The Rupert Way

Rupert, Idaho

I have great fondness for the little town where I grew up. Whenever I visit there, I always get a lump in my throat and great emotions swell in my heart. When we pull in to town to visit, I'm almost overcome with a sense of entering a time machine. Not much changes in Rupert. I can imagine that I still live there and that I'm just headed down Meridian Road to our home and that I will find all well there. As I drive down the road and look at the homes, businesses and scenery, I can think of one hundred stories and events that transpired along that route. I loved growing up in Rupert. Small town living had a charm all its own, which you almost can't appreciate unless you've had a similar experience. It is a unique place because it has a town square with this beautiful park at the center. All of the businesses surround the park and the business district is about three or four block square.
This picture shows the Wilson theater. It is a Rupert landmark. I've spend many, many hours at the Wilson watching movies. It has recently been restored and you can see from the picture how nice it looks now. It has a balcony in the theater and as kids, we always loved sitting in the balcony to watch a movie. Show times were in the evenings mostly just on weekends, usually starting at 7:00 and 9:00 and then on Saturday with shows at 2:00, 4:00, 6:00 and 8:00 pm.The Snake River went by our little town. Water from the river was used to irrigate our farm and many other farms in the area. The river was a favorite place for picnics, boating (although we didn't do much of that when I was very young) and water skiing. I almost drowned in the Snake River, but that is a story for another day.

I affectionately refer to the "Rupert Way" when I think of a way of life and a way to live that life to it's fullest. Here are some of the ways of living that make up the "Rupert Way":

1. Slow down and smell the roses. Life in Rupert is at a much slower pace. People have time to talk and most people know everyone in town. You can go "to town" as we called it (which was traveling 2 1/2 miles from our farm home into the city limits) and meet many people you know in the stores. You'd better put on your lipstick, because you're sure to see someone you know.
2. There were two department stores when I was young, Penney's and Idaho Department Store. There were also a couple of drug stores, a nice clothing store named Roper's, a jewelry store, a music store, a furniture store, a flower store, a shoe store, a book store, a fabric store, a western store and King's, the variety store. If they didn't have it, you didn't need it. Once in awhile we'd travel to Burley or to Utah for major purchases, but mostly we made do. Instead of having one hundred choices of items to meet every need, we had two or three, and that was fine.
3. We hardly ever ate out. We ate at home, but on the rare occasion that we did eat out, it was usually at the Tasty Freeze, or the A&W. Grownups ate at the Ponderosa on special occasions, or we would have a few family outings to a few pizza places or cafes. We had a huge garden and we ate out of it, all summer long, on our little patio. All women knew how to cook and they did it very well.
   
4. We had one or two doctors and one or two dentists. If they couldn't fix it, you were in trouble. We didn't go to the doctor for every little thing.
   
5. People worked HARD, the sun-up-t0-sundown kind of hard. Most of the people in the community were farmers or dairy men. They didn't complain. They helped each other. If anyone was in need, neighbors came to the rescue.
6. People dressed simply and generally with no pretense. They wore the best they had, which wasn't always the most fashionable, but looked just fine as long as it was clean.
7. Back in the day, LDS Church members comprised about thirty to thirty-five percent of the community. I think members were generally held in high regard in the community. They served in the community and worked hard and helped everyone, regardless of religion. One time when I wrote a nasty note in seventh grade to a girl who bugged me, the PE teacher, Mrs. Stefan, got the note and read it. In it, I used some swear words and said some cruel things to the annoying girl. Mrs. Stefan called me to her office and asked me if I'd written the note. I said that I had. She said "Isn't your dad a leader of your church? Would he approve of this note?" I never felt more ashamed thinking that I had dishonored my church and my dad by my behavior. I apologized to the girl with Mrs. Stefan standing nearby.
   
8. We stayed home and made our own entertainment. We didn't need to be constantly entertained and, frankly, there wasn't much by way of entertainment in the area anyway. We played with family and friends and made up all sorts of interesting things to do. Amazing stories will follow some day about some of those activities. Kids in Rupert were creative and they had a lot of fun.
   
9. People did what they said they would do, for the most part. People served others and helped, even when they didn't have much themselves. I think those are some of the defining characteristics about the Rupert way - hard work, honesty, helpfulness, kindness, being nonjudgmental and down-to-earth, with not much pretense. No one was out to impress anyone else much. It was a simple way of life, one that I miss sometimes.
   
10. It's a real compliment to be a person who lives "the Rupert way." My sister Janet and her husband Dave epitomize this way of living life. Dave's motto that "it ain't no big deal" (no he doesn't speak this way, but it is his motto) tells in a nutshell about how to live this way.
    
11. My husband is an adopted son of Rupert. He is pretty lucky that I have granted him that status, but he deserves it, because he is a hard worker, true to his word, unpretentious and willing to help. And he'll even put on a clean shirt when he goes into town to pick up a loaf of bread or a jug of milk in case he sees someone he knows.

Our parents were wise when they moved their young family to Rupert Idaho to accept employment. I think growing up there helped shape all of us seven kids into the people we are today. If you know anyone from Rupert, Idaho, I hope they incorporate the values of living the "Rupert Way."