Linda Hebert Todd

Author - Westlake, Louisiana

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The River Of My Dreams

May 11, 2015 By Linda H. Todd 37 Comments

My father tossed his last curveball, hung up his cleats, and said goodbye to his baseball teammates forever. We came back to southwest Louisiana for good. We had been living in Lake Charles in the house on Foster Street during baseball’s off season for several years. Our last season was spent in Pittsburgh, where he pitched for the Pirates.

My parents broke the news that I would start third grade in a place called Westlake, a little town across the lake from Lake Charles. There was a horse, a cow with a calf, a pig, and some chickens. The house was a gabled structure, a story and a half high, sitting on three and a half acres of mostly overgrown land.

Our first trip there seemed to take forever to my eight-year-old self. I had never been so far out in the country before. We were at the very end of Westwood Road, which ran all the way through the town, starting at the lake and ending at the West Fork of the Calcasieu River.

We went into the house, looked it over, and tramped around what part of the grounds we could get to. Even at my young age I wondered what had possessed my parents to make that move.

The house, to me, was huge. Downstairs was a living room, dining room, large kitchen with breakfast nook, a den with knotty pine walls, and a big bathroom. Upstairs—three large bedrooms, a half-bath (no tub), and two attic rooms next to two of the bedrooms—hence the story and a half instead of two stories, which would have the attic above the bedrooms.

It seemed too large for just the four of us—Mama, Daddy, my three-year-old sister, Hillene, and me. That’s when I learned three more people would be arriving the next week—my grandparents and my great-grandmother would be living with us.

While I was excited about my grandparents coming to live with us, I was still apprehensive about everything else. Daddy picked me up and took me to the upstairs bedroom that would be theirs for several decades. We stood at the window and looked out.

“What do you see on the other side of those trees?” he asked.

“I see some water,” I answered.

“Let’s go have a look,” he said. We left the house and took a short walk through the woods.

That’s the first time I saw the West Fork River and that’s when I knew I was home.

 

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Comments

  1. Micki Todd says

    May 12, 2015 at 3:23 pm

    I love this Mama!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 12, 2015 at 3:53 pm

      Neat, huh?

      Reply
      • Chris Baldauf says

        May 15, 2015 at 7:41 pm

        Beautiful Linda. Good job.

        Reply
        • Linda H. Todd says

          May 15, 2015 at 10:29 pm

          Thanks, Chris.

          Reply
  2. Brenda says

    May 13, 2015 at 9:19 pm

    Feel like I’m stepping back in time with you! Can hardly wait to hear more stories of the river and the neat family that made their home near it!

    Reply
  3. Brenda says

    May 13, 2015 at 10:00 pm

    How fun, a side trip to LA! It’s a refreshing break in my day. Love your initial intro to the river, eager for more!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 15, 2015 at 10:32 pm

      I’ve got to get the book out and learn to use Word Press. I didn’t know your comments were here until I logged on to moderate Mandi’s comment. I’ve got an ever-growing list of river stories.
      L.

      Reply
  4. Mandi says

    May 15, 2015 at 3:43 pm

    Did you see the Old Man of the River? 🙂 Love this story, Aunt Linda!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 15, 2015 at 10:33 pm

      I did see the “old man” but not on the river. I’m glad you mentioned it. I’ve added it to my list.
      L.

      Reply
  5. Mollie says

    May 16, 2015 at 9:13 am

    Can’t wait to hear more stories, Mama. So proud of you.

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 16, 2015 at 12:47 pm

      Thanks.

      Reply
  6. Mike Todd says

    May 16, 2015 at 12:00 pm

    Great reading, Linda. I just discovered your website. It’s amazing!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 16, 2015 at 12:48 pm

      Good to hear from you, Mike. I’ll be posting once a week, probably on Sunday.

      Reply
  7. Wally says

    May 16, 2015 at 1:59 pm

    Thanks for filling in the blanks before I was born into that house. The day daddy died the river was the last place he went to see. Wally

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 16, 2015 at 3:30 pm

      I’m adding that visit to my list.

      Reply
  8. Aleah says

    May 16, 2015 at 3:10 pm

    Aunt Linda, this is so wonderful! My day is made 🙂

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 16, 2015 at 3:31 pm

      Thanks, Aleah. If that house and that river could talk.

      Reply
  9. Cookie Johnson White says

    May 16, 2015 at 9:41 pm

    I loved reading this! Your home was a landmark in Westlake…the last house before the road turned!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 16, 2015 at 9:55 pm

      Thanks, Cookie.
      That picture of the house is a painting done by one of my Hebert cousins who stayed with us one summer.
      Linda

      Reply
  10. Jennifer Freemna says

    May 16, 2015 at 10:23 pm

    Thanks for ‘taking us back in time’. Wonderful memories, as a youth @ WWBC, Christmas caroling at your mom, dad’s & also your grandmother’s home.

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 17, 2015 at 5:46 pm

      Thanks for taking a look.

      Reply
  11. Carol Conner says

    May 17, 2015 at 12:35 am

    Can’t wait to read more stories Linda. Good memories there.

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 17, 2015 at 5:49 pm

      Thanks, Carol. My list is growing.

      Reply
  12. Michelle McInnis says

    May 17, 2015 at 2:23 am

    Very nice Linda!!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 17, 2015 at 5:49 pm

      Thanks, Michelle.

      Reply
  13. Theresa Richard says

    May 17, 2015 at 3:57 am

    Well Linda, that’s why you spent years in college while working with us. This is great! I’m very proud of you and your work. I can always say “I knew you when”. Ha! It was great working with you for ten years.
    Theresa Richard

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 17, 2015 at 5:50 pm

      Thanks, Theresa. We had fun, didn’t we?

      Reply
  14. Rodger Phelps says

    May 17, 2015 at 1:30 pm

    Linda, how do I get a copy of your book. I look forward to reading it and learning more about your family life.

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 17, 2015 at 5:53 pm

      Good to hear from you, Roger. The book is not published yet. Nowadays, wannabe authors need an online presence. Now that my website is up I can start sending the manuscript out and try to get someone to publish it for me. I’ll keep you posted.

      Reply
  15. Billie says

    May 18, 2015 at 7:42 am

    Linda, I would love to get a copy of your book. Thanks & you are so smart!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 18, 2015 at 8:26 pm

      Hi Billie
      Good to hear from you. The book is not published yet, but I’ll let you know when it is.

      Reply
  16. Jess says

    May 19, 2015 at 12:43 am

    Great story, Linda! And beautiful website. Heather did a fantastic job!

    Reply
    • Linda H. Todd says

      May 19, 2015 at 4:55 pm

      I really love it. I’ve been getting a lot of good feedback.

      Reply
  17. Hillene says

    June 6, 2015 at 3:45 pm

    finally got to your blog. Had trouble finding it. Great read. Good memories. Looking forward to more

    Reply
    • Linda says

      June 8, 2015 at 9:57 pm

      Glad you found it. I’ll be posting every Monday.

      Reply
  18. Jack Clark says

    June 19, 2015 at 1:13 am

    What a great surprise and I can remember a “LOT” of good time party’s down at the river on “the rope swing”. Life was so good back then.

    I hope your first book gets published soon and you have many more just waiting to hit the book store.

    Thank you for the walk down memory lane.

    Jack

    Reply
  19. Linda says

    June 20, 2015 at 1:18 pm

    Hi Jackie
    We had fun, didn’t we?
    Linda

    Reply

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Linda Hebert ToddLinda has completed her novel—Wild Justice, a crime story with a revenge theme, and has started another one set in Labrador and Louisiana. She writes all her stories in longhand, bringing to life the beautiful bayous of south Louisiana. Read more...

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