My Grandmother, Mildred Kinsey Adams, grew-up in Campbell, Missouri. She shared the following story with me about her Grandfather Madison Monroe "Tobe" Kinsey: “When Papa left for work in Michigan, Mama wondered if he would ever come back. He stayed in Flint for a little over two years. While there, he only sent money home twice. Once he sent $30.00 and another time he sent $20.00. We had little for Christmas. Sometimes we had nothing except each other. The second Christmas without papa, we awoke to have breakfast as a family and that was our Christmas. It was a nice breakfast and then we had a quiet morning. Then, Grandpa Kinsey arrived mid-morning with a burlap sack over his shoulder, and Grandma Kinsey came with a basket. They brought us a ham, potatoes, eggs and flour. Grandma immediately went to work making biscuits. Grandpa gathered us around. Grandpa Kinsey then told us a joke. If we grandkids laughed at his jokes, we could then stick our hands in his coat pockets and pull out some candy. Grandpa then would regale us with his stories, which he embellished each time he told the story. When we caught him in his exaggeration he would break out in laughter. After many years, he had embellished his stories so much that he forgot what really happened. He would then laugh at himself with a deep belly laugh. Our Christmas gift ended up being the laughter brought to us by Grandpa Kinsey, through his fun stories and his jovial nature. It was truly a treasure beyond any physical gift he could have given us. I have the memory of him. Any other gifts disappeared long, long ago.”
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Kinsey FamilyEd Adams Archives
June 2014
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