Virgie

My daughter just reminded me of all the great times I had as a time with my Aunt Virgie (actually my great aunt). Virgie was a true mountain spirit. She was 13 when she married my Uncle Bart; the marriage lasted until she died well into her 70's. Bart and Virgie never had children. I was as close as she ever came to having a child; she was with my mom when I was born and I spent most weekends and lots of non-school days with them as a kid. She said my two were the only grandkids she would ever have, and she doted on them in much the same way she did me. My husband loves to tell people that the first time he met her she was doing cartwheels in the yard well into her sixties. Virgie was always a kid at heart and could make even the most solemn sourpuss smile. She and Bart were also famous spendthrifts. They went to bed early so they didn't have to use lights, and cooked and heated water for baths on the wood cookstove for the same reason. They were very special people and made a major impact on my life, and even after several years I miss them very much. Some of my best memories involve these two wonderful characters.

Washin' with Virgie

Jus as shore as Mondays come
Virgie's always got washin to be done.
Water's near about to boil
In a barrel for haulin' oil.
Baskets o' clothes, sheets off the bed
Breakfast is done, cats 'r' all fed.
Tubs lined up all in a row;
Sun's already startin' to show.
Lye soap in a brown paper sack
Waits on the porch out back.
Shave thin curls creamy 'n' white;
Butcher knife blade's shaped jus' right
From scrapin' bushels o' roastin' ears
An' slicin' melons over the years.
Good clothes in the tubs first;
Gingham checks 'n' polka dot shirts.
Scrub the coffee spilled from Bart's cup;
Remember the stains of Garrett's Sweet Snuff.
Rinse 'n' wring, 'n' hang on the wire;
Forked dogwood poles raised to the air.
Dump water 'n' suds on the ground;
See how the worms start squirmin' around.
Washin' an' scrubbin's finally all done
Pinned up an' dryin' in mornin's sun.
Out to the front porch, rest 'n' rock
All before dinner at twelve o' clock.
Late in the evenin', gather 'em in;
Come next Monday we'll do it again

Baskets

Wow! Eighteen kids learning to weave baskets! Fun, challenging, confusing, exasperating...what an experience. This week has been really crazy, but most of the kids have their baskets finished, and since today was an early release day we celebrated with a birthday party for one of the girls in the class...birthday cake, cookies, brownies, chips/dip, drinks, cheeseball/crackers, Guitar Hero II, crumbs, spills, giggles, fun, fun, fun. What a week!

Re: Renewing Acquaintences

Bonnie posted a comment asking if the poems were my own. Yes, they are. I'm glad you enjoyed them. I love writing, but don't do it a lot. Here's another.

'Tis easy to look into the distance afore and behind
When on the mountaintop ourself we find.
But, in the valley down deep and low
'Tis only the here and the now we know.
If we but humbly look up to thee
You help us to more clearly see,
This lone vale wherein we stand
'Tis but the hollow of Thy hand.

This one seemed appropriate for our family and friends since we lost a much loved uncle over the weekend. He will be missed by all who knew him.

Back to School

Well, its official, school is now in session and my free days are several months away again. I surely did enjoy my summer, though. I got to spend two full weeks with my daughter and her family. Those four little Js are something else and their Nana and Papa would move heaven and earth for them. And that brings me to the latest family news....my lovely daughter is expecting J#5 in February. Wow!!!!!!

Appalachian Art is already in full swing. Last week we learned about Cherokee and Appalachian basketry and this week we begin actually making a basket. This AM we went out on the walking trail and gathered willow branches to use along with our commercial reed to make the "Round Reed Wall Basket" from Lyn Siler's Handmade Baskets. We made these at the end of spring semester and they were quite a success. The students all produced nice baskets without a lot of trouble. Everyone is very excited to be making baskets.

Monday, my better half and I went on a day trip to Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mtns National Park. The Cove is a special place for us for several reasons. I am a descendent of the Myers family who lived there before it was designated for park lands. My great, great grandparents are buried in the cemetery at the Methodist Church. When our daughter and son were young, this day trip was one of the few things we could really afford to do with any regularity. We often left early on a Sat AM with a picnic lunch and spent the day in the Cove. If you arrived early , or stayed late, the acres and acres of fields were usually dotted with whitetail deer, groundhogs and an occasionaly fox or black bear. The kids loved to see the animals. Many days they counted well over 100 deer in the fields and edges of the woods. Sometimes we hiked out to Abram's Falls or returned home by way of Parson's Branch/Rabbit Creek Rd. So yesterday was a good day, even though it was just the two of us. We want to take the little Js sometime. On the way into the Cove we stopped for YUMMY fudge and Louwe and Egbert coffee. At the visitors center we met a very nice Park Range, Lisa Free, who was in costume spinning on an 1800s wheel. We had a very nice visit with her and exchanged fiber resource info before we parted company. On the way back out of the Cove we stopped at Burgermaster, another family favorite stop, for shakes...strawberry for him, peanut butter for me. Fun day. We plan to repeat this trip the last weekend of the month for Old Timer's Day in the Cove and neighboring Townsend, TN. This event features lots of crafts, demos and old time music.