THE SAME PLACE BUT A DIFFERENT LIFE
This photo of Harriett and Glenn was in albums found at the Underwood home—and was one I’d never seen. It must have been taken shortly after Robert Hurst died—leaving Harriett a young widow in her early 20s and Glenn only 3. This was a favorite spot for family snapshots—on or near the front steps of “the log house.” Glenn grew up here—with his maternal grandparents and sometimes Aunt Della and Uncle Jack. Life wasn’t easy—Harriett went to work at Miller’s Department Store and Glenn said he would wake up nights worrying that they wouldn’t have enough money for food.
The log house was strangely charming with its black and white logs and the rustic rock pillars beside the steps. When I was 3, we lived there about four years. Over two decades after the photo of Harriett with Glenn, there’s a new snapshot taken in the very same spot –of Harriett with her 4-year-old child—this time a daughter!
Can this be the same woman? She looks so much more relaxed—I love how she is sitting, with one hand on the pillar, her right hand on her knee, and has one leg and foot extended to show off her stylish pump. Gone is the strained solemn expression as she smiles happily. And I seem well aware that I’m her long hoped for daughter, with no worries about having enough food in the house. Things weren’t perfect—but after waiting for a very long time, love has returned to Harriett and the log house.
Seeing a story 