - Susanna Furner
Mary Chilton - John Winslow
Susanna Winslow - Robert Latham
Hannah Latham - Joseph Washburn
Ephraim Washburn - Mary Polen/Pollard
Japhet Washburn - Priscilla Coombs
Chloe Washburn - Nathaniel Dexter
Lotan Dexter - Ruby Fish
Walter Marshall Dexter - Alida Jane Bennett
Mary Winnie Dexter - Thomas Elbridge Logue
Cecil Elbridge Logue - Rachel Helen Crawford

Francis Cooke - Hester Mahieu
Jane Cooke - Experience Mitchell
Elizabeth Mitchell - John Washburn
Joseph Washburn - Hannah Latham
Ephraim Washburn - Mary Polen/Pollard
Japhet Washburn - Priscilla Coombs
Chloe Washburn - Nathaniel Dexter
Lotan Dexter - Ruby Fish
Walter Marshall Dexter - Alida Jane Bennett
Mary Winnie Dexter - Thomas Elbridge Logue
Cecil Elbridge Logue - Rachel Helen Crawford

Today (November 26th) is youngest brother, Gerald's birthday, tomorrow would have been my father's 104th birthday and Monday is my 64th.  Mom would have been 98 on Dec 6th.

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Sharing one more story, I often wondered why I have had such a fear of drowning - well not really drowning but being in a flood.  Watching the tsunami strike in Japan in March of this year, my memories of the nightmares I had as a youth came back vividly.  I know this fear stems from the winter that Smith Creek dammed up and when it finally broke loose, it flooded our home and forced us to spend Christmas across the river at my Uncle Walt's.  I believe this was 1957 or 58. We had to stay out of our home for several days and for weeks after it was cleaned up and we could move back, there were big puddles of water all around our home - where ever there was a dip in the ground.  

When we moved up the South Fork of the Payette, our home was near the river again, but not on the river plain or on a creek.  The house was placed on a bluff overlooking the river and was well above flood level.  But I still had nightmares that the river would flood over its banks and reach our home.  Other things that did not help this fear was the time my brothers drove into the river on the road to Banks (no one was seriously hurt, but the cars was pretty messed up) and the time that Cyril rolled off the road (while driving home from work), down an embankment and into the river up the South Fork from our home.  One passenger was thrown from the vehicle, one was killed in the accident, and Cyril broke his leg.

The Payette River, swollen by spring runoff and rain.

Japan tsunami

So I no longer have nightmares of flooding, but owning a couple homes with basements that have flooded and having lived through the flooding of our home in the 50's, I know how much damage even just a little water on the floor can do.