Every Picture Tells A Story

This photograph came to me via Facebook.  My husband's cousin's daughter came across it among her grandmother's belongings and she wondered if my mother-in-law (her grandmother's sister) could identify this church sanctuary, decorated for Christmas. I printed it out and took it to my mother-in-law earlier this week. When she looked at it there was an immediate spark of recognition; "where did you get this?" she asked. I explained to her how I came to have this image and asked her if she knew where it was taken, she immediately answered: "it's Grace Lutheran Church in Fort Worth (TX)!"  My dear mother-in-law will be 92 years old in a few weeks. She is the younger daughter (her sister passed away in 2000) of a Lutheran pastor who served congregations in Swedesburg and Essex (IA), Wahoo (NE), Fort Worth (TX), and Altona (IL) Mom's happiest memories surface when she relates stories of growing up living in church parsonages and the advenures that she and her sister had. She was sixteen years old when her family came to live in Fort Worth. In this church she played the piano as a teenager. It was here that she met my future father-in-law. They married here in 1944 (he was on leave from the AAF during WWII). In this church sanctuary their first son was baptized.  I could tell by her wistful gaze that she was reliving all of those moments, she couldn't take her eyes from the photograph.  But then, doubt crept in; perhaps she was scared to trust her immediate response due to her age and her faltering memory, I'm not sure. She looked up and said "I think it's Fort Worth... but I'm not completely sure that I remember."  We needed confirmation. I sent the photo in an e-mail to the current pastor serving this congregation; I explained that Mom was a member and that her father had been the pastor. I learned from their website that the original building pictured here is long gone, the church moved to a new bulding in a new location in 1957, but I was hopeful that someone may recognize this historical photo. My query was met with almost immediate success!  The pastor promptly responded with this message: "this  is a wonderful photo of the sanctuary at Grace in it's original Hemphill St. location.  I have seen this photo or one like it in an album that had been put together for the congregations 100th anniversary.  The large painting behind the altar is still displayed in the Narthex of the church at our current 7900 McCart Ave. location, along with the cornerstone engraving from the original building.  Rev. Johnson's portrait photo is displayed in our hallway among the other pastors who have served Grace over the years noting that he served from 1938-1946, see photos below.    We currently have a 3 members who are over 90 still attending regularly.  I'll ask if they were at Grace at the time and remember pastor Johnson, the one who I am certain was here at that time,  passed away last year, Isabelle Becker.  Her family members still attend."

     

Mom's instinct was right; her memory had not let her down!  I could scarcely wait to get this information and these additional photos to her; she hasn't been feeling well lately and I had a hunch that this would be good medicine. I am grateful beyond measure to the pastor for his prompt reply and his  kindness in providing so much more than I had requested.  Mom was so happy to receive this yesterday... to see her precious Daddy's face once again and to be affirmed in her own recollection of a location that was once so familiar to her. She remembered the recently departed lady mentioned in the e-mail, and even told me all about her and her family!  These memories, more than anything else, bring the greatest joy.  Yes, every picture does tell a story, for someone; something this simple can provide a very bright spot in the life of a loved one.... what unexpected surprises might just be lurking in your own closets, drawers and shoe boxes? 

Life is Good!

What's Underfoot (Paw) and Under The Needle

We have new rugs in the kitchen, the old ones had served their purpose and lasted for ten+ years; Mr. Goodneedle saw these in the LLBean catalog and thought they'd look good, I agreed and the order was placed. We had two of the grandchildren here, napping, when the rugs arrived. We opened the package, unrolled the rugs, and immediately placed them on the floor. Gregory awakened a short time after that and when he came into the kitchen he walked right on this rug, looked down, and asked "what's this"? We told him that Nana and Pawpaw bought new rugs. "Oh", he answered, with a sad voice, "I liked the old ones better". He's a funny little boy. At 3 years of age he has already told us that he "really loved" the old TV in the kitchen after it was replaced with an under-cabinet mounted flat screen and he claims that the old sofa his parents got rid of, in favor of a new sectional, was his favorite sofa! With apologies to his Methodist grandparents, it looks to me, through this mindset of his, as though Gregory is truly Lutheran through and through! There are no complaints on the new rugs from Hannes; they're hooked from 100% wool and are super warm and cushiony underfoot, he loves them... and so do we!

Sundance and have I spent a good amount of time quilting this week, as many hours as we could squeeze in. For some (crazy?) reason I decided to quilt this one with dense background fill stitches; it's coming along, and I do love the results, and yet... it's s-l-o-w going (lots of hours and thread). I've named this one "How Much Is That Doggie?", it measures 52" X 59". The pattern, "Nickel Dogs" (the puppies can all be made up from five inch charm squares), is available from Me and My Sisters. It's a good feeling to get this one out of the to-be-quilted queue.

Life is Good!

I'm Right Behind You

This slogan was recently spotted on a T-shirt. Being a certified creature of habit, not to mention a Lutheran, I always get the same results because I... well, you know the rest. I've been told, and I believe, that change is growth and growth is life; you already know that life is good, so does that translate to Change is Good? Hmmm... what do you think? Do I need this shirt? Do you? Go ahead... you get one and let me know how that works out for you! I'll be waiting to hear.

Life is Good!

Preschool Pot-Luck?

When my daughter picked Mason up from Preschool earlier this week she was informed that one thing that he was going to need to work on was eating only HIS OWN lunch! My daughter was surprised by this information but assured the teacher that they would discuss this at home. Mason chatted on about "Casey's lunch" as they drove home, wearing some other child's (probably Casey's!) tell-tale strawberry jelly on his face! He now understands that he is to eat only what mommy puts in MASON'S lunchbox. I believe when they all sat down to eat that he thought it was a Preschool Pot-luck; hey, he is Lutheran after all!

Life is Good!

Wild Woman, That's Me...

... but not TOO Wild, I'm a Lutheran after all!

I'm off for the weekend with my daughter, and over a hundred other women, on a Wild Women retreat to study and reflect on Dreams and Visions, both in the Bible, and in life. It will be a weekend among the Lutherans... no doubt "strong women with good-looking husbands and above average children"*! I received this book yesterday from Quiltkeemosabe and am absolutely loving it, Garrison Keillor's humor is dry and self-deprecating, the book is a compilation of tales from the fictional Lake Woebegon and life among the proud (but not TOO proud) Lutherans who live there. Back to this weekend; there is a pajama party (and PJ fashion show!) scheduled for Saturday evening, now that will be as wild as it gets for yours truly! My jammies of choice...

...what else?!...
Life is Good!

*paraphrased-- Keillor's description of the residents of Lake Woebegone

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes...

Change is at hand. I don't deal with well with change, I am a Lutheran after all! There's a lot of truth in the old joke about how many Lutherans it takes to change a light bulb: 9--One to replace the bulb along with a committee of eight to discuss how much they'll miss the old bulb.

This photo has nothing to do with my own personal change, but it is all about reform; Lutheran humor, I couldn't resist!

My husband retires on the 30th of June. Everyone I know has given me coping tips. I really don't think I'll mind having him home all day everyday, we've done this before... his first "retirement" yielded us this house! OK, so he likes to keep busy. So do I. My own daily schedule may get tweaked a bit, I've never exactly stopped what I was doing to fix, eat and clean up after lunch. That will be a big change for me, I'm used to eating a sandwich with one hand and machine quilting with the other. I'm going to have to develop more flexibility, I think I can do that, I can learn to bend. I may not win any limbo contests but some flexibility would be beneficial for this old Lutheran, don't you think? I might even throw caution to the wind and start cleaning the house on Mondays! Ha, just teasing, I haven't lost my mind, no need to worry.

Life is Good!
...and getting better by the day...