Random Stories from My Youth – the Valley

We loved exploring the Hondo Valley where my grandparents, Charles & Nina Hughes lived ...

The Valley.  The Hondo Valley was not far from where we lived and we often headed that way to see my Granny & Granddaddy [see the blogs My Grandfather Remembered posted on May 14, 2021 and My Granny posted on June 28, 2021] who moved from Virginia upon my grandfather’s retirement in 1964, and settled near us in the valley at San Patricio, New Mexico.  

Our love affair with the Hondo Valley began when my folks found a lovely little house and orchard for Mom’s parents along the Hondo River.  My Granny and Granddaddy absolutely loved their oasis in the valley which was their last home together.  We visited often, played and swam in the river, and picked apples in the orchard.  We would often bring home apples and pears from Granny & Granddaddy’s orchards, and apple cider and red chili ristras from roadside vendors.

Before Granny & Granddaddy arrived we had never lived near any other family members, and we loved it.  My parents and grandparents got to know a lot of wonderful people in the Hondo valley and it was clear that it was a community that enjoyed and took care of each other.  

More family.  Within a year or two, my mother’s sister and her husband, Nina & John Stevens, arrived from Virginia with their 5 children to be near everyone.  Aunt Teene (Nina) and Uncle John lived on a small alfalfa and cattle farm in Hondo known as the Bible Farm, and we spent plenty of time at that place as well as our grandparents’ home.  Their stay was short-lived though because a year or so later, the Stevens family moved on to California and a new job opportunity for Uncle John. 

The orchard.  Granny & Granddaddy had a small apple orchard and in the fall they would sell apples mostly to individuals or families, or contract a small picker to take most of them to the apple processing house in the valley.  Granddaddy also always had a few sheep who would keep the grass down under the trees so he didn’t have to mow it.  And of course, the sheep loved eating any fallen apples, as well. 

There was also a pear tree in Granny & Granddaddy’s front yard.  We always made pear preserves from those pears, and also apple preserves.  And we brought home baskets or boxes of apples for pies which went in the freezer along with pints of fried apples. 

The apple house.  My grandparents’ property included an apple house and stand across from their front yard and up on the edge of the highway.  I loved spending fall weekends with them and helping to sell baskets of apples to customers. I can distinctly remember how proud I was one Saturday when I sold $20 worth of apples!

 

The river.  The Hondo River ran through their property and was in a dropped area just behind their back porch and yard.  It was a small river, usually only about 15 feet or so across.  There was a deeper area shaded by overhanging trees also behind their house that was delightful for swimming on a hot summer day.  And a rope swing attached to the largest tree allowed us to swing out over the water hole and drop off in the water – lots of fun.  When we came out of the river, we were always a muddy mess, so Granddaddy would rinse us off with the water hose and then we would have some lemonade while we dried off on the back porch. 

The flood.  In June of 1965, only a year after my grandparents settled in their sweet adobe home in the Hondo Valley, the Hondo River flooded and water ended up six feet deep in their home.  There was unusually heavy rain in the mountains and it was more than the river could hold.  I was at summer camp that week so I don’t remember the event, but Granny & Granddaddy got to higher ground which was an apple house at the top of their property, and they were safe. 

Once the water receded everyone helped and we started drying everything out, cleaning, repairing what could be repaired, and working to make their home habitable again.  I think that the fact that it was an adobe home, not built with lots of wood and modern materials, made the repairs and recovery less daunting. 

Granny & Granddaddy lost most of their personal possessions in that flood.  And I think that the loss that hurt my Granny the most was the loss of her papers and family photos.  I remember that my mother wrote to her Aunt Louise and other family members to ask if they would send copies of some of their photos for Granny. 

My grandparents however loved their home and didn’t want to leave after the flood.  So they moved in with us for a short while, and once their house was again habitable, they returned to their much loved home in the Valley. The Hondo River never flooded again during the next decade that they lived there.

The Bible Farm.  At the time of the flood, Mom & Dad also owned the small farm in Hondo called the Bible Farm where the fields of alfalfa were used for cattle grazing.  The flood also swept through those fields and killed 32 of their registered Brangus cattle.

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Key Individuals:

     Robert Gordon Scribner  (1923 – 2006)

     Ann Hart Hughes Scribner  (1921 – 2006)

               Jane Hughes Scribner Simonitsch McCrary (1953 – and more)

               and my four siblings:  Bob, Jeff, David and Mary Ann                     

- Jane Scribner McCrary