June 18, 1951

Box 653

Loma Linda, California

June 18, 1951

Dearest Mother and Daddy,

It was so much fun to call you yesterday. Benton was sweet to let me do it -- even suggested when I said something about getting a card for Daddy -- said it wouldn't cost much more than a nice card anyway. It was good to know that you were at least fairly well.

Your letter came Sabbath, I think it was -- the letter with all the enclosures in it. All those kind words about the good condition of the children must have warmed your hearts. They surely did have a good care while they were with you. We were interested in the letter from Aunt Ruth [my mom's father's younger sister, who was in China at that time] too. I wonder if they know anything about the Korean situation. Anyway, it sounds as if the communists are doing a few good things in Peking -- wonder what it's a blind for.

I'm glad you are keeping check with the doctor. Somehow I don't think that you will have to have surgery, but am glad that Dr. R. would want you to come to Loma Linda for it if it should be necessary. Much as Dr. Zirkle irks me sometimes, I think he is a pretty wonderful surgeon. Probably he wouldn't even irk you -- I'm just ornery. He is really a good doctor, I'm sure. And I would want you to be near us if you had to have anything like that done too.

Benton has been working several nights, which I don't like at all and neither does he. He works tonight, then goes on another case tomorrow afternoon. We are both feeling fine now -- don't know what queer kind of bug must have bit us both, but it seems to be gone now, and we are getting along fine. Right now Benton is making some nice shelves for me in the kitchen. They are for my cookie jars and the canister set and maybe the electric mixer so that I will have more work room on the drain boards by the sink. I really get around pretty well now, though the stool still comes in very handy a lot of the time. I have a wonderful time trying out new things. I have tried quite a few of the recipes in Stirring Passages. I think you have a copy of it too. It was a premium with the Health subscription 8 or 10 years ago. Some of the things we like, and some of them we don't, but we have eaten everything so far anyway, so that is a start.

Last Friday I made my first cake with a recipe -- a chiffon cake from my Betty Crocker cook book -- made it in a tube pan. It turned out pretty well. The texture seemed a bit course, though - don't know whether it was supposed to look like that or not. The icing was too soft. and ran all down on the side. However a while in the refrigerator fixed it, and it tasted good anyway. I'm trying to get into practice so that I can make a birthday cake for Omar [my half-brother, who was in the Air Force at that time] on July 4. I'm having a lot of fun doing it all. Benton did all the cleaning Friday, bless his heart. I'll be glad when I can do all my own work, but it seems as is it takes me so long to do everything. I work and work and work, and don't get very much done at all. But at least I am improving -- can do more all the time without getting quite so tired, so that is something. Of course I might get more done if I wouldn't drop everything and run off with Benton every time he takes the car anywhere, but he says that's what I'm supposed to do! My current task is trying to get the ironing done - have ironed four pairs of his uniform white trousers. The steam iron is just the ticket for that job. I use it a lot and enjoy it more all the time. Incidentally, I think I am also increasingly glad that it is a General Electric. I've ironed 3 or 4 white shirts so far, and Benton seems to think they are all right, so I guess I'll do for a while anyway.

Last evening I climbed the hill behind the house and helped Benton pick the Boysen berries. Then we took some of them to some old maid sister on our streets in the jars that they had brought us some canned fruit in. The neighbors around here are very nice.

Could you do something for us? Dr. Lytton-Smith wanted to see me again, but I don't know quite what to do about getting an appointment because Benton's work is so irregular, and we can't know ahead of time just when we can do things. Do you think you could call the office and explain that Benton does special duty nursing and ask them if they could give us a tentative appointment sometime about the middle of July? It would be a shame for Benton to have to leave a good case or something to go. Maybe they could tentatively give two or three dates. The doctor probably wouldn't need to see me more than five minutes anyway, and perhaps could squeeze me in if he could have some general idea of when we might be there. Anyway, if you could talk to them and feel them out, I surely would appreciate it. Then we would just come when we could. You could leave the bed in the garage made up, and we could just go out there and crawl in as we probably would arrive around midnight or so so as not to travel across the desert in the heat of the day.

Incidentally, do you still have that set of things for decorating cakes and making fancy cookies? Do you remember I got it to give as a wedding present and then decided to keep it? I made some cookies with it for that shower for the Tanquarys right after they were married. If you still have it somewhere and don't need it, I'd like to bring it with me when we come back.

I have written Bekins Van and Storage in San Bernardino to ask about rates for moving the piano. We went to another place, and the rates are according to weight. I think it would be $33 for 600 pounds, and $46 for 1000 pounds. I don't know how much the piano weigh. Do you suppose you could get any information by phone from that end of the line? We have to pay a dime to call San Bernardino here, and of course there is no trucking company in Loma Linda. Perhaps they could give you more definite information when you could give them the measurements. That we couldn't do. It will be wonderful to have the piano here, but I feel sort of selfish taking it away from you.

You should see our beautiful glads. We pick them as soon as they start to bloom so that the sun won't burn them. We have quite a nice bouquet on our table now. They are really lovely. We also have some nice carnations and roses. When I get so that I can work in the yard, I'm going to learn about how to take care of all the flowers and have a wonderful time. There are so many things that I want to do -- I just know there won't be time for them all. It seems as if I keep busy all the time now -- just playing -- haven't done any work yet to amount to anything. I have so much fun all the time. Everything about being married seems to get better all the time -- I'm just like a contented cow or something!

Probably I'll get your letter tomorrow, but think I won't wait to mail this one. We pray for you each day and love you a lot. Do take good share of yourselves.

Love to you both from both of us,

(signed) Lois Ruth and Benton

June 13, 1951

Box 673

Loma Linda, California

June 13, 1951

Dearest Mother and Daddy,

It has been a whole week since I have heard from you -- guess you spoiled us before, and we miss it now. I know we don't deserve to hear any oftener when we didn't write any oftener, but we still miss it and wonder how you are. I just am trusting that no news is good news.

These have been busy days for us this week. Friday I cooked all day and Benton cleaned. I made a chocolate cake with a Pillsbury mix, made a walnut roast, cooked potatoes and green beans. Thursday night we made jello salad -- lemon gelatin with carrots and cabbage in it (incidentally, we didn't like it very well.)

Sabbath morning we went to S. S. [Sabbath School] and church, then decided to go to the Commencement Sermon in Pasadena. We called the girls' dorm to see if there might be some girls there who would like to go -- there were -- one white, the other black. We thought that we were late because we had such a late start, but got there just before the processional started. If I remember it, will put in a program for you to look at. The service was very fine -- Elder Carcich was the speaker, and you have his address in the Medical Evangelist. But probably the most exciting part was seeing everyone afterward -- and just about everyone was there, and of course asked about you folks. Besides many of my classmates, here are some of the people I saw: Elder Carcich, Mrs. Sevrens, Dr. and Mrs. Gilbert and daughter, Echo and Glenn Stevens, Mike and Iola Gaspar, George Smith, Billy Bradford from Hudson days who was graduating from lab technique, Norman and Doris Clapp. The Clapps particularly wanted to be remembered to you. They were quite surprised to meet my husband -- as were many people! We had a lot of fun. I had my crutches, but didn't use them around the auditorium at all -- got pretty tired by the time we started back a block to the car, so used them then. Probably there are a lot of other people I should mention, but can't think of right now. Some of course, you wouldn't know anyway.

Just about five minutes after we arrived home, Cecelia [my dad's first wife's brother's daughter] and her folks arrived -- her mother, father, sister, and aunt. With five of them and two of us and the two girls who had gone with us, we had quite a crowd for supper. It was so late, I hardly knew what to get, but we had quite a meal -- split pea soup, tossed salad, cottage cheese and peaches and pineapple delight. I guess we ate the cake that night too. We had quite a time sleeping all of them, but finally managed. Benton and I tried to sleep on one twin bed, but we don't do so well when so circumscribed -- I get too restless with my legs. However, we got along fairly well, and I guess it didn't hurt us.

Sunday morning Cecelia woke up with a sore throat, and before dinner time had a fever of 102.4˚. That would have been bad enough, but she was supposed to march to get her diploma at 6 o'clock. Finally we figured out that she was having a reaction from a typhoid shot she had had Friday. We called the doctor to see what to do. He said it had to run its course -- could try aspirin to get her fever down, but she shouldn't try to march unless it came down to at least 100. She also had some emperin-codeine and took one of those. She did get the fever down and did march. But by the time her folks found her afterward in the crowd, she was about ready to pass out. We got her home and called the doctor. He said she had not only a violent reaction, but a case of pharyngitis -- would be tonsillitis if she had had tonsils. The poor kid was pretty miserable. She was still sick the next day, but her folks took her back to the White [the White Memorial Hospital, in Los Angeles]. Don't know how she is now.

Naturally I was a bit nervous about having Aunt Mary's ["Aunt Mary" refers to my dad's first wife who had been killed in the Accident] folk here -- didn't know how they would feel about me. However, they were very lovely -- were glad that Benton had someone, and were very sweet to me -- seemed just about like the family by the time they left Monday. They pitched in and helped me a lot -- I didn't wash a dish while they were here. They helped with the meals and set the table, etc. Of course Benton helped a lot too. He is really pretty wonderful. I had quite a time getting used to the idea of having to take the whole responsibility of planning and everything and being hostess, but they were nice people to start in on. I really enjoyed having them, and I think they enjoyed it too.

Benton worked Monday night, and is going to work again tonight 11 to 7. He doesn't like the night work, and I don't like to have him do it, but that seems to be all that there is right now. One never knows how long it will last -- this kind of business is rather uncertain. [My dad worked as a "special duty nurse", which meant that he stayed right by one patient, either in a hospital or at the patient's home -- this was before they had intensive care units.]

This morning we did a huge washing. I didn't count the sheets, but there were at least a dozen and as many towels besides uniforms, pillow slips, wash cloths, dish towels, overalls, pants for me, and miscellaneous things. I put a whole tub full to soak in bleach last night. Benton laughed at me. Things had got a bit dingy looking because he had always washed in such a hurry, and he was quite tickled at my zeal to produce a white washed. He grinned and said he suspected something like that would happen when a woman got into the house. He surely helped me a lot -- hung out all the clothes and starched his own uniforms. We had the lines filled and had to take some things down before we could hang up the rest. It took us about three hours to do it. But this machine is a honey. I just rinse and whirl until the water runs out quite clean. You would love it.

Benton finished paying for the car the other day, and changed it to joint ownership with me. I surely never had a car before -- don't know how to act. It surely was easy to get it! Every day I realize a little more what a lucky girl I am in every way -- to get all these wonderful material things along with a perfect husband is just more than one should even expect.

My steam iron seems more wonderful all the time too. It really comes in handy -- makes me love to iron and press.

All the time I get around a little more easily, though my legs still hurt quite a bit when I use them. But I keep waddling less and less; and though progress is a bit slow, at least it is progress; and that is encouraging.

Benton and I seem to be still getting happier all the time -- haven't had even a hint of an argument yet. I always have my own way, and he says he always has his own way, so I guess there just isn't anything to scrap about.

We are keeping pretty well -- have a nap every afternoon and quite a bit of sleep at night. Yesterday afternoon after my nap I had a doll to play with. Mary Runnels brought her cherub over for me to take care of. I had a little stroller to push her in, and pushed her around outside on the porch and walk. One of the student nurses came over and played with her on the lawn, and the girl in the apartment played with her too, as did her husband and my husband. The baby is really cute -- a little fatty not quite ten months old, but she can pull herself up to standing and almost walk with help. And she love to jabber. Wish I could have one of my own. [See! I WAS really wanted! LOL]

Well, maybe I'll get a letter from you tomorrow, so, will add some then. Remember we love you and pray for you every day. Do take care of yourselves.

Lovingly,

(signed) Lois Ruth and Benton