May 3, 1965 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky where even though we’re churchgoers who don’t believe in gambling, we watch the Kentucky Derby. Even Aunt Love. I’m not sure, but I think maybe Aunt Love would put a bet down on a horse if she got half a chance. Just in the Derby, mind you. But still, that …
Yum! Banana Croquettes!
April 25, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky. It’s Monday. A quiet day at school. All the teachers wanted to talk about was finals and that we better study. I do study. Or at least I will before the tests. Didn’t have much time for studying this weekend. We had a dinner at church Sunday. That meant I …
The Legend of the Dogwood
April 20, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky. I like April. Do you like April? You can count how much more there is of school by weeks instead of months. You can forget about coats most of the time. You can see everything turn green. You can play out in the rain because sometimes it just showers down …
Sunrise in Hollyhill
April 13, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky. Not a lot to report today. Well, Dad says every day holds its own special blessings. Didn’t the sun come up today, he’ll ask me. If I say of course it did, he’ll tell me that some things shouldn’t be taken for granted. That the sunrise every morning is blessing. …
True Fans Hate Seeing their Teams Lose
April 6, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky. Do you like basketball? We’re big basketball fans at our house. Well, all except Tabitha who thinks watching boys bounce balls up and down a gym floor is about as boring as watching paint dry. I think she’s crazy. Basketball is THE sport to watch. In fact, I’m teaching Stephen …
Spring Break – Time to Read!
March 30, 1966 Jocie Brooke here excited to be reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky because it’s SPRING BREAK!! No school for a whole week. We almost had to go to school on Monday and Tuesday, but then the Legislature said we didn’t have to make up all our snow days. So the superintendent just tacked on a few extra days to …
You Can’t Roller Skate in a Buffalo Herd
March 23, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky where not much happens in March. That’s for sure. But it is spring and Miss Sally’s chickens are getting cute little feathers and it’s warm enough for me to ride my bicycle. Leigh and I have even been digging up a new flower bed. She wants to plant tulips. She …
Did You Ever Buy a Box of Baby Chicks?
March 1, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky. I’m out in Holly County today reporting from Miss Sally’s farm. To be exact, and Dad says a good reporter should be exact, I’m reporting from Miss Sally’s chicken house. Baby chicks are cheeping all around me. Miss Sally just got one hundred baby chickens in a box at the …
Floating on Clouds
February 23, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill. Not much happening around here. The snow melted. We went back to school. I guess I’m glad. Nobody wants to go to school all summer. Better to just get it over with in the winter. And school’s not all that bad. One of those necessary things and I like learning stuff. …
Valentines and Cardinals
February 14, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky on Valentine’s Day. Not that Valentine’s Day means much to me because I don’t have a boyfriend. Thank goodness. Boys are nothing but trouble. My girlfriends are always liking this or that boy and then something happens and there’s tears and gripes. But you have to be careful not to …