Who did I choose for my living legend? I picked my wonderful neighbor Iris Walkup! I picked her because I thought it would be interesting to learn how life was for someone two generations ago. I thought life that long ago had to be very different. Trust me, it was extremely different. I really didn’t know much about her until a week ago when I interviewed her. All I really knew was she used to be a teacher, and she moved to Tustin six or seven years ago. I personally learned a lot from my living legend.
Hmmm… let me think of some great things I learned about Iris. Oh yes, one thing I learned was that she had to iron, clean the house on Saturdays, and set the table for meals. Also she had to clean the bed rooms and make beds. Second she had rheumatic fever when she was very little. Rheumatic fever is a sickness. When she had rheumatic fever she didn’t listen a lot and just wasn’t herself. Another thing I learned about Iris is she worked at state parks. She worked there when she was with her dad. Iris’s dad had a full time job at state parks. She also liked historical fiction books. I guess when I think about it, it really doesn’t surprise me that she liked those kinds of books. After all, Iris and her husband Bob are always reading about history and things like that. Finally, I learned she did an after school art program. Iris loved the art program because art was one of her favorite subjects. Iris really surprised me!
What are some similarities between Iris and I? One similarity between us is we both love horse books! Horse books are my favorite books. Iris said she also loved horse books when she was younger. She didn’t say they were her favorite but she did say she loved them! Another similarity is we both did and still do the dishes. We both aren’t bananas about doing the dishes. Lastly we both liked music class! She said she loved music and she still does, I love music. When my radio broke last week I cried! Those are just a few similarities between Iris and I!
Iris and I are also different. One difference is she disliked the majority of her chores. I actually like the majority of my chores. I also don’t have nearly as many jobs as she did. The only have to feed the animals and do the dishes. Another difference between Iris and I is she was in band. She really enjoyed playing music. But I on the other hand have more enjoyment by listening to music than playing it. Iris also wore slacks. I have never worn slacks. To tell you the truth I don’t even know what slacks look like.
I learned a lot from Iris! The first thing I learned from Iris was to believe in the Lord and in the end, life will turn out pretty darn good. Also, if you believe, you will succeed. Don’t believe everything you hear in life. Be strong and never give up. Those are all things Iris taught me and told me when I interviewed her.