A Visit to the Old Neighborhood

Yesterday Tove and I were in South Salt Lake County with a little time on our hands so we decided to go check out the old neighborhood. We drove around what used to be the Murray 3rd Ward area. I could recognize many of the houses and could remember who lived in some of them. I wondered if anyone still lived there who I would remember or who could remember me. As we were driving past Anderson's we saw an elderly gentleman on the front porch who turned and entered the house. We wondered if it could be Milt Anderson or maybe one of his kids. So I parked and went up and knocked on the door. The man came to the door and I was pretty sure it was Milt but I asked, "Does Milt Anderson still live here?" He said, pushing open the screen door, "He sure does. Come on in here." I don't think he recognized me but I immediately told him who I was and he was delighted. His wife, Margaret, was sitting there in the living room and they gushed over me and had me bring Tove. He told us that he had recently turned 96. I will be very fortunate if I can live to 96 and even more so if I am as sharp then as Milt is at 96. We had a great conversation about old times. He said the only other person in the ward who would have been there back in 1958 when I left was Mary Soffe who still lived in the apartment above the Soffe Mortuary there on State Street. We talked about the fact that Tove's brother Audun married Jerrie Davis the daughter of a good friend and former partner of Milt's, Leon Davis. A few minutes into our conversation Milt and Margaret's daughter Ranae and her husband came so we reminisced with her for a few minutes. And then as we were leaving their son Jeff drove in the driveway and we were able to say hello to him. I was a lot of fun to see the old neighborhood and especially to talk with the Andersons.