18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Monday, May 5, 1913:  Got my proofs this morning. In one I look rather mad. Cleaned a closet this afternoon. Expect to get some more of it tomorrow.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

It didn’t take Grandma long to get the proofs. Her graduation pictures were taken on May 1.

I love the pensive expression on Grandma’s face on the picture she selected. I wonder if she was pleased with this photo. . . and, what she looked like in the picture where she looked rather mad.

I hope that you don’t mind that I’ve posted Grandma’s graduation photo several times—but it seemed like it was such an important part of today’s diary entry and I didn’t want to make you dig through old posts to find it.

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Wednesday, April 30, 1913:  I saw a horse running off this morning, and was rather shocked to see it land in a ditch, where it staid until it was yanked out.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Runaway horses were scary and dangerous. I can remember elderly relatives telling stories at family gatherings when I was a child of people who were gravely injured by runaway horses. Fortunately, even though Grandma was shocked, it sounds like all ended well that morning.

Click here to see a fun, old, short, silent movie called The Runaway Horse that is available on YouTube.

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Monday, April 21, 1913:  I’m not doing very much studying now since final examinations are over.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

The final countdown—only two more days until graduation!

Now, that final exams were finished, I’m surprised that Grandma was doing any studying .

Was she still making final revisions to her commencement speech titled Relics of the Earth’s Past?

Was the speech about fossils? . . . dinosaurs? . . .  evolution? Was it controversial?

Grandma graduated well after the publication of the Origin of the Species (1859), but well before the Scopes Trial (1925).  If the speech was about evolution, how did she frame it?

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Wednesday, April 16, 1913:  We had three today. Think I passed all three of them. Was trying to work some problems this evening, but got stuck on some of them.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Grandma –It’s a good sign when you feel confident that you passed the final exams. I bet you did well on them.

In the evening, were you trying to work problems that had been on the exam to see if you got the right answer? . . . or were you doing problems to study for one of the upcoming tests? 

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Thursday, April 10, 1913:  Have ‘em all addressed by this time unless make up my mind to send some more. Have three left over. Wonder if I’ll get any presents. Just think I can soon call myself a sweet girl graduate.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

The previous day Grandma began addressing the invitations to her graduation—and apparently completed them on the 10th.

The tiniest pieces of paper sometimes are so special. I don’t have an invitation for Grandma’s graduation—they probably didn’t survive a hundred years— but I think that I have Grandma’s name card that was designed to be inserted into the invitations.

I have a thin file folder of mementoes that were found in Grandma’s house after she died. One item in the folder is the commencement program that I shared two days ago. Another is this name card.

In the past one hundred years, how many times did someone look at the name card,—first Grandma herself, and then later her descendants—consider tossing it out, and then decide that it was worth saving?

I’m in awe that this tiny piece of card stock with Grandma’s name on it still exists. And, I am very thankful that each person whose hands touched it over the years made the decision to keep it.

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Wednesday, April 9, 1913:  Got my report card today. Had quite a fall in deportment. I must be really very bad. Began to address my invitations this evening.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Grandma seemed to have a bad case of senioritis—so I guess it isn’t a surprise that her grade for deportment fell.  For example, on March 26 she wrote:

Teacher gave the school a lecture, but it was really meant for me. I don’t think what I did was so bad, but I guess I won’t do it again . . .

Does anyone use the term deportment any more? It almost seems like an archaic word.