Old Frame

I was going through some things that I had brought home from my Aunt Leta's apartment and decided to take the old pictures out of their frames and put them in the albums with the family pictures and history. The pictures in this frame I already have copies of, they are of my mother and Aunt Leta in the first picture. My Uncle Vernon in the second picture and my Uncle Howard and Uncle Donny in the third picture. I never met Uncle Donny. He drown not too long after this picture was taken.

I like the old frame, it has that folk artsy quality to it. So I turned it over and pulled the nails out that were holding in the cardboard.

It was then I discovered a message, written in pencil on the cardboard backing.

It says,

"I got 5 gallons of gasoline. I was out or I awaited till tomorrow.

pay you later

Lewis Nowak"

I called mom to let her know what I found. She said the Nowaks lived down the road from them in Brewster (near Goodland) KS and that Lewis went to school with Uncle Howard. Lewis' father, Carl, drove the school bus for the Brownsvilled School District, Sherman County. Carl was from Poland and when driving the bus would say he "pulled the hill up" and "turned the corner round." Later Lewis drove the bus. Mom knew nothing of the note, nor any idea when it might have been written. Lewis died in 2008, so far we haven't been able to contact any of his children to find out if they'd like the note.

For the time being, I think it shall remain in the old frame.