Three generations of family gathered at our house in 1998 for a Florida Christmas. Two Daltons came from Chicago, Illinois; two Longeneckers from Pennsylvania, and a bunch of Jacksonville aunts, uncles and cousins joined the group at our house in Killarney Shores twenty-seven years ago.

The two ladies from the Keystone State, both eighty years old, endured the inconvenience of security clearance at the airport in Philadelphia and then made the two-and a half hour plane trip to Jacksonville International Airport. Mother Longenecker loved citrus from Florida and was thrilled with oranges from Florida when we came to visit Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, at least once a year. But this time, Mother and Aunt Ruthie brought meat from Lancaster County.

Here, Aunt Ruthie is inspecting the cube-shaped box containing sweet bologna in its casing, two pounds of chipped beef, a pig stomach with a package of sausage to make “Dutch Goose” * and ham loaf.

Time to catch up, to visit – Mother and grand nieces, Heidi and Crista, and our son-in-law Joe, chat in our living room. Aunt Ruthie joins them later. (Grandchildren did not appear until 2003.)

One end of the table at Christmas dinner: I see a vegetable, probably green beans and also cranberry salad.  * Ham loaf may have been the main dish – A baked meat dish made with ground pork and ham, spices, and topped with a sugar glaze, not low-calorie but certainly tasty if you like rich food!

* Cleaned pig’s stomach traditionally stuffed with cubed potatoes and loose pork sausage meat seasoned with pepper with finely cut parsley and baked in the oven.it

Both Ruth Longeneckers (same name, same age, houses on the same street) enjoyed the sun: Mother, had the smoothest of skin. She soaks in the sun in the Sunshine State on one of our porch chairs. Aunt Ruthie did the same, her smile broad and open.

The book Aunt Ruthie is holding is titled Living Insight, a book by Dr. Charles Swindoll.

Our son Joel and wife Sarah visited her folks in Virginia that Christmas in 1998, so they were not with us that year. Still, a book with pictures spoke for them. At the time, Joel was a student at Columbia College Chicago, pursuing a graduate degree in book and paper arts. The title of the book Mother is holding reads “Grandma and Aunt Ruthie from Joel and Sarah,” a book amply illustrated with photos.

Both ladies received books. My aunt also received a stuffed gray Schnauzer, just like her dog Fritzie back home!

Gifts flowed between the generations. Grand-daughter Heidi, here the gift-giver, plays the board game Jeopardy with her grandmother.

Then, the game switched to Wheel of Fortune, Mom playing it with my husband Cliff. Some tricky moves, I believe, may be afoot!

There was no tree at Christmas in my childhood home, and we didn’t have a television set either. My parents bought a smallish TV set after we children married and left home. After Daddy died, Mother got a somewhat larger screen and loved to play along with Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune contestants. Her grand-daughter Heidi recognized that enjoyment and bought two board games to entertain her–and anyone who cared to join them in the dining room.

In the years after 1998, we made holiday trips to Pennsylvania, where Mother and Aunt Ruthie entertained us as long as they were able. Here is my aunt’s sumptuous table in 2004. I love the circular display of the china cups.

These days, table-scapes are one way I amuse myself, taking a break from the chair behind my computer in my writing studio. Here is the view of my dining room table in 2025.

Gathering photos for this post became a nostalgic experience, a stroll down memory lane. Sometimes I felt at the point of tears as I selected photos, which Cliff photoshopped. (Thank you!) But writing text made me realize what a treasure family relationships are. The two Ruth Longeneckers are gone, but easily remembered.

And the imprint of their lives carries on through four generations.

Gift a copy of my memoir Mennonite Daughter: The Story of a Plain Girl here

Thank you!