Grandpa Samson: Part 5--A Gentle Man, But Practical

My grandfather was much like my father in personality. He was quiet, gentle, and soft-spoken. He had a wonderful sense of humor, and loved the outdoors and animals. He loved his family--his immediate family, his extended family, and even his in-laws. I never heard my grandfather raised his voice except at his youngest brother, Nick. Uncle Nick was a bit of a character, cheap as cheap could be. (When his wife Josephine was alive, she had to take the remainders of the bars of used bath soap and melt them down, then let them harden into a larger, usable bar of soap. Nick and Josephine reused coffee grounds. Uncle George Kraeger once commented that he thought Josephine’s coffee was fine, until someone informed him that he was actually drinking tea.)

When I was in high school, I always went to my grandparents’ home after school for dinner. On this particular night, we were just finishing our dinner when the back door opened and in stomped Uncle Nick, my grandfather’s youngest brother. Uncle Nick was yelling, “They’ve torn down the coal bin!” He flung his gloves, hat, and scarf on the hallway floor, began crying, and kept yelling about the coal bin. Here was the problem with the coal bin: Uncle Nick’s sister Anna Kraeger’s grandson, Gerald, and his wife Corinne lived with Uncle Nick and helped take care of him. Corinne needed space in the basement of their two-flat home to hang a clothes line since Uncle Nick didn’t have a dryer (surprise). Never mind that the coal bin was empty and probably hadn’t been used in 20 or 30 years. But Uncle Nick was extremely upset that Gerald had torn out the coal bin.

Grandpa calmly got up from the table, went out to the hallway, grabbed Uncle Nick by the elbow, and pulled him into the den. It was then that I heard my grandfather raise his voice, the ONLY time. He must have gone into “older-brother mode.” Grandpa shouted, “Nick, you silly old fool! You haven’t used that coal bin in 25 years and you never WILL use it again! What is the matter with you? I’ll tell you what’s the matter, you’re an old fool. A silly old fool!” He went on to tell Uncle Nick that he should be grateful that he had a nice young couple--his sister’s grandson and wife--who were willing to put up with all of Uncle Nick’s nonsense and take damn good care of him. Uncle Nick was speechless. He must have been in shock (he didn’t even ask if there was any dinner left). Uncle Donald got involved (after dinner), got the two brothers calmed down, and took Uncle Nick back home (he had walked from his house a mile or so away). Grandma and I finished our dinner and washed up the dishes.