View of Who is a Super Mom

DECADES IN THE KITCHEN

This past week I finished up a project that had been in the making for several months, a heritage cookbook where I took a look at how our ancestors had gathered, preserved and prepared their food for the last 100 years. I have learned many things about wood burning stoves, refrigeration before electricity, canning and preserving food and the general dedication it took to run an organized kitchen and get food on the table in a time when food wasn’t as plentiful as it is today. Gratitude is what I feel for the women in my family line that have paved the way for me in the kitchen. Everyone of them were a Super Mom doing incredible things on a daily basis, like stoking the stove for 1 ½ hours so that they could bake their bread, using a bucket to carry all the water the family would need into their house and then carrying the dirty water back out, sweeping dirt floors clean (interesting thought, isn’t it), stretching the food budget when it was already stretched, and overall just doing the same work over and over and over each day.

On this Mother’s Day I honor them and wish to have stamped on my forehead to be grateful for my wonderful full and easy life with simple ease in the kitchen.

Who is that cry baby any way?

The Foundling Hospital, Women, Babies and Fabric

Without question I have a few themes weaved into to my soul that I think are a part of me from the beginning of time : Women and textiles. Sounds strange, but I love them both and somehow they come together at so many crossroads, many out of complete necessity and need and the other for beauty. I was directed to this story from Janet Gleave, my dear friend. I'm so grateful she thought I would be interested.

In 1741 Thomas Coram a philanthropic childless sea captain opened a “Foundling Hospital” in London for babies up to one year old. The requirement for entrance was simple, that the mother was single and unable to take care of the child. The mother’s hope was that she would come back for the child when her circumstances improved, something that rarely happened.

What does this have to do with fabric? When the mother left their wee one at the hospital in order to identify their child on their return they would leave a swatch of fabric that they would match up later (most could not write, but fabric was something everyone had access to). This collection of swatches has become the largest textile collection the world has to offer. The Foundling Hospital was open for 213 years.

You can view a few of these precious pieces by going to the online exhibit called Threads of Feeling. Look to see that each piece of cloth are all different depending on the station in life where the mother came from- rough, thick cloth to delicate embrodiary. Notice the music in the background, it wasn’t lost on me- it is a song that was sung in the 1780’s. I needed a tissue . . .

The Leaf Quilt, Warming Generations

This week at quilt group I was asked to bring an “antique” quilt to show the group. I asked my Mother if I could borrow one of my favorite quilts that she has on display year round. It was a wedding gift, made by my father’s mother, Rosella Calder Smith. My parents were married late in the summer of 1956. The choice of the leaf pattern was perfect for the occasion in many respects. Grandma had someone do the machine appliqué (sadly we don’t have her name), but we have every confidence that she did the piecing, layout and hand quilting herself.

This quilt has been used from the very beginning of my parent’s marriage and right on through raising five children. My Dad remembers using it to stay warm in basement apartments while going to school at Utah State and my Mother said she would use it for just about every possible need where a warm quilt would come in handy. For me, I can’t remember ever not having the “leaf quilt” in my life. If we were sick, in body or soul this quilt was always around to warm us up.

When I took the quilt to QQQ’s our very own Quilt Historian, Jeanne Fetzer was there and looked it over. Here is her report-

· The fabrics are from the 1920’s and 30’s and likely purchased from the Montgomery & Ward Catalog, possibly in bundles

· The primary color used was “Nile Green”, common to the period

· It was quilted with a wool bat, easier for needling

· Hand quilted, machine appliquéd

· Gave instructions for how to care for it (her recommendation was to just leave it be and not worry about the red stains, treat it extra special and not to fold it on top of its self)

I hadn’t realized how much I loved this quilt until I took the time to write about it. I think it might be one of my favorite objects in the world. Thank you Mom for letting me borrow it, more than that, thanks for letting us use your treasure while we were growing up.

Heirlooms or Rubbish

I recently went to hear one of my hero's, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich speak at an "Evening at the Museum". She is one of my favorite authors ever since I read her book, "The Midwife's Tale". Mrs. Ulrich is a champion of women and what they do with their time, in todays and yesterdays world. She has studied history in the most intersting detailed way- through artifacts and diaries.

Laurel Ulrich suggests that each individual makes history by what they save- yes, by what objects or "stuff" you keep-that will be the history you will leave behind. They will be the sources, artifacts others will find after you are gone to represent YOU. "By caring for your things and the things of your ancestors, you contribute to a larger historic picture." To read an article about this go here.

This wonderful quilt was made by Rosella Calder Smith for me when I was a young child. I'm not exactly certian of when it was given to me but I do remember that my mother put it on my twin bed and one exactly like it was on my sister Kathy's bed that was right beside mine. Grandma Smith embrodried the darling animals, sashed the quilt in a bright yellow and quilted it with a wonderful backing fabric that is very typical from the 40's. It is self bound. I loved my "blankie". Kathy loved hers as well. She has a story about what happend to hers that she may want to tell on her own.

I want my childhood quilt from Grandma Smith to last long after I'm gone and be remembered as an heirloom, so I have labeled it and it will stay in a special place in my home. It is not rubbish even though the edges are mostly gone and it is worn out in several places, it is an heirloom. It reminds me that Grandma Smith had a boyant personality- as bright as the yellow in the quilt she made me, she worked all the time, even when she was sitting down her hands were busy, she loved me. She made me a hand made quilt for my bed. My Mom loved me because she let me keep the quilt on my bed and I wore it out holding it.

As Laurel Thather Ulrich said "Keep it, preserve it, cherish it, learn from it-- and keep the stories that go with it. As we walk the earth, we connect to one another, to the past and to the future through objects."

Sharon Aposhian Wright

Today the QQQ's had the fabulous opportunity of having a trunk show by Sharon Aposhian Wright, an award winning quilter from Payson, Utah. Not only were her quilts dazzling, but she was as well! As she showed each quilt she allowed us to get to know more and more about her family, life and beliefs. Everyone in the Holliday Library today was overwhelmed at the beautiful quilts that she has artistically put together, from her "quilts with a purpose" to her "banishing Santa" varieties and beyond. It was almost too much to take in all at once. I'm so grateful that I had my camera with me so that I could come home and take a second look at some of the quilts at my own pace. Here are a few of my favorites-- it was so hard to choose!

The one at the very top is called Allegro and Sharon made three quilts from this pattern and they all looked very different- it was amazing. The quilt below is a yo-yo quilt- love it!

The bottom two quilts have both won awards, no surprise.

Can you see the face of Christ in this quilt?

The words printed on the quilt are" If thou seek Him, He will be found"

The name of this quilt is "Light of the World"

For Kathy and I it was an extra special treat because we grew up with the Aposhian's. They lived just off of Aposhian Circle. Sharon was older than we were, Laurel and her other sister was there and said to say hello to Cyndi and Becky and both of her parents were there today. It was lovely to have our Mother there with us.

You know, quilting is a pretty great way to subtly leave your values and beliefs behind for someone else to find. Cool. Way Cool.

Veteran's Day with Mr. Morris

This past Veterans' Day has been very unique and memorable. My quilt group made a quilt to give to a local veteran through the national organization called Quilts of Valor. The quilt was made out of Civil War fabrics, with embroidered words of virtues inside every other block and was beautiful on it's own, but what was most remarkable was giving it away. Each member of our group wrote about what it had meant to them to be involved in making this quilt and giving it to a soldier. The Quintessential Quixotic Quilters or Trippe Q's learned more about themselves and each other while serving a very deserving man-not unlike life, we always get more from giving, than from receiving.

The national organization, QOFV asked us to try and have publicity for our event (to help spread the word "to cover ALL war wounded and injured service members and veterans with a handmade quilt") , and thanks to my amazing daughter, Candace, we had extreme coverage including multiple TV stations, newspaper articles and an online magazine article written on this event. The event on it's own
was amazing. There
was hardly a dry eye in the room but especially on any veteran's as another amazing daughter, Marianne sang a'cappella "God Bless America". A General and Colonel presented the quilt to our recipient, World War II Veteran, Richard V. Morris, who not only served as a radio gunner from 1941 to 1945, but has been working as a volunteer at a local VA hospital for 21 years visiting veterans like himself "because they need someone to talk and listen to them who understands them".

It was my pleasure to get to know Mr. Morris and feel of his goodness. When I dropped him off at his house on Veterans Day I asked him to tell me about his flag pole. He flys flags everyday because flags represent freedom. That day he had chosen the American Flag, the Navy Flag and his two squadron flags. Richard V. Morris is a hero. He served his country in time of war and continues serving others now even though he is 89 years old, and he does it with a smile on his face.

I want to grow up to be like him.

God bless America.

Anyone interested in making a quilt for a veteran or serviceman visit www.qovf.org for more information