A Memory by Janice Andrade

A Memory by Janice Andrade

In the year 2002, my siblings and I, along with a picture of our mother and father, boarded the Wine Train for a very pleasant afternoon adventure. It had been about six months since our mother passed away after suffering from elder dementia for several years. Our dad had left us in early 1994. Allan was 93 and a half when he died and mom was 95. The siblings in charge of the estate had decided the Wine Train was a good place to finalize the estate and have a good time in the process.

We celebrated the beautiful sunny day with a wonderful lunch and champagne. What better way to travel up and down the valley where my parents and grandparents had settled and raised their children? My maternal grandparents had built the cottages at the end of Darms Lane in the late 1930s. We had many a family reunion there. My parents raised chickens and prunes and seven children on El Centro Avenue, where we had more family reunions. The house still stands.

We thank the Wine Train personnel for making that day a joyous one. We had a good time and felt the presence of our parents in the process.