For the Love of Hankies - For the Love of My Father

Happy Father's Day Dad - I Miss You!

A picture of me and my Dad outside of our house in Odessa, Texas in 1961. I was four years old.

As a child one of my chores was ironing my Dad's hankies. It was a chore I really enjoyed. I would take a freshly washed hankie and spray it with a bottle of water and iron each one out flat, fold it in- half, iron it again and fold it in-half again. I'd run the iron over both sides of the now eighth size hankie and ta da a freshly ironed hankie. I'd make a big pile and stack them on top of my Dad's side of the dresser. Sometimes there would be an initial of a J for my father's first name of John or C for his last name of Crawford. I remember a couple of subdued plaid border hankies and the occasional bandanna (which I believe he used when he wore his overalls) but mostly they were white. Of course my favorite Father's Day gift to give my dad as a child was more hankies.

My parents and I often would go to flea markets, garage sales and antique stores. I have fond memories of roaming around for hours looking for treasures. I remember I was at a flea market when I purchased my first hankie. It was a "Goldie Locks and the Three Bears" print and I paid 25 cents for it (a quarter could buy you a lot back then.) My second one was a Pinocchio print with a yellow border. I would put the hankies in the little purse I'd sometimes carry around. It wasn't until I got to be in my teens that I really expanded my collection though. I favored flower prints and again I would carry them in my purse or pocket. I never actually used them for blowing my nose. They were useful wiping mascara off the corner of my eye. As an adult my collection grew quite large and I began tying them onto the strap of my purses. I have actually lost many hankies this way as they tend to work their way free if I don't keep an eye on them.

Not long after my Father died I asked my Mother if I could have one of my Dad's hankies. She told me that she had already gotten rid of them and wondered why I would want an old hankie any way. Not long after she gave me three hankies she had crocheted lace around the edge. When my Aunt Ora heard the story about me wanting one of my Dad's hankies she gave me two of my Uncle Mike's white hankies. She told me she knew they could not replace the memories and comfort my Father's hankies could give me but she wanted me to have some which had a deep family connection. A couple of years later I found a hankie in an antique store which had the word "Father" embroidered on it. I purchased it because it looked like one my Father would have owned.

When I had my antique booth I sold many of the hankies I had purchased over the years. I kept 10 which I considered very special. That didn't last long though and I now have a small collection of 25 hankies. I'm still partial to flower prints and I still enjoy ironing them. Every time I look at the one tied onto my purse strap or the ones hanging in the window of the guest room, they remind me of a small connection I have with my Father and a reminder that I was loved by a very adventurous soul - My Father.

Father hankie I found in an antique store with a photo of my Dad aboard one of the ships he was stationed on during WWII. He served on the USS Pennsylvania and the USS North Carolina.

The hankies my mother gave me.

Some of my printed hankies.

Another flower print hankie.

One of my favorites.

White hankies. The one with my initial was given to me as a gift.

The white hankies in the window of my guest room in Ashland.

Until Next Time

Kathleen