By JUDITH ZACCARIA
Lucy Steele Harsh White, who celebrates her 100th birthday today, is as
surprised as anyone by her longevity.
"You prick yourself to know it - you hardly realize it," says the
centenarian, visiting in the room she shares with her husband, Horace, almost
99, at Winfield Rest Haven. "I don't take much credit for it myself. It's
God preserving us from some very narrow escapes. I could have been killed. We
could have been killed," she says and reaches to touch Horace's arm.
Lucy recalls a time they were helping a grandson clean a house. Horace went
to clean the stove but he didn't know the pilot light was still on. She was
standing near the door so she got outside quickly. Before there was an
explosion or fire, Horace "handled it pretty quick"
so neither of them was hurt.
She's still beautiful, with big eyes, high cheekbones and a wide smile. She
ties her white hair in a bun at the nape of her neck, but wisps float in the
breeze from a fan. She sits in a wheelchair, but her voice is strong, her wit
sharp. She could be any age over 75.
Horace sits in an easy chair, his head cocked to one side to catch what one
says because his hearing isn't very good. Sometimes he plays with his hair when
he gets distracted. But he's as sharp as she is, remembering dates and events
even more accurately, she says.
Lucy's age is remarkable even in her family. A cousin, Nathan Harsh, from
Lucy's physician, Dr. Alvin Bird, told her, "You have seen a century go
in and a century go out."
"I like that," she said.
Lucy was born
Her mother was Fannie Tyree Barry Harsh. She had a sister, Thankful Mae
Harsh Boylan, and two brothers, Lee Cheatham Harsh
Jr. and David Franklin Barry Polk Harsh. They are all deceased.
In
"I was the youngest, so I stayed home and looked after my
parents," Lucy says. "I'm sorry they didn't live to see me
married."
She first met Horace, who was from
"They had open saloons then in
Horace later married someone else and moved to
"I knew Horace's wife and his children," Lucy said.
Horace worked for public works departments. During World War II he worked in
the
His friendship with Lucy continued over the years. After his wife's death,
he wrote and phoned a little, Lucy says.
Then one night in 1956, he made a call that changed their lives.
"It was a Saturday night," Lucy says. "He called and asked me
to marry him. I said yes, and when we got off the phone, we both had to lie
down, it was such a big step."
Horace drove from
Lucy and Horace returned to
On one wall of their room at Rest Haven is a plaque honoring them on their
44th anniversary. How have they made a success of
their marriage? "It takes two to make a fuss," Lucy smiles. "You
get that? I kept my mouth shut."
They moved to Winfield Rest Haven in October 1989. They've had a good time
living there, Lucy says. "It's clean. They try to make you feel at home.
It's not your home but they try."
The extraordinary adventure of having lived a whole century has not been
lost on her. "I've thought a lot about it," she says. For her the
most exciting event of the last 100 years was putting a man on the moon.
"Who'd have ever thought that anybody could go to the moon?"
She also mentions the car and the telephone as inventions that changed
everyone's life. "I can still remember the phone number in my dad's store:
222."
Though Lucy is sure life has improved in many ways, she also says she is
"happy to have lived in those old days when we practiced being our
brother's keeper. I praise the Lord for my life. We need to praise the Lord
more."
Like Lucy, Horace takes no credit for what he's done in his life. "God
has done everything for me. I'm almost 99, on Nov. 18."
Horace has his own ideas, however, about what was the best part of the 20th
century. "My wife," he says, "because she's the most lovable
person I ever met in my life."
At