The Hand-Me-Down Fig Tree

In 1912, Wild Bill's maternal grandparents...

Will and Mattie Savage

...married and moved to Oklahoma.

It didn't take them long to move back to

Texas. They returned to the little Northeast town

of Whitesboro and spent the rest of their lives

living in that small town.

Early on, Will planted a fig tree for Mattie. The

fig tree grew and provided figs for the 10 

daughters and 2 sons born to Will and Mattie.

Thirty-five years after Will and Mattie married,
their daughter Jessie (my MIL)  married in 1947.
Later when Jessie and Raymond bought a house,
Will gave them a cutting from the his old fig tree. 

Before Jessie and Raymond sold their house in
2006, Jessie gave her nephew Kent a cutting
from her (now) old fig tree.

Wild Bill finally retired in 2012, exactly 100
years after Will and Mattie married.
Our retirement house is just down the road

from Whitesboro and Cousin Kent brought

us a cutting from his fig tree that year. 

Through the freezing snow and ice of the last

few years, our fig tree cutting has survived

and thrived. Wild Bill will soon need to plant

the little fig tree in the ground as it is now

out-growing its spot on the front patio.

Every time we sit on the patio, I think

of Will and Mattie's fig tree and how it has

been handed down through the generations

to land not far from where Will first

planted the original tree for his Mattie.

I often read about how people move their fig

trees inside for the Winter. I'm not sure if

it's necessary to do that as it does seem that

our little fig tree thrives on the cold weather.

While gazing at our little tree, I often think of

this story Wild Bill told me of his grandpa:

When Wild Bill was a little boy, he was out

in the garden with his Grandpa Will. Mattie 

came out to the yard to hang the wash and

Will stared at her with a grin on his face and

told his grandson what a beautiful woman

his wife was. 

Little Bill said: 

"Oh, that's Nanny...she just looks old!"

and Will laughed and said:

"Son, you're not looking at her with my eyes."

Last Saturday, that little cowboy and I celebrated
our 18th wedding anniversary. I sure hope he still
sees me like Grandpa Will saw his Mattie all those
 years later.

Thanks for dropping by!

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