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Classy Ladies and Ordinary Things |
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Written by Jan Parker
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Tuesday, 17 July 2007 |
 Reg and I were at breakfast with the extended family we are lucky enough to have nearby to celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary the other day. Reg and I grew up in the same small town. I lived on the ocean side of town and he lived on the country side. Because of this and the fact that he was two years older, we didn’t go to the same school until Junior High. His younger brother was in my class. It wasn’t until I was a sophomore that I even noticed he (or his brother for that matter) existed. Once we noticed each other, however, we were together from then on. We dated for the next three years then married and here we are 35 years later! But I digress.
 At this breakfast, my mother was wearing a necklace I have seen many, many times. She is a very classy lady and always dressed for the occasion. This necklace was in fact, made by my favorite aunt, her older sister, Kay. I may have mentioned Kay in other blogs or if I haven’t, I’m sure I will. She was class all the way. She didn’t have any children of her own so she and her husband had what we thought was a glamorous life. He was a business owner and a state senator and she belonged to the garden club and lived on the right side of town. She loved to garden, arrange flowers, make dried floral arrangements and made crafts for the church fairs. She had a room in her house dedicated to just “stuff.” Ribbons, pom poms, silk flowers, wire, tools, sewing paraphernalia filled every nook and cranny of that room. The rest of her house was picture perfect, filled with antiques and fine decorating which she did herself. Her yard was filled with gardens that went completely around the large back yard. They were gorgeous. Needless to say, she didn’t have a “job.”
 So, two classy ladies and one of them is with us, wearing a necklace that was made by the other. Heather comments on the necklace as one she remembers from her childhood. She remembers her Aunt Kay making them. She is surprised that her grandmother still has it and still wears it. My mother replies that she wears it all the time and gets many positive comments on it every time she wears it. Grandson Max asks if he can look it over and she graciously lets him take it. I can see his brain is working a mile a minute figuring out how it was made and thinking he would like to make one too. Heather says maybe they can get the material they need from his “other grandfather” who is an electrician. Why an electrician? Because the necklace is made out of multicolored phone wire! Kay saw one someplace, my mother says and decided to make some. So, now my mother wears it to feel close to her sister who is now gone. My daughter remembers it being made and thinking what a pretty necklace made from ordinary wire. My grandson has had his imagination sparked with visions (at age 4 – or 4 and three quarters as he reminds me) of how it was made and how he can make one better. How long will this necklace spark the imaginations of family members? Who knows, but I think it has already done its work. Passing down the ideas that even classy ladies can wear necklaces made out of ordinary things and even something as humble as phone wire, when combined with creativity, can spark the imagination of generations. |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 19 July 2007 )
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