Hey, you found me....And Welcome

Thank you for visiting “Cabin by the Creek” The creek is “Teges Creek”. The land it sits on is part of the original track of land settled by Adoniram Allen, back in the early 1800’s. He set up a mill a couple of miles up river from the cabin. As an Allen descendant, I am proud of my heritage. That heritage includes my physical genealogy as well as the history and culture which make me, well, me.

The mountain culture has long taken a beating over the stereotypical accumulated “junk”. Pictures printed in magazines and scenes viewed on television make us look like we are just too lazy to clean up and throw away the junk. There are several reasons for the junk. One of the reasons is the self-sustaining tradition that has everything to do with our geography, history and culture. Nothing got thrown away. Clay County folks were recycling 200 years before recycling became cool. That tradition still exists in the form of crafts.

Back in the day, going to the store meant traveling 25 miles in a wagon. Purchasing “Brought on” items was limited. Only the most needed items that couldn’t be made at home were bought ready made. Most everything could be and was recycled into something needed. The artistry and craftsmanship was born from the individual pride worked into handmade items.

My grandfather’s whittled. They searched out perfect pieces of cedar. I never did know what that ‘perfect’ was, other than it was about 12 to 18 inches long and small enough in width to hold comfortably in one hand. Sometimes I think they competed as to who could cast the finest curled shavings. My grandmothers took the shavings stuffed them in cheese cloth, gauze, or lace packets, creating closet and drawer sachets. Cedar is a natural insect deterrent.

“Cabin by the Creek” is my way of preserving a bit of that culture and tradition in the 21st Century. Crafted items are recycled from something else; with materials I happen to have at hand. The items are meant to be used. No two are exactly alike. My skill level is limited and thus my crafted items are simple. My grandmother Allen made ‘Postage Stamp’ quilts with a needle and thread (not sewing machine). Each quilt piece was the size of a stamp. After the third one, she even said “No more.” She was in her 80’s, at the time.

Examples of the tradition continuing into this century include a set of dinner napkins I made. I needed a set of good ‘white’ napkins to go with my good dinnerware (purchased at Wal-mart). I had an old white bed skirt with lace edging that had been allocated to the linen drawer. I took the skirting and made 8 new dinner napkins complete with lace edging.

Better yet, I hope I’ve given you ideas on which to ponder, specifically to your family heritage and heirlooms.

Saturday, September 25, 2010

God's Temple

  Joshua and his momma had gone to the corner market for necessities, as she called them.  Joshua wasn't quite sure what ne-ces-sities meant, because momma never got the same thing twice.  The one thing she got most often was a pack of cigarettes.  Today, she lit a cigarette as soon as they got back into the car.  It smelled awful and filled the car with stinky smoke.  What he really couldn't understand was that she breathed in the smoke straight from the cigarette.  It didn't make sense to Joshua that his momma, who seemed very wise, having an answer for just about every question he asked, would want to breathe in the smoke. 
  Joshua thought about yesterday's sermon.  During the sermon, Joshua had been playing with his Sabbath toys on the church pew.  Momma always packed a special Sabbath bag for him.  She kept his Sabbath toys separate from the rest of his toys.  He only played with Sabbath toys on Sabbath or during extra special family worship time.  Each week there was something different in the bag.  Yesterday, the Sabbath bag had Noah's Ark, with lots of animals.  There was a new lion family added to the set.  There were felt story people.  This week momma had put in the characters from the Baby Moses story.  There was a Bible Story Coloring Book with a box of crayons.  There was a bag with cheerios, nuts, and raisins.  There was a small juice container.  Down in the very bottom was a plastic peel and stick picture board with Jesus surrounded by people and children. And, the children got to be closer.  Sometimes he would put Jesus sitting on the rock, and sometimes Jesus was sitting in the sand.  He was pretending that he was one of the children sitting close to Jesus when her heard the pastor say, "Jesus lives in you". Even while he played,  Joshua would listen for the words he understood.  Yesterday, he knew a lot of the words.  But, momma's smoking confused him.  It didn't match the words.
    "Momma", he asked, "Are our bodies God's Temple"?
    Momma replied, pridefully, "Yes, they are."  She thought about yesterday's sermon.  Momma was so proud.  Joshua had listened to the sermon.  He wasn't just playing on the church pew.
   "Momma", he asked, "Does Jesus live in us?"
   Momma was absolutely beaming when she answered, "Yes, He does".  Momma's thoughts were racing with mommy pride.  She couldn't stop smiling.  She was astounded that a four year old could possibly understand the concept.  "My child is brilliant", she thought.  "God is going to do something special with him."
   "Momma, he asked, looking up with very serious wide brown eyes,  "Aren't you choking Jesus?"
   Momma's face suddenly changed.  Her pink cheeks turned a dreary day gray she hesitated, then then answered, "Yes, I am."  Momma's pride had turned to quiet shame.
  Joshua noticed later that when Momma did her devotions she didn't smoke.  Then he noticed that she didn't smoke on Sabbath.  One day he realized Momma wasn't smoking at all.  He ran to his Momma and gave her a big hug and asked, "Jesus can breathe now, can't He, Momma?"
  Momma smiled, "Yes, He can", scooping Joshua up into her arms for a special hug.


Posted by at
Labels:

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)