Berle Swagerty

At first glance, Mr. Swagerty appeared to be a gruff, grumpy  old man.  As I introduced myself, he said “Well what do you want?”  I explained how I wanted to interview him about the wisdom and experiences of his life.  He just grumbled something under his breath.  At that moment, a young nurse walked through the door to see if he needed anything.  “I  just want to be left alone!”  he replied in a grumpy tone.   Shocked and visibly upset, she left.  Then, looking at me, he commented, “Oh, you're still here?”  Looking downward, he watched for my reaction out of the corner of his eye.  Then I saw it; a mischievous little grin appeared. I was being tested.   I stated that I just wanted to visit with him about his life, or he could sit there by himself all day.... his choice.  “Well, I guess you can stay,” he replied.  I had passed the test.

 

 

Berle Arthur Swagerty was born on February 5, 1908 in Rocky, Oklahoma. Together, he and his wife, Fredia, had two children, Jeanne and Jim. Fredia passed away in 2000. Berle worked as a public school teacher for 46 years, teaching industrial arts, and attended college during his summer breaks to further his education. After 13 years he earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Oklahoma State University, and four more years of part-time college earned him his master’s degree. He was the first in his family to ever attend college.

After being a teacher for 46 years, what do you think about education?

I believe that education is important, but then, I’m a teacher. Education helps to prepare

you for not only for your career, but also for life. Back in my day, most people didn’t go

to college. You were lucky if you even got to finish high school. Maybe that's why those were such hard times. These days, a good education is necessary. If you’re not educated, an employer won’t even look at you. It may be the only difference between a good job and minimum wage.

How much education do you think you need?

Well I guess it depends of what you want to do. Education is a life long process. You never really stop learning, and you don’t get it all at once. I went to school each summer for 13 years to get my college degree, and four more to get my master's. It was that important to me. It helped me be a better teacher, and it helped me to provide better for my family. Sure, it took me a long time.... but I got it. Now days you've got to keep learning. Things are changing so fast, technology and such. If you stop learning the whole world will just fly right past you and leave you behind. I think these days, education is more important than ever. One thing about knowledge, it's the best investment you can ever make, and it’s the only thing that no one can take away from you.

How long were you married to your wife Fredia?

Sixty-five years.

So what was your secret?

If you want a good marriage, you have to love each other. If you love each other that

means you’ll take care of each other. We got married for better or worse. Sometimes

marriage isn’t easy, but life isn’t easy. When my wife got sick, I took care of her. I had

to; I loved her. It wasn’t easy, but I loved her. That’s what you’re supposed to do, take

care of each other. That’s the promise you make. People don’t take that seriously

enough. If you take those vows and say “I do”, you’d better live up to it.

Tell me about how you managed your money.

Well for one thing, we worked hard to make ends meet. We had to. Sometimes I had to get a second job, or three jobs. I had to provide for my family; it was my responsibility. I had to do whatever was necessary to put food on the table. They were depending on me.

Another thing was, we never spent more than we made. That gets people in trouble. If we couldn’t afford it, we didn’t buy it. If something’s paid for, they can’t come and take it away.

And I always tried to save money. Each month I would take a little bit out of each check and

put it in savings. You never know when you’re going to need it. My wife (laughing) used to get

mad at me because I would put money in the bank instead of letting her go out and buy

things. But then when she got sick, we had the money we needed to take care of her. We didn’t have to go into debt to pay her medical bills. I sure was glad that I had saved all those years.

One day (crying), not long before she died, she took my hand and she smiled at me and told me that now she knew why I had saved all that money. I don't know what I would've done if I hadn't been able to take care of her. You never know what life's gonna throw at you; you’d better be

prepared.

What is the greatest lesson you ever learned?

The biggest lesson I ever learned was to respect your elders. By that I mean listen to

them and learn from them. They have been where you are and they know how to handle

the problems that you’re going through. I wish I had listened more. It would’ve saved

me a lot of trouble. That lesson applies to your whole life. There’s always someone older

and wiser than you that has already been through what you’re going through. You need to

find those people and listen to them. Most young folks think that us old folks don’t know

what we’re talking about. They think they know it all, so they don’t need to listen to

anyone else. I was like that. I sure wished I had listened more. My life would’ve been a whole

lot easier.

Do you ever think about dying?

Yeah, I think about dying a lot. I’m sure my days are numbered here. You never know

what’s going to happen, whether it will be easy or hard, but that’s the way life is,

sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it’s not. That’s life. I’m not afraid of it, that doesn’t

matter, it’s going to happen anyway.

What do you think happens after we die?

I don’t know what will happen after I die, nobody does I guess. Sometimes I think I’ve got things figured out, but the more I think about it, the more I don’t know. Just make sure your life counts for something. Because someday, it’ll be too late.

What do you think your life counted for?

Well I think it counted for my family, my wife and my boys. And I think I mattered to some of my students. I had a lot of students over 46 years. I'd like to think that I made a difference to a few of them. I'm sure I could've done a lot more good than I did, but it's too late now. Maybe I should've worked harder at that....I don't know. Everybody wants their life to count, but it's not gonna happen by accident.

Berle Swagerty's life counted, to me personally, and to countless students and teachers over his 46 year career. Mr. Swagerty was the first interview I did when I started this book project. I didn't know what to expect from him or the others I would interview. I certainly wasn't prepared to cry with him as he told me about his wife dying. The gruff old man that I initially greeted changed into one of the most beautiful human beings I've ever met when he opened his heart and shared with me the most intimate moments of his life. I came for an interview, I left with a friend and a mentor.

Shortly after this interview, Berle Swagerty died on January 14, 2008, just 22 days before his 100^th birthday. It was my intention to only include people over 100 years old in this book. However, because of his proximity to 100 years, his practical wisdom, and the impact he made on my life, I simply couldn't exclude him. After all, true wisdom is ageless. Thank you Mr. Swagerty, your certainly made a difference in my life.

“Everybody wants their life to count,

but it's not gonna happen by accident.”

Berle Swagerty