Azalea Gardens

By Mary Elizabeth Rumsey

When i was a little girl and lived in Azaela Gardens in the 60's we'd look forward to the taffy man coming down the street. A horse or mule pulled a wagon carrying a large square box where the taffy was pulled and then put on ya know that paper that didn't stick. It came in several colors and was quite tasty.

In the front of our neighborhood was a Winn Dixie and a K&B drugstore. I went down the road to school at St. Agnes and near the right hand side there was an old building with a staircase on the side. We assumed that it was haunted and we were afraid of it.

in the year 1963 when i attended st. agnes school, the nuns wore their full habits. you know like the ones in the movie \"sister act\". from head to toe, their habits started with white around the faces to the long black flowing dresses with the addition of a rosary hanging on the side. sister mary patrick was my first grade teacher, and at some time during the school year she had to have eye surgery. the day that she came back to school with an eye patch, well some of the students including myself cried. poor sister patrick, we were little and it just looked different. we were so naive back in those days. she was such a sweet teacher and she has always brought back good memories for me.