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Texas Sabbatical

Shortly after Elaine arrived on the scene, my father took a sabbatical leave
and the entire family moved to Austin, Texas. The United States was deeply
involved in fighting World War II. There was a perceived danger from German
submarines if we took a ship, so we flew from San Juan to New York City.
Edda had just turned five, I was three, but within a few months of being four,
and Elaine was a few months old. It was our first experience with air flight,
and it was very exciting. At the airport in San Juan, I saw a hot dog stand
and pestered my folks for one until they relented. I lived to regret that
impulsive decision as, not long into the flight, the hot dog and the air
pockets created quite a storm within me. I was sick while everyone else was
served a delicious rice and beans meal.

While in New York, we visited some of our maternal grandfather’s relatives.
My mother’s father was originally from Italy via New York City, and some of
his relatives lived in a downtown area where homes opened up right onto the
street. We were introduced to a most refreshing soft drink, the grape-flavored
“Old Colony”. Edda and I would dash over to the corner store to indulge in
this new-to-us refreshment. After a nice visit with the family, we took in the
usual tourist sights in New York, to include the Bronx Zoo, where we saw, for
the first time, such animals as bears, giraffes, lions, tigers, hippos, apes,
elephants and camels, among other animals.

We swung through the northeast and visited Niagara Falls and Canada.
Besides experiencing the majestic falls, we also saw pink flamingos
delicately balanced on one leg and saw marvelous gardens. We traveled
through some of the eastern part of the South and visited many different
places.

From somewhere in the East, we boarded a train and chugged across the
country to visit our father's brother in the upper Midwest. Our uncle had a
beautiful “camp” for children, with a main lodge, a lake and woods. I learned
to play croquet and to paddle a canoe. We had a grand time. The only
negative experience was when I encountered a girl, maybe a year or so older
than I was, blocking my path on the stairs leading to the bedrooms and
would not let me by to go to the bathroom. I was so angry and frustrated I
did not know what to do! I did not know that people were allowed to behave
like this. It was said that our uncle ate raw onions and they made him “climb
the walls”. I just could not picture him climbing the outside of the building.

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