Cure Or Kill

When my mama was but five years old her daddy died of dread TB. My grandma had six mouths to feed and could ill afford to follow. She asked her doctor for advice, "What do I do to stay alive?" He prescribed his favorite smoking cure. "Take up the pipe", he said. My grandma tried it, didn't die. She happily smoked her beloved pipe for the rest of her long life, much to Mama's great dismay. My mama thought that castor oil would cure most everything. She'd mix it into orange juice to make it palatable. I still found it a nauseous drink and very hard to take. My kids had it so much better who need only swallow pills. She treated colds with Mentholatum, mustard plasters for pneumonia. Somehow she kept us healthy through North Dakota winters. ForThe Road to Wellville. sponsored by Deborah Guzzi 6th place