Something odd has been happening at random moments over the course of the last two weeks. Just when I began to wonder if my nerves would ever calm down again, I find myself experiencing flashes of inner peace. The flashes are not long-lived, but when they suddenly appear, the feeling is wonderful. I've come to savor the rare moments when I sense all is well.
Yesterday was the first time in a long time that I felt truly peaceful for an extended period. Central Texas woke up to one of those wonderful spring days when the sky is an intense blue, the breeze is just the right temperature, the birds are singing, the flowers are still in bloom and the air is filled with a light perfume.
The week before had not been so peaceful. The aftermath of my annual birthday week vacation is a backlog of work that accumulates when I disappear for a week and that I have to clear out before I can relax and think about other things. I finally caught up on Thursday afternoon, but at that point I was required to begin preparing to play hostess for the monthly DAR meeting Saturday morning. Add to that, my mind has been mulling over what on earth I was going to do about the rapidly approaching deadline for the annual Frankum reunion newsletter when I had no ideas at all.
So I woke up a bit frazzled Saturday morning, rushing about to pack the car with cookie tray, fruit bowl, pitchers of orange juice and tea, bags of ice and serving supplies. I had been given a list of things to bring by the other hostess, so at least I did not have to think about what to bring, but it seemed she gave me all the bulky and heavy items (fair enough since I'm much younger than her, but Big Red was loaded down by the time I got everything packed). This was my first time to act as hostess at one of our meetings and, naturally, it had to be a meeting that involved a field trip and we had only a slight idea of what our serving situation was going to be. I headed to the McDade Historical Museum early enough that I would have time to deal with the unknown.
The McDade Historical Musuem has been on my to-do list for years, so I was glad to get the opportunity to visit. Normally it is only open on the 1st and 3rd Thursday afternoons, when I am normally working. I've just never been able to time it right to get in a visit. The museum has a large collection of McDade pottery, which I also collect, and my Hodge side has deep roots in McDade, so I knew I would find a lot to interest me. I was not disappointed.
There were samples of every stage of the McDade pottery industry, photos and family tree charts of many local families, displays with history of the more notorious elements of McDade's history (anyone familiar with the Christmas hangings?), local history books I've not yet been able to acquire for my personal library (I am eager to get back there to dig into those), and a marvelous backbar and bar that are not original to the building, but period examples of what must have been there back in the late 1800s when McDade was truly a part of the wild, wild west. As I explored, part of me was recognizing that this old building was there when my granddaddy Hodge and his grandparents were citizens of McDade and I was walking in their footsteps.
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| An artist's rendering of the McDade Pottery |
In addition to touching the past, both literally and figuratively, I had the opportunity to have a nice private conversation with the curator, Audrey Rother, who I have visited with in the past and who is a fountain of information about the area. Nothing I like better than to chew the historical fat with someone who likes to visit the past as much as I do.
When the exploring was over, the DAR meeting done, and Big Red packed up for the return home (incidentally with a good part of what I had taken over there untouched), I checked the time and realized that I might be able to swing over to the First Baptist Church of McDade and catch the ending of the McDade Cemetery Association meeting. Since I have a bunch of relatives buried in the cemetery, I try to make regular contributions and participate in their meetings when I can. I arrived just as they were ending their potluck meal and I had a chance to visit with cousin Dorothy Edwards and her daughter and to say hello to Mother's old school chum Maxine Wolf Turnipseed before they started their fundraising auction.
I do love auctions at family and community gatherings. You never know what is going to pop up and quite frequently you can grab a rare book or handmade item that is buried in the pile of odd crockery and doo-dads I wouldn't have on a bet. I lost out on a cookbook compiled by the local Kastner family (the Kastners were great friends of PawPaw Hodge), but I wasn't going to lose out on a set of 4 doilies handmade by Maxine. (I also acquired one of those odd pieces of crockery that wasn't moving--basically a pity bid.)
Up to this point in my day, I realized I was having fun, but it wasn't until I headed away from the church with the doilies sitting in the seat beside me that I realized I was in one of those treasured tranquil states that are all too rare lately. I impulsively decided to take advantage of the situation and extend my outing. I headed to Paige to visit one of the truly great local yarn stores, Yarnorama, a store on the level of anything Austin has to offer and located in the Bastrop County boonies.
My luck was holding. I arrived when the store was in a lull and had the owner all to myself. I had no business acquiring any more yarn, but naturally I did. I can't browse a yarn store and not bring home a new yarn. I also found the yarn bowl I had been waiting for. The shop sells yarn bowls created by a local potter and I've wanted one for a long time, but until now none of his offerings had spoken to me. Yesterday there was a deep blue bowl that called out to me almost immediately. The idea of a yarn bowl is that you can place your ball of yarn in the bowl, thread the yarn through the side and your yarn will not tangle as you knit. Mine will be used primarily for display.
This yarn was my impulse buy. I am drawn to interesting textures and I fell in love with this slubby linen/cotten blend. I expect a scarf will appear shortly. I also bought yarn for a wonderful little shawl that the owner had on display. As I was leaving, she cautioned me about returning to Bastrop via Highway 21 because of a bicycle race that had traffic tied up, so I drove back by way of the back road from Paige to Smithville. It was a good decision, because nothing makes me happier than to drive along a curving country road on a beautiful day. My inner peace was extended.
When I got back home, I was busily unloading Big Red when I remembered the art show that was in progress at the Deep in the Heart Foundry that is just over the hill (as the crow flies) from my house. I made another impulsive decision to get back in the car and go see what was happening there.
I've been to the foundry many times and there is always something new to see, as they are always placing pieces of their current works in progress around the property. This time I was greeted by an enormous horse.
This will be a part of a new project to commemorate Route 66. I believe the entire piece will consist of a horse and wagon meeting up with a Tin-Lizzie automobile. The Tin-Lizzie was across the way, almost complete, and two horses rearing up in surprise were in another corner. I look forward to seeing the completed work.
Inside the gallery are their smaller works and I had gotten wind that they were offering some mini-paintings. I expected maybe a half-dozen that would still be priced too high for my wallet, but there were at least two dozen sprinkled around the gallery and, while not exactly cheap, they were reasonably priced for original works of art their size. I decided to indulge myself in the purchase of two. There were two different artists involved and I decided to buy one of each.
The little painting on the right grabbed my attention from the first. It reminded me instantly of travels in New Mexico and, sure enough, I was told that John Maisano was influenced by the American west in his paintings. The one on the left was a more difficult choice. The artist, Jaime Howard, works locally out of the gallery and she herself was helping me with my purchases. I was torn between a modern abstract and this painting that suggested a sunset. I finally decided this was the one that should be added to my collection. Now I need to pursue the dollhouse art gallery that has been simmering in the back of my mind. These little guys need a good home.
From start to finish, yesterday was a day I needed badly. History, yarn and minis, combined with time on the country backroads. A perfect combination.
And I'm hopeful that these periods of peace are coming back into my life on a more regular basis.
LSW
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