IF WALLS COULD TALK: “Hello!” but who said it, the parrot or Bertha?

by Katie Ouilette

Well, faithful readers, WALLS and Katie have a memory to share. I saw a beautiful hen that had been purchased and shipped to California.

Oh, it was a beauty and was told about on TV a few night ago. That is when a memory came to mind. The parrot was in Bob Hall’s Barber Shop on Water Street, in Skowhegan, and it would say ‘hello’ to folks when they entered for a hair cut, or just when folks were going by. Yes, it was beautiful, too, with feathers in different colors, like the one shipped to California. In fact, when students from Skowhegan Junior High or High School would pass by, Bob’s parent would say ‘hello’ and we would reply. Actually, sometimes we would say “Hello, Bertha!” and it would really be Bertha’s saying ‘Hello” or sometimes it would be the parrot, as you may remember, faithful readers, that the parrot and Bertha did sound the same with their ‘hello’. Ah, yes, memories of yesteryear! Woops! I neglected to tell you that the hen reached California, but someone paid $500 for it but the hen was DOA..Dead on Arrival. A memory that whoever spent $500 for hen and shipping won’t forget!

Yes, too, Memorial Day is past and many of you faithful readers had happy and sad memories of relatives and friends, as time has taken them from us. I know….I know that placing flowers at the ‘resting place’ in our various cemeteries has shown love and respect, but this year, I have chosen to show respect for Sherwood Mullen’s late wife, Nancy, by not placing flowers on any of the families’ graves. Why? Well, Nancy and I used to go to all the cemeteries where we knew our forebears were buried. Yes, we discovered Michael and Anatoli Dumont’s graves at the Skowhegan Catholic Cemetery, as we knew that their farm was all of what is now East Maple Street, in Skowhegan. In fact, because Michael and Anatolie used to have a priest from Waterville come to their house to say Mass for ‘believers who migrated from Canada and, as a result, eventually the parishioners had enough money to purchase the, once, Methodist Church that stood on Water Street. Yes, Notre Dame d’Lourdes Church was founded by Michael and Anatalie Dumont. Nancy and I would also put flowers on our family members’ graves at Southside Cemetery and we discovered Grampa Olin Valliere’s grandfather’s grave, Joseph Frederic, in Starks.

Yes, faithful readers, we pray that all relatives are in God’s keeping.