Bench in Chestertown's Fountain Park.
Monday, August 26, 2013
Have a Seat
Bench in Chestertown's Fountain Park.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Division of Family
Yesterday, after a brutal (for me) workout at the YMCA (1 hour on a treadmill at four miles per hour on a 15% slope), I stopped by the field my niece was warming up in for a soccer match to say "Good bye and Good luck" to her since she heads off on Friday to her first year of college.
It seems like only yesterday I gave her a stuffed Tigger that was nearly as big as she was for Christmas. I recall her laughing and running around with him with wild abandon and watching her dress him up, insisting Tigger was a "she."
I have another photo of her somewhere where she is about the same age, after she opened a gift of a razor scooter - one she badly wanted. I caught her eyes popping wide as the wrapping paper fell away from the box. I treasure the photo but I treasure that simple moment of joy even more.
In the years since, I've watched her grow and mature into a fine young woman - she played cello in a chamber music ensemble, the orchestra at school, and performed at a number of dance recitals with her proud uncle watching.
On the way home, in a selfish moment, I thought to myself, I didn't have any uncles or aunts see me off to college and thought it out. Family divisions - caused by the usual "list of characters" was responsible for this.
My dad being an only child, I had only two aunt and uncle sets - my mom's much older brother and sister and from them I was separated by geography and generational age. Their children, my cousins, were all 10-15 years older than I, and as I was growing up - that made them "unapproachable adults" and not people to play childhood games with. The Aunt lived 380 miles away in Boston, and the Uncle lived 2800 miles away in Los Angeles.
So the aunts and uncles in my life where all actually my dad's aunt's and uncles and my "greats." Age again - caused a divide but there was another divide - petty family squabbles - that ran deep and turned to poison.
Without boring you with the details - my great-grandfather "parted ways" with his two brothers - over a squabble at the family business - he left and started his own - and thus was forever "mad" at Thomas Charles and Russell. You may remember Thomas Charles was Franklin, Elmer and Marshall's father. Russell was the WWI machine gunner that was wounded in the Argonne Forest. This separation meant - that even though the three sons lived into the 1990's - and lived nearby - I never met them.
Another family business squabble - this time between my Grandfather and his mother - after my great-grandfather died - caused ill-feelings between my Grandfather and his mother's family (all of whom, I met only once at a family reunion, are very nice people.) So those distant family members were "lost to me" while growing up.
My Grandfather had three sisters - between them, they had 4 children. Aunt Ann was childless, my (great) Aunt Marian had two sons and a daughter and my Aunt Mary had a son named Pat (who had Down's Syndrome). Pat was a sweet, but big and gruff (6' 2" 280 pounds) guy that seemed to behave in an unpredictable manner that was off-putting to me as a young boy. I have since learned better. Marian's children might have been in the social circle except...
...she worked with (and unfortunately, for) my Grandfather, Harry, as the bookkeeper in the family business - and one day, the day to day tensions of working together - spilled over and unkind words were spoken - and my Aunt Marion walked out to never return.
I recently found a letter, written by my Grandmother on April 26, 1967 to my "honorary Aunt Bea" that made me cringe -
I may not particularly like my sister-in-law and niece's mother - but I have tried to make sure that this (mutual) feeling has not prevented me from being involved in my niece's life. I have gained much to treasure from doing so - and can hope, somewhere down the line, my niece might feel the same. This bitter family lesson on how to watch what one says in the "heat of the moment" and to be a little more forgiving was hard earned and too late to cure the divides.
It seems like only yesterday I gave her a stuffed Tigger that was nearly as big as she was for Christmas. I recall her laughing and running around with him with wild abandon and watching her dress him up, insisting Tigger was a "she."
I have another photo of her somewhere where she is about the same age, after she opened a gift of a razor scooter - one she badly wanted. I caught her eyes popping wide as the wrapping paper fell away from the box. I treasure the photo but I treasure that simple moment of joy even more.
In the years since, I've watched her grow and mature into a fine young woman - she played cello in a chamber music ensemble, the orchestra at school, and performed at a number of dance recitals with her proud uncle watching.
On the way home, in a selfish moment, I thought to myself, I didn't have any uncles or aunts see me off to college and thought it out. Family divisions - caused by the usual "list of characters" was responsible for this.
My dad being an only child, I had only two aunt and uncle sets - my mom's much older brother and sister and from them I was separated by geography and generational age. Their children, my cousins, were all 10-15 years older than I, and as I was growing up - that made them "unapproachable adults" and not people to play childhood games with. The Aunt lived 380 miles away in Boston, and the Uncle lived 2800 miles away in Los Angeles.
So the aunts and uncles in my life where all actually my dad's aunt's and uncles and my "greats." Age again - caused a divide but there was another divide - petty family squabbles - that ran deep and turned to poison.
Without boring you with the details - my great-grandfather "parted ways" with his two brothers - over a squabble at the family business - he left and started his own - and thus was forever "mad" at Thomas Charles and Russell. You may remember Thomas Charles was Franklin, Elmer and Marshall's father. Russell was the WWI machine gunner that was wounded in the Argonne Forest. This separation meant - that even though the three sons lived into the 1990's - and lived nearby - I never met them.
Another family business squabble - this time between my Grandfather and his mother - after my great-grandfather died - caused ill-feelings between my Grandfather and his mother's family (all of whom, I met only once at a family reunion, are very nice people.) So those distant family members were "lost to me" while growing up.
My Grandfather had three sisters - between them, they had 4 children. Aunt Ann was childless, my (great) Aunt Marian had two sons and a daughter and my Aunt Mary had a son named Pat (who had Down's Syndrome). Pat was a sweet, but big and gruff (6' 2" 280 pounds) guy that seemed to behave in an unpredictable manner that was off-putting to me as a young boy. I have since learned better. Marian's children might have been in the social circle except...
...she worked with (and unfortunately, for) my Grandfather, Harry, as the bookkeeper in the family business - and one day, the day to day tensions of working together - spilled over and unkind words were spoken - and my Aunt Marion walked out to never return.
I recently found a letter, written by my Grandmother on April 26, 1967 to my "honorary Aunt Bea" that made me cringe -
Thursday, August 15, 2013
'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far...and Grace will lead me home.
Last Wednesday, I attended the graveside funeral of my sister-in-law's grandmother. I did not know her very well - but she was always very nice to me - and my brother and his daughter seemed to want me there.
It was a bright and sunny day - so I went a little early to walk the grounds and to reflect - I wandered through the fields and found a stone with the following on it - and thought, no matter what you "believe," you can't argue with the point being made:
- Dr. James Alan - 1928
During the service, someone stood up and recited a poem - one that struck a cord deep within me - with the "family tree" efforts I have been doing - I've often typed someone's name, their birth date and the date they passed away separated by a dash, "-"
The poem by Linda Ellis, is simply titled, "The Dash Poem" and goes like this:
Also during the service - a young woman with a beautiful voice sang "Amazing Grace," the favorite song of Naomi, the woman that passed away.
I found the stanza:
...repeating in my head as I walked alone, back to my car and on the drive home, all the while thinking about my "dash."
Rest in Peace Naomi - your dash was well-spent - so many spoke highly of you when we all went to say "Good Bye."
One Solitary Life
He was born in an obscure village
The child of a peasant woman
He grew up in another obscure village
Where he worked in a carpenter shop
Until he was thirty
He never wrote a book
He never held an office
He never went to college
He never visited a big city
He never traveled more than two hundred miles
From the place where he was born
He did none of the things
Usually associated with greatness
He had no credentials but himself
He was only thirty three
His friends ran away
One of them denied him
He was turned over to his enemies
And went through the mockery of a trial
He was nailed to a cross between two thieves
While dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing
The only property he had on earth
When he was dead
He was laid in a borrowed grave
Through the pity of a friend
Nineteen centuries have come and gone
And today Jesus is the central figure of the human race
And the leader of mankind's progress
All the armies that have ever marched
All the navies that have ever sailed
All the parliaments that have ever sat
All the kings that ever reigned put together
Have not affected the life of mankind on earth
As powerfully as that one solitary life.
- Dr. James Alan - 1928
During the service, someone stood up and recited a poem - one that struck a cord deep within me - with the "family tree" efforts I have been doing - I've often typed someone's name, their birth date and the date they passed away separated by a dash, "-"
The poem by Linda Ellis, is simply titled, "The Dash Poem" and goes like this:
I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning to the end
He noted that first came the date of her birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years
For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved her
Know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not how much we own;
The cars, the house, the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.
So think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left,
That can still be rearranged.
If we could just slow down enough
To consider what’s true and real
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.
And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we’ve never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.
So, when your eulogy is being read
With your life’s actions to rehash
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?
Also during the service - a young woman with a beautiful voice sang "Amazing Grace," the favorite song of Naomi, the woman that passed away.
I found the stanza:
Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far
and Grace will lead me home.
...repeating in my head as I walked alone, back to my car and on the drive home, all the while thinking about my "dash."
Rest in Peace Naomi - your dash was well-spent - so many spoke highly of you when we all went to say "Good Bye."
First Cousin - 3x Removed - Part Three (and last for now)
The man that found Marshall's sailor cap mailed it to me - and I am thrilled beyond words to have it in my hand. A 95 year old family heirloom, reunited with it's family. I found yet another mysterious address in the cap headband. I will go bald pulling my hair out to figure out what "the story of the hat" really is...
I found this in Franklin's notes and diary, my notes in []:
Marshall Mousley Born: June 10, 1900 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania [- Died 1991.]
Enlisted in the Navy at the outbreak of World War 1 and served at Cape May Barracks, U.S. Naval Home and on the USS Sappho.
After the war was in the Merchant Marine on vessels trading with France, Italy, the Adriatic, Mexican Gulf, and the Pacific. He was in Livorno, Italy with his brother [Elmer], Uncle [Harry McIlvaine], and his cousins Howard and Horace McIlvaine, Charles West, and Danny [Daniel Webster] Bennett at the time the Black Shirts, led by Benito Mussolini, were battling the Reds [Communist circa 1921.] They were all in port at the same time but on different vessels.
Marshall was aboard the "U.S.S. George G. Henry" when that tanker burned in France. [It had been hit by a torpedo from a German U-Boat with several men killed.] He was the Assistant Group Engineer on the Laid Up Fleet in James River, VA. Engineer on "West Ira" bound for China but was injured in New Orleans and left the vessel.
He later entered business with his father [Thomas Charles] in charge of Howard Street Foundry [believed to be sometime just before 1930, the year Thomas Charles retired.] Sold interest in foundry in 1946 and retired [at age 46].
In 1950, organized the "Circle Realty Company."
Member of American Legion; P.O.S.A [Patriotic Order Sons of America - they maintain the cemetery near the Thomas-Neely House in Washington Crossing, PA]; 32 degree Mason [my g-grandfather, Harry Davis Mousley was also a Mason], member of Frankford Lodge No. 892; Lulu Shine, Philadelphia; Benjamin Franklin Consistory (Scottish Rite); and the Northeast Shrine Club.
He married in 1936 and had no children.
Iggy's Research Notes:
Franklin's notes and diary stop in 1951 although Franklin lived to a ripe old age and died in the early 1990s, also childless.
The Cape May Barracks was a Navy "boot camp" established for the training of newly enlisted men in an "old wooden, resort town hotel." The facility was later handed over to the US Coast Guard.
The United States Naval Asylum opened in 1831 on the east bank of the Schuylkill just above Gray's Ferry. It functioned as a retirement home for naval officers and housed the government Naval School before the founding of the United States Naval Academy in 1845. In 1879, the Asylum became known as the U.S. Naval Home. Under the command of the Philadelphia Naval Yard Commandant, it was in operation until the 1970s.
The first USS Sappho (SP-1427) was a United States Navy ferry transport in commission from 1918 to 1919.
Sappho was built in 1886 as a wooden-hulled commercial ferry steamer SS Sappho at Bath, Maine, by New England Shipbuilding Company. The U.S. Navy acquired her from her owner, William C. Sproul of Chester, Pennsylvania, for World War I service on 6 August 1918 and commissioned her on 20 August 1918 as USS Sappho.
Sappho was assigned to the 4th Naval District for local transport duty, providing transportation between the Philadelphia Navy Yard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and nearby ports in New York and New Jersey.
Just five days after Sappho was commissioned, SS Delaware accidentally rammed her on 25 August 1918. Repairs were complete by 20 October 1918, allowing Sappho to resume transport service. During this time of repair, I believe Marshall went to France and back on on the "Anna C. Moore" - The "Anna C. Moore" was sunk off the coast of England by a German U-boat during WWII.
Sappho was decommissioned at Philadelphia on 18 February 1919, and returned to her owner the same day. Her Navy crew was returned to the Philadelphia Navy Yard by the tug USS Triton (YT-10).
Marshall was discharged on 19 February 1919 a day after the USS Sappho was decommissioned.
The USS Ohio was placed in reserve in the Philadelphia Naval Yard in mid-January, 1919 and later decommissioned in 1922). Marshall may have "picked up" the cap sometime during this period and may or may not have actually served on board. Franklin's diary is remarkably detailed, but does not mention the USS Ohio at all.
The "West Ira" was also later sunk by a German U-Boat during WWII in the Caribbean Sea.
I wonder what Marshall thought of German torpedoes...
I found this in Franklin's notes and diary, my notes in []:
Marshall Mousley Born: June 10, 1900 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania [- Died 1991.]
Enlisted in the Navy at the outbreak of World War 1 and served at Cape May Barracks, U.S. Naval Home and on the USS Sappho.
After the war was in the Merchant Marine on vessels trading with France, Italy, the Adriatic, Mexican Gulf, and the Pacific. He was in Livorno, Italy with his brother [Elmer], Uncle [Harry McIlvaine], and his cousins Howard and Horace McIlvaine, Charles West, and Danny [Daniel Webster] Bennett at the time the Black Shirts, led by Benito Mussolini, were battling the Reds [Communist circa 1921.] They were all in port at the same time but on different vessels.
Marshall was aboard the "U.S.S. George G. Henry" when that tanker burned in France. [It had been hit by a torpedo from a German U-Boat with several men killed.] He was the Assistant Group Engineer on the Laid Up Fleet in James River, VA. Engineer on "West Ira" bound for China but was injured in New Orleans and left the vessel.
He later entered business with his father [Thomas Charles] in charge of Howard Street Foundry [believed to be sometime just before 1930, the year Thomas Charles retired.] Sold interest in foundry in 1946 and retired [at age 46].
In 1950, organized the "Circle Realty Company."
Member of American Legion; P.O.S.A [Patriotic Order Sons of America - they maintain the cemetery near the Thomas-Neely House in Washington Crossing, PA]; 32 degree Mason [my g-grandfather, Harry Davis Mousley was also a Mason], member of Frankford Lodge No. 892; Lulu Shine, Philadelphia; Benjamin Franklin Consistory (Scottish Rite); and the Northeast Shrine Club.
He married in 1936 and had no children.
Iggy's Research Notes:
Franklin's notes and diary stop in 1951 although Franklin lived to a ripe old age and died in the early 1990s, also childless.
The Cape May Barracks was a Navy "boot camp" established for the training of newly enlisted men in an "old wooden, resort town hotel." The facility was later handed over to the US Coast Guard.
The United States Naval Asylum opened in 1831 on the east bank of the Schuylkill just above Gray's Ferry. It functioned as a retirement home for naval officers and housed the government Naval School before the founding of the United States Naval Academy in 1845. In 1879, the Asylum became known as the U.S. Naval Home. Under the command of the Philadelphia Naval Yard Commandant, it was in operation until the 1970s.
The first USS Sappho (SP-1427) was a United States Navy ferry transport in commission from 1918 to 1919.
Sappho was built in 1886 as a wooden-hulled commercial ferry steamer SS Sappho at Bath, Maine, by New England Shipbuilding Company. The U.S. Navy acquired her from her owner, William C. Sproul of Chester, Pennsylvania, for World War I service on 6 August 1918 and commissioned her on 20 August 1918 as USS Sappho.
Sappho was assigned to the 4th Naval District for local transport duty, providing transportation between the Philadelphia Navy Yard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and nearby ports in New York and New Jersey.
Just five days after Sappho was commissioned, SS Delaware accidentally rammed her on 25 August 1918. Repairs were complete by 20 October 1918, allowing Sappho to resume transport service. During this time of repair, I believe Marshall went to France and back on on the "Anna C. Moore" - The "Anna C. Moore" was sunk off the coast of England by a German U-boat during WWII.
Sappho was decommissioned at Philadelphia on 18 February 1919, and returned to her owner the same day. Her Navy crew was returned to the Philadelphia Navy Yard by the tug USS Triton (YT-10).
Marshall was discharged on 19 February 1919 a day after the USS Sappho was decommissioned.
The USS Ohio was placed in reserve in the Philadelphia Naval Yard in mid-January, 1919 and later decommissioned in 1922). Marshall may have "picked up" the cap sometime during this period and may or may not have actually served on board. Franklin's diary is remarkably detailed, but does not mention the USS Ohio at all.
The "West Ira" was also later sunk by a German U-Boat during WWII in the Caribbean Sea.
I wonder what Marshall thought of German torpedoes...
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