Sandi Pennar Bonsteel remembers Peggy Watters

Although it has been over 40 years since I last saw her, the notice of Peggy Watters’ death really hit me hard, and I cried like she was my sister. That reaction is due to the fact that we were once that close, and is also due to guilt that I had not kept in touch with her over the years, even though I had thought of her often.
I had tried to call her one weekend long ago, when I was home from nursing school, but there was no answer. I thought I would try another weekend, but as often happens, life got in the way, and that time never came. I am so filled with regret over that now with our 40th reunion approaching, and the excitement of meeting up with old classmates, and reading the blog with all the reminiscing going on, I had inquired about the possibility of finding her. Even though she was not technically from the class of ‘65, she would have been, but she had left our class in the 10th grade.
When I look back, I really think that those Jr. High years were the most special times. Life was simple, and we were not yet that goal and career oriented. We were uninhibited, carefree and downright silly. We had the greatest times, just being kids. Peggy and I were "best friends" in Jr. High, and those times were a real experience for me.

Got her deer, every year
As many of you know, her dad was the Game Warden, and Peggy was like a right hand to him in many cases. She carried a lot of responsibility at that age, and I was in awe of her. I was amazed at her efficiency and thought she could do just about anything, and seemed so much more mature than the rest of us. She had been driving a car for years, was an accomplished horsewoman, and could handle a gun. She went hunting with her dad, uncle and grandpa, and always got her deer every yr. (She probably knew how to field-dress it too!) I spent many a weekend at their place. Often we would go out with her dad when he was making his "rounds", and depending on the season, that would include checking hunting and fishing licenses, looking for deer poachers, etc. This was pretty exciting to me, as I had led a pretty quiet and sheltered life. This was like another world, and I felt quite privileged to be part of it.
My favorite memories were during the Douglas County Fair, as their farm had a menagerie in preparation for the Game and Fish Booth. When I got out there that weekend, her dad had just deodorized some skunks, and various crates also held a raccoon, a porcupine, and other small mammals. There was a glass cage of rattlesnakes brought back from her uncle’s home in Wyoming, various waterfowl, AND a black bear cub! He was tethered with a chain at the side of the house. It was really cool as he would stand on his hind legs holding a bottle of orange pop in his front paws and guzzle it down. As long as you were feeding him he was not a threat. He ate just about anything. (I don’t think PETA would approve of any of this!)

He zigzagged all over
The next morning, her Mom saw that one of the Canadian geese they kept in a pen had escaped and was trying to taxi across the lake (the wings were clipped so he couldn’t fly, but he was moving fast) Peggy, her sister JoAnn, and I jumped into the boat and she revved up the motor. We were in hot pursuit as he zigzagged all over the place. We saw that he was headed towards the rushes and knew we would lose him once he got in there, as we couldn’t get to him with the boat, so she sped it up. As we got closer, she cut the motor and we all went in after it with a net. The term "herding cats" comes to mind. That thing was mean and put up a fierce battle, but we finally snagged him and got him into the boat, and brought him back to the pen. When her dad got home later, he didn’t believe any of this had happened, but her Mom had been our witness, and finally convinced him that it was true. After all, we were battered and soaking wet, so he finally bought our story, and was pretty amazed.
The next morning, when I got up, I stumbled, half awake, out to the clothesline to see if my jeans were dry yet, and heard/felt a presence behind me… the bear cub was charging me! Luckily I outran him, as his tether only went so far! That woke me up in a hurry! Another memory of that weekend at the fair was of Peggy walking around the fairgrounds like a snakecharmer, with a bullsnake around her neck. There were some very startled reactions. We got a huge kick out of that.

Rolling in laughter
We had so much fun every summer. She was such an amazing and adventurous girl. We went horseback riding often, and she taught me how to reload shells and to shoot. I remember the first time, as I wasn’t prepared for the recoil of the rifle, and the scope hit me in the nose and knocked me flat. She was laughing so hard, and after the initial shock, I started laughing too, even though I’d had the breath knocked out of me and my face was starting to bruise and swell. She had such an infectious laugh, and the laughter made me forget the pain. She also attempted to teach me to drive. My first "driving lesson" was when her dad was checking icehouses. Peggy and I were waiting in the car, (the official Game and Fish vehicle) and she decided to let me practice driving on the ice---how could you go wrong? I accidentally put it into reverse and rammed into an icehouse. She was rolling over in laughter, but her dad was not amused, as this did not put him in a very good position, but the owner/occupant of the icehouse was unhurt and had a good sense of humor.
In the 8th grade I had also started hanging out with Paula and Claudia, and Peggy became a part of that group too. Soon we had quite a bunch of friends in our group, and this continued through 9th grade. We had some pretty wild slumber parties out at her house, as many of you may remember, and we would be up all night doing crazy things like walking across the field at 3 a.m. to borrow a cup of sugar from a neighbor, and other things we dared each other to do. Some of you may remember the time the pet ferret got into someone’s sleeping bag. I don’t recall whose it was, but it caused quite a reaction. I'm sure many others have fond memories of those days. They were the best of times!
Then as we moved on to Sr. High and Jefferson, it seemed that Peggy was not hanging out with us as much. I do know that she had always hated school, and looking back I think she was possibly depressed. By then were all pretty involved in school and activities and pursuing individual careers and plans, and she was withdrawing from us. Then one day, I learned that she wasn’t returning to school, as she was getting married. It was a huge shock to me at the time, and it came as a total surprise. We never saw her again.

Heartbreaking
So now after 40+ years, I was finally getting around to trying to contact her. It was so heartbreaking to find out she had passed away. I hope that she found happiness and had a good life. She was a special part of mine. Maybe some day I’ll get to tell her.
So, my fellow classmates, there is a moral to this, and though we hear it often, we just don’t realize how close to home it is. Don’t put off those opportunities you have to tell someone you care about how you feel, as one day it may be too late.

Sandi Pennar Bonesteel