07.25.08
Posted in Nature at 10:36 pm by Administrator
Pat at Sculptured Rocks, Groton, NH
This morning, before it became too hot, Jim and I took a ride to Groton to see a geologic rock formation carved by nature, thousands of years ago. Through this gorge, called “Sculptured Rocks,” runs the Cockermouth River. Cockermouth is a name that originated in England. Most of the settlers of this area were English or Scots-Irish.
The morning was beautiful and clear. The woods were wet from yesterday’s torrential rains. I enjoyed seeing the various forest plants, the large mushrooms, the ferns, and the moss. This spot is a local swimming hole for those who want to cool off. Emerging from viewing the rushing waters and rock formations, we found wild low bush blueberries to pick and eat, near the road.
The cool air coming off the water was refreshing. We followed up this experience with a stop at the Nature Trail in Hebron, owned by the Audubon Society. We saw no birds, just heard a crow, but underfoot, there were two tiny toads, on the just mowed field trail. All in all, we had a pleasant time.
Patricia Cummings
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Posted in Quilt History at 2:53 am by Administrator
Today, I had the distinct privilege of reading two, 5 year diaries of the woman whose life I have been intently studying since March. Just when I thought that I might be getting close to being ready to create a Bibliography, I realize that I have more to do. This document is not officially a report any more. Rather, it is an “e-book,” as the text exceeds 100 pages, in addition to the several hundred pages plus of “quilt charts.” Reading the diaries elicited a verbal “Wow” on quite a few occasions.
Entries mention when she created various charts, and where she gave quilt, bird, and Bible lectures, and other details that are just too extraordinary for words.
I am the recipient of additional photos of Ellen Webster’s family members, and they are wonderful in a way that only old photos can be.
This will be a continuing marathon for me to collate all the new information and to wind down toward completing this project. I can not remember when I have had so much fun with a research project, and I am eagerly anticipating everyone’s enjoyment of the final product.
Patricia Cummings
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07.22.08
Posted in History, Musings at 12:49 am by Administrator
What do you think of when you think of the “West?” Or, do you think of it, at all? We have just been watching the PBS series, “The West,” produced by Ken Burns. I must say that it has been an eye-opening experience. I have lost count of the number of social injustices, not to even mention the senseless slaying of the American Indians, their placement on reservations, and the outrageous slaughter of Buffalo, for monetary gain, for sport, and to deprive Native Americans of their main source of food, tepee material, and warm covers.
This summer, I saw a few Buffalo in a zoo. They are large, rather sedentary creatures. The show states that if one of them is hurt, the whole herd gathers around, making each of them easy for the hunter’s gun to “pick off.”
I become enraged at injustice, and that is pretty visible at every turn, when we look at the history of western expansion.
I lived in California in Joshua Tree country, up with the Roadrunners and rattlesnakes. We could see the snow-capped mts. from our desert home, and we could hear the winds that would blow piles of sand right through the closed windows.
I lived in Arizona, and saw the beauty of Snapdragons growing in the Japanese Gardens, and climbed to the top of South Mountain that overlooks the Valley of the Sun (or was it Sun Valley)- it’s a lifetime ago!
When I think of the “west,” I like to recall going over the border into Mexico, and horsebackriding along the sands of a beach at Ensenada, while watching the sparkling waters, glowing in the sun.
I don’t like to think about American troops hunting Pancho Villa. I don’t like to consider the diseases along the wagon trail, every malady from measles to cholera. I don’t like to think about how much the Chinese were hated, merely for working harder than any of the other gold diggers during the Gold Rush Days of ‘49.
I think we have come along way. I also believe that we can never fully appreciate the present, until we at least look at the past, although much of what happened we can never fully grasp. We would have had to have lived then. That’s not to say that we cannot turn a critical eye to historical topics, as we try to make sense of events.
In my dreams of the “west,” I’ll be remembering the Mourning Dove and her nest in the Saguaro cactus at the Botanical Gardens in Phoenix. I will recall taking my young son (who now has a young son of his own) to the Phoenix Zoo, in a stroller. I’ll ponder the wonderment of walking along my own street and seeing large Prickly Pear cacti and their fruits.
And, because God gives us thorns, as well as roses, I will never forget a neighbor who desperately wanted us to convert to his religion. He would customarily “gift” us with his homemade Grapefruit jelly. He would watch out the window and the minute he’d see us, he’d run right out with yet another jar of the delicious jelly. By the time we moved away, we must have had several gallons of the stuff. More than anything, it became a contest as to whether we could get in the car, in the carport, and drive away before he would nail us for an hour, with his preaching.
Mostly, I’ll try to keep in mind the “west” as I knew it for about five years. Series such as the one we are watching (and which I bought) provides an historical perspective. Thinking about our roots, as a country, is never a bad thing. This is another wonderful series that is associated with Ken Burns, a New Hampshire film producer whose name is linked to quality documentaries. I highly recommend “The West.”
Patricia Cummings
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