1974 Back: Oma Meyer, Siegmund, Aunt Elizabeth, Opa Steiner, Aunt Gretel. kneeling: Karolina

Part A

I have no memory of that special occasion. But, I do have little story to tell about your father's literary education at Temple. (grin)

He was taking some type of lit course and was reading one of Kafka's stories (don't recall the name, but it was the one where a man turns into a cockroach). I don't remember the specific assignment but he was to write an essay about the symbolism in the story.

I was a teenager at the time. Your mother and father were visiting in Germantown. He asked if I couldn't help him out with this assignment. I read the instructions and pretty much told him he was on his own because I didn't even understand the assignment. Your father said he didn't understand it either. We went back and forth, heatedly. Someone older, perhaps Oma Meyer, intervened (I think she just wanted her peace and quiet back). They both ganged up on me to PLEASE try it.

Part B

Your father told me to write something, anything at all. I did. I tried to pull some sense together and in the end your father was satisfied with it.

Some days after that your mother and father stopped by again to reveal the final grade. I might be generous if I told you he got an "E". I believe he got an "F". The professor had scrawled some notation on the margins of the paper acknowledging the effort, and something along the lines of it would have helped a great deal in the grade if one sentence had made sense.

Of course, I can't remember accurately what the professor said, but the basic gist of it is there. We all laughed so hard over that. For many years later, I loved repeating the story of my early college education.

We we're pleased that he managed to graduate, even with my help. Perhaps that's why we all look so happy in the picture. :o)

Doug
Well I'll be. Never heard this story before!

Dad received a 'Bachelor of Science Degree' from Temple University, Philadelphia, PA.

His Major: Finance
His Minor: Real Estate

This photo taken in the backyard corner of 601 Marshall Rd, Brookhaven, PA. If you look closely you'll see Mom's garden area in the back".

Deb
I never heard that story either! Thanks for sharing.
Doug, they were standing in front of the composite pile - or in my mind it was always a mountain! I hated taking leftovers out there at night. For some reason there were several pictures taken there....

Doug
Debbie,

That's what I meant - the backyard compost & err....flower spot!

Interesting side story: At one point Mom ordered me to dig a hole and with her help we buried a steel wallocker on this site. Laid horizontally, I suppose it served as a boundary for what she was composting.

Didn't bother me (after I quit complaining and dug the hole), but our neighbors certainly were watching.

Tim Mullins asked me a few days later, while playing basketball, what I/we were doing over there. When I told him, he said (drum roll, please):

"Thought you were burying a body in a casket over there".

No wonder the neighbors probably thought we were kinda weird :)

Peter
Always found it humorus that we had pictures taken in front the compost pile.

I thought Walter and Opa Meyer were part of that digg ...