Mom's work and play

My mother, Mataley Rogers, had a job almost all her life.  At least all the life after she moved to St. Louis where my sister and I went to a private school.  My mother became the technician for creating slide shows for that school.  It was called the Patrons Office.  A lot of the school was funded by contributions of Christian Scientists across the country. Also new students would come after their parents heard about the school (from grades 9-12 there were dormitories for boarding students.)

My mother learned how to use a tape recorder (reel to reel) and help people read scripts that were recorded. These tapes were played in conjunction with a slide show of the school, with a "ping" whenever it was time for the next slide.  She even would splice the tapes using some really lethal stuff, carbon tectra chloride. I really liked the scent, along with gasoline.  I was doomed to become an addict.  Wonder how I got out of that! Perhaps because I also liked the scent of coffee.

Mataley Rogers has on the headphones

Now in 1950 having a mom working full time, meant that my 4 year old sister, and myself at 8, needed to have someone care for us after school.  I don't really remember how that happened. Perhaps when we were very young, Mother got off early after school to be with us.

I do know I read every book* in the elementary/middle school library, and started on the high school library during the summers. (*Books of interest to me, of course!)

And as soon as I was 12, I helped out in Mom's office, like stapling papers and cutting things out.  I later learned how to work the old switchboard.  I was so proud of myself earning $0.40 per hour on my own.

Not myself or my mother, but that's the kind of switchboard I used on my first job!

But this is about my mother's life.

In the 50's a woman was the housewife in a family.  But since mother was at work all day, she did everything when she got home which the other wives had all day to do.  Dad would come home from work and sit in a rocking chair and read the paper until dinner was cooked...by my mother of course.

And as very young daughters we weren't much help.  I could iron handkerchiefs and pillowcases.  I doubt that my sis could do much work of help for quite a while.  And eventually I learned how to iron my dad's shirts....and of course my own clothes.  I don't remember doing any of my mother or sister's clothes.

At one point I remember my mother driving a station wagon to pick up other children (like a school bus) mornings and evenings.

 She also spent at least one year as a girl scout leader, or maybe a brownie-then a girl scout leader.  She was amazing, to have accomplished all of that.

After I took Home Economics in 8th grade I was able to bake cakes and make a few dinners which gave my mother a break.  I even learned how to sew some of my own clothes on her sewing machine.

For play, I think she liked movies.  And she also liked to read, mostly when she was in bed.  We would listen to music on the radio when we were home, and when we got our first black and white TV, it was great to be able to see Howdy Doody and The Lone Ranger. Oops, that is what us kids did!  The Walt Disney show every Sunday was popular with all the family.

Mataley Rogers posing with an antique train at a museum

Mother grew up in her grandmother's household, and her grandfather was the conductor of a train in Texas, so she was interested in the train from Texas at the museum .

I think my mother also liked to spend time in the car going for drives on Sundays.  She especially liked the Jewel Box botanical garden in Forest Park, in St. Louis, MO.

And another Forest Park favorite for every summer as I was growing up.  One night a week, Mother would take my sister and myself to sit in the free seats at the Muni, or the Operetta, as we called it.  Wonderful musical performances all summer long.  No wonder I loved Gershwin, Rodgers and Hamerstein, and all those show tunes!

It wasn't until I looked for a photo of it, that I learned this is the oldest outdoor stage in the US, since 1917.

A big salute to my mother.  I enjoyed (mostly) her opinions, as well as her directing all the traffic and decisions of the family. She was a very strong woman.  Her religion was her daily practice.  She never voted, however, saying each election that she and my father would cancel each other out.

Another week for Sepia Saturday, with the meme of Work and Play.


Go to their site to see other folks' posts (click on links with their names).


Today's Quote: (Look, I'm back adding a favorite saying here again!)

There is nothing love cannot face; there is no limit to its faith, its hope, and its endurance. St. Paul