My trip home this weekend landed me at Great Grandma Frances'. She will be 90 this year + is still spunky + stubborn as ever. She called me earlier yesterday to let me know I needed to come pick up the cradle she had bought me years ago; I had grown up rocking my dolls in it + she wanted me to have it.
Nearly three hours in, I had looked through nearly every room in her house with her. At dresses from events past, jewelry my cousin + I had played in as little girls, + dishes I have filled with beans cornbread numerous times. Delicate nostalgia was abundant. Everywhere we looked, my mum + I found more stories. I am no photographer, but these are some of our favorite pieces:
This doll is at least 80 years old! Mama Frances was a little girl when her daddy bought it for her while living in Mississippi. It's definitely seen better days.
While going through a trunk a former neighbor had given her years ago, my grandma found some schoolwork from my Papa Bobby, her oldest son. (Just look at those diagrammed sentences!) Mum + I were so excited to see these. I am amazed they are still intact. Most of them are dated 1953! I didn't know until tonight that they had lived in St. Louis then. Mama said she worked on Broadway + my grandpa would walk their after school everyday. Wow, have times changed or what?
She also gave us several of her old dresses + dust coats. She wore that gorgeous knife-pleated number to my mum's wedding (second in the lineup).
Of course, to others most of these items hold no value at all. But to our family, they bring memories + smiles + even a few tears. That's why The Sewing Machine Project is a nonproft I can get behind. Not only are they delivering lifelines, they are also gifting memories and potential heirlooms to families. Someday, some 48 year-old granddaughter will be able to tell her own 21 year-old daughter about the day her grandma received the sewing machine that helped her through some hard times. Maybe someday a quilt or a dress or a doll will be passed down to a loved one. Or even better, perhaps the lifeline itself will be passed down; a hobby rooted in tradition will be taught; a bond will be made.
+ it all starts with a donated sewing machine
We need to be best friends basically just because you have had beans and cornbread and can identify a knife pleat. Please?
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of this non-profit. You're so right about the difference this can make! Over Fall Break, my mom and I went home to dig out the many, many quilts my great grandma had made. They're priceless and practical!
I like how you tied your nonprofit with your adventure you had. I think that this is a very productive nonprofit that you are able to backup with every good intention that both the sewing machine has and from your heart. I wish you well and hope you are having luck with your researching!
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