Written by Laurie Rane
To this day Norma, who was born in 1916, still remembers the address of her mother’s old home. She says, “Mom lived in a big yellow farmhouse in Logan, Utah. I used to climb over the stile to watch the uncles milk the cows.” On 342 Canyon Road, the family had a stream and a big barn and mill. In Norma’s house, 1261 Yale Avenue, they had a summer kitchen, and an indoor bathroom! In the same town lived her Aunt Mary. Norma often relates, “The only thing I didn't like about going over to Aunt Mary’s house, was the outhouse! We all hated to have to run across the street to those things, but you could bring a friend with you, because it was a two holer!”
Back when Norma was just a young child, she recalls the visits to her grandmother's house in Logan. Norma has a long-standing and unwavering love for all animals, so she always wanted to visit her Uncle Leo’s horse, Darky, when she went to the house. Darky would ride in all the Logan parades, and Norma loved to sit atop him when Uncle Leo brushed him.
At her Grandma’s house, though, she also remembers her favorite sport of the time, which was of course horseback riding. On the hot summer days, she says, “We’d go racing lickety-split down the canal bank! When I think about it now I get scared to death, but we had so much fun!”
At home, the family had a cat named Mouse Louse. Norma often explains in awe how her father “taught that cat to roll over! He would just spin his arm around and that cat would roll over!” she says. Unsurprisingly, animals have been a source of entertainment and love at every stage of Norma’s life.
