Blog number 5

I want to tell you what it was like to be a family of plural wives. It at the time I was living in it was the same as normal but now as I look back it was really different. The age I really remember it being was when I was in the fifth grade and I was living in the basement of my uncle who was the leader of the group in what is now called Colorado City and I remember my uncle taking one of his step daughters to wife and I was so shocked because she was only two years older then I and I was only 11years old. I knew then that I didn't like that idea because I was not ready for being a mother. I was still playing with dolls. This was in latter part of 1953. The reason I remember this year is because it was that summer when they had the BIG Reade in Short Creek Arizona,We were living there at the time on the Reade.
We lived in a basement house which only had one bedroom and a kitchen, living room , we as kids slept out side in old cars that had the seats taken out with mattresses in there , that is if we were lucky. One night about midnight we were woken up with sirens coming from both ends of town. Where the police were coming to take over the town. I remember my brother Sherrell was out in one of the cars and this scared him so bad he jumped up and latterly flew in too my parents bedroom. I was sleeping on a mattress outside on the ground and that scared me so bad also. I can remember hearing somebody running down the street calling for everybody to head for the hills. I remember Mom and Esther, my oldest sister trying to match their kids up as twins because her older kids and moms youngest ones were the same age. That sounds pretty funny but my sister was married when she was only 14 years old. This is the part of plural marriage that I didn't like. This makes it so you don't have a chance to be children especially the girls. Esthers first two children died shortly after they were born because he body was not ready to carry babies. My sister, Esther had 14 children. She was not able to have fun in her life. She couldn't play with dolls or go out and play ball or any thing like that she was taking care of her little babies and cleaning house. I have always felt sorry for her. This is why I am really glad I chose the way of life did.Well I better get on with my story. These are a few things I remember of the Reade. When the police came into Short Creek they took over the school building and fixed to they could take us down there and fix us meals but mom would not take us down there we stayed home and ate.