GRANDMA'S LAMENT
by Kathie Nelson (March 9, 1967)
Alberta is bright
As stories do unfoldâ
This one to a grandchild,
By a grandmother is told.
The grandma gently rocks
In her comfortable chair,
Trying to mix her words
With the fresh country air.
As she begins her story
We will listen, too,
"The life of your grandfather
Was a hard one to live through.
The wrong way to begin it,
Oh, what shall I do?
I think I know the problem,
We'll try method number two."
The child patiently waits
As Grandma gets the photo,
We, too will waitâ
For that is our motto.
Here comes the album
With Grandma behind it.
"What took so long, Grandma?"
"Well, I couldn't find it."
"Sorry to keep you waiting,
Now on with the story,
April twenty-second
Was that day of glory.
At Partridge Hill,
Alberta In the year 1902,
Farm people from Ontario
Who found the west, too.
His ancestors travelled
Across the nation,
They lived in Ontario
Long before Confederation.
But they moved west
As other families did,
And for the land
They began to bid.
Your grandfather was
A young man of our nation,
He operated a steam tractor
Fifty years after Confederation.
I became his wife
In 1925,
And in purebreds
He began to specialize.
He raised purebred Cattle and swine,
Holstein and Yorkshire
Were popular at that time.
His registered seed grain
Was of very high value,
He won many certificates,
That I must tell you.
Certificates for barley
And many other grains,
I only wish Grandpa
Could grow seed again.
St. Paul Agricultural Society
Of which Grandpa was a member,
Awarded him certificates
Many a September.
Gladstone Ure Horton
Was your Grandpa's name.
We all called him "Grandpa"
Just the same.
The School Division Of St. Paul,
Kept Grandpa busy
Many a fall.
He was a member
And it was his plan,
To promote school centralization
With a horse-drawn van.
He was a member Of a delegation,
He travelled to Ottawa
Across our nation.
When in 1945
He promoted completion,
Of a C.N.R. railroad
Across our nation.
The railroad would stretch
From Frenchman's Butte,
To our Heinsburg
So we wouldn't be mute."
"Grandma, Grandma,
What does mute mean?"
"I mean they'd be heard
As well as seen."
"Let us continue
On with the tale,
For in my mind
It is getting stale.
Your Grandpa was a member
Of a Grain Growers' delegation,
He travelled to conventions
All over our nation.
I can remember
Winnipeg and Calgary,
Where he met
Many a Joe and Jerry.
He always had the interest
Of the public at heart,
And did his utmost To make a start.
And satisfy their demands.
He died in April,
Of '62, and with him
Our hearts are still full.
Those who knew him
Were greatly shocked,
At his early death
Not one person mocked.
Do not forget
What I have told you,
For it may, someday
Come in handy, too."
As Grandma ends her story
A tear or two will fall,
For he was her husband
After all . . .
The sun is slowly setting
In a world of crimson,
Rising to a nation
We can get chums in.
Chums of Chinese,
Chums of Dutch,
No matter what nationality
We like them very much.
Our nation of Canada
Would never be complete,
Without the nationalities
We yearly receive.
The people of Canada
Are proud of their nation,
As they celebrate
Their Confederation.
Let us all celebrate
And happy be,
Strong and proud
Of our unity.
