Pop and Granddaughter - Same birthday

Today is the 116th anniversary of Pop's birth in Clifton Forge, Virginia. He left us too soon - back in 1962 at age 61.

Pop was Frank Roosevelt Philpott. I mean, Frank R. Philpott. He'd never tell anyone what the "R" for, because people would say, "For Franklin?" No, of course not. FDR was only 18 years old when Pop was born. The "R" was for Teddy Roosevelt (1858-1919), the 26th President of the United States (1901-1909).

One of Teddy Roosevelt's quotes on Wikipedia.com is "In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing."

Clifton Forge is an old railroad town in the mountains of western Virginia. It's west of Lexington, Va. and north of Roanoke.

How many of you have been to the town (or city) of your parents' birth? Have you tried to imagine what it was like for them in their childhood?

In 1992 I visited Clifton Forge and went to the railroad museum to look at photographs of Clifton Force c. 1900.

One of my favorite memories is Pop's story about working as a part-time night dispatcher for the railroad. Apparently, a troop train came through and he was told to send it down a siding and tell them to stay there until they were told to go back on the main line. He did. And then he went home. I guess he didn't tell the next dispatcher about it. As I recall his story, Pop said a soldier hoofed it up the tracks to the station about three days later and asked when they could continue their trip!!!

Today is another birthday in our family line.

My granddaughter, Abbie Grace Bowman (Stephanie's daughter) is 18 today. Happy Birthday, Abbie.

She is a high school senior at the South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics, in Hartsville, South Carolina. She is in the midst of choosing between Johns Hopkins University and Washington University.