Greetings and welcome to activities at Syl-View. We find that one of life’s simple pleasures is celebrating, and we celebrated winter.

We recalled the winters of yesteryear and many remembered warming by the fireplace and having to bring in wood for the fireplace and stove. Several told of wood stoves in the schoolroom and community stores. The men said they enjoyed sitting around the stove at the country store talking about the weather and their crops and of course their ailments. The women remembered piecing quilts and quilting the long winter days. Several recalled the quilting frames that hung from the ceiling. When neighbors came to quilt it was a time of fellowship and fun. The mention of quilts brought memories of having a number of quilts on the bed in order to stay warm but they were heavy.

Raymond Jackson spoke of using a crosscut saw to cut firewood while others remembered splitting wood for the stove and stacking it up to dry. Don Baxter was the lone city boy who had no memory of building fires in the early morning. He never had to milk the cows or feed the livestock but most of the men and women shared memories of the cold, cold winter days of years past. The talk of fatback frying in the morning, their mother’s biscuits with fresh butter and homemade jelly were cherished memories.

The group enjoyed ice cream cones as well as the step back in time down memory lane. We had bubble gum day and the staff had a contest to see who could blow the biggest bubble. There was fun and laughter, and we found that laughter truly is the best medicine. So thank you for allowing us to share some of the fun happenings at Syl-View with you.