Aint Kathurn, Rhett and Drug Store

I always looked forward to those phone calls! "Sweetie! This is your Aint Kathurn calling all the way from Nashvul!" Yep, one of my Grandmother's sisters, Aunt Katherine calling me from Nashville, Tennessee.

My Grandmother had lots of brothers and sisters. We were never sure exactly how many - but there were at least a total of 10 or 12 of them. The list in the family bible shows three question marks that everyone thinks were babies who died very early.

But this is all about Aunt Katherine, her husband Curtis and their only child - a stray dog they adopted and named Drug Store!

If ever a person could 'be' a color it was Aunt Katherine. Imagine RED. Deep, dark, 1940's red with a little black mixed in to make it deeper. Flashy, sparkling, blinding, screaming R E D! In her 80's she was still bragging about her 'cute figure' and wonderful legs. And she was still wearing her short-shorts in her 80's, too! And since Uncle Curtis died 20 year before her, she had 'several' boyfriends to court her and keep her company. But she never would consider getting married again. She was worried that they were just after her money!

And Uncle Curtis - the only way to describe him is Rhett Butler. No, not a bit like Clark Gable. But he was a dead ringer for Rhett Butler! He not only had the look - but the swagger and that attitude, too! And, boy, did he know that he was good lookin'. I loved going out to dinner with them. Uncle Curtis would tease Aunt Katherine about how all the women were jealous of her getting to be with him! He was totally devoted to Aunt Katherine. They just fit together like a pair of spoons!

These two were very loving, giving people. They tried for years to have children with no success. They would borrow the children of relatives during summer vacations, but it just wasn't the same as having your own. Well, they found a starving stray dog behind the local pharmacy - took him home - and named him Drug Store! That dog had the best life you could imagine. He was bathed, brushed, loved and pampered. When it was meal time, whatever they were eating, Drug Store was eating. He could understand anything you said to him. If you told him to go get a blanket, he'd bring a blanket. Ask for a ball, you got a ball. You could name any of his toys and he'd bring the right one. Towel, brush, bear, shoes, slippers, pillow . . . he knew it all!

I look forward to seeing them again some day - Aint Kathurn, Rhett and Drug Store!