The Turtle: A True Story
by Patricia L. Cummings
When I was a little girl, many moons ago, for some reason, I decided that I really, really like turtles. I like that they are green. I like that, sometimes, their under-shell is "painted." I like their natural defense system of being able to retract their heads and their legs into a protective shell, when threatened. I like the way they mosey along, at their own pace, and sometimes, even at their own peril, when they meander into the road on a warm summer's night.
A turtle in the wild, near our home in Concord, NH. photo by James Cummings
Gift of Reading Material
When I was eight years old, a former neighbor who had remained a friend of the family, came to visit. She brought me a book entitled, We Are Neighbors (Boston, etc,: Ginn and Company, 1948, 1953, 1957). She taught the "big kids" in the fifth grade, as I recall. I enjoyed the textbook style, hardcover book she gave me. In it, there is a poem about turtles written by John T. Moore.
The Turtle
The turtle thinks
of many things ;
He thinks of bugs
with glassy wings,
He thinks of minnows
in a school,
He think of lilies
on the pool ;
But he thinks long,
and he thinks well,
Before he comes
out of his shell !
That endearing poem only increased my love of turtles. However, it didn't take much to encourage me to like turtles any more than I already did!
An appliquéd turtle block adapted from a traditional pieced design. Two black beads have been added for "eyes," since this photo was taken.
Made by Patricia Cummings on 4-18-07; photo by Jim Cummings
The Five and Dime Store
Conveniently, tiny turtles were sold at Woolworth's in downtown Manchester, a place frequented by my mother and I. She would take me there to buy me collectible postage stamps, and doilies, toaster covers, and dresser scarves to embroider, and we would linger over a Hot Fudge sundae, with nuts and whipped cream. Those were the days! Woolworth's also sold turtles.
Anything To Keep Her Quiet
My mother's motto, I believe, was "anything to keep her quiet." Having had me late in life, at thirty-nine, and she longed for some peace and quiet. I could be such a noisy critter!
So, when I started to politic about getting a turtle, we were soon picking out a little plastic bowl with a lifted area so that the creature could rest, out of the water. I loved the turtle and always made sure he (or she?) had fresh greens to eat and little chunks of fresh hamburger. Finding that in the refrigerator was no problem, as it seems my mother was constantly buying ground meat.
Missing Turtle
When my parents went to New York City to take in a few Broadway shows for their 25th Wedding Anniversary, they left the "kids" on their own. I remember that my two older brothers, Jack and Steve, were in charge of watching out for me. After all, mom and dad were going to be gone only for a brief time so they thought that we'd all do just fine.
While they were away, my turtle, whose name I have long forgotten, "showed up missing." I was convinced that my brothers had pulled some kind of evil deed by hiding my turtle. Yet, they swore up and down that they were not to blame.
Turtle Located
Weeks later, I was home from school, sick. My mother let me sleep in her bed so that she could more easily check on me, rather than go up and down the stairs. I was delirious with fever, so I didn't know whether to believe my eyes or not when I saw a "Dust Bunny" walking across her bedroom floor, after appearing from under the bed. But, no! Look again! It is my beloved turtle wrapped in a coating of lint! We dusted him off and happily returned him to his rightful "pond" in the plastic bowl. He lived to a ripe old age, for turtles, that is.
~The End~
How is it that I have been captured so totally in a design? :)
"Murtle Turtle," was purchased as a finished motif, (from ??) in a packet of seven different action turtles. A little sleuth work uncovered that the designs, often used for "Day of the Week" towels, were marketed by "Aunt Martha," in the 1930s.
scan by James Cummings
One Good Turtle Story Deserves Another!
4/17/07 - Reader Mail
Love your web site. I feel like we may be a clone of one another. The turtle story hit too close to home. I have always been fascinated by them and could spend many hours at the pond waiting for one to poke his head up over the water or climb onto a fallen tree. Santa brought one for my son and it went missing. I looked for hours only to discover that the vent cover was off (we were redoing the downstairs at the time.) I panicked. My husband was at work, my son was in tears, and I knew where the vent ended up - the furnace! I had to get very brave and put a flashlight into the duct work. About three long minutes later, out walked dusty, dusty, "Hal."
Are you wondering why my son named him Hal? (I bet you are!). My son had a great fascination with Hal Morris, who played first base for the Cincinnati Reds. We took him to a baseball game in Pittsburgh, where the Reds played the Pittsburgh Pirates. His friends said we should go and wait by a certain door after the game ended because that is where all the players exited the building. We did as we were told and waited for fifty minutes and sure enough Hal Morris walked out. My son had moons in his eyes! After a few seconds, he asked and received his autograph and blurted out, "I named my turtle after you." Hal Morris was completely speechless. The look on his face was priceless. How many young fans name their pet turtles after baseball players?
Julie Liebendorfer
Note: Julie has provided photos of blocks from an embroidered 1930s Outline Stitch embroidered quilt in her collection: Turtle Quilt Blocks Included is a turtle playing baseball!
"Murtle Turtle," personifies what we are doing a lot of the time!
The set I received via an online auction was machine embroidered with rayon thread. The designs are still sold today as "Murtle Turtles" #3766. The last known link where a set of motifs could be found to buy is:
http://www.yesteryeardepot.com/AM3766.JPG
©Copyright 2007. Patricia Cummings, Quilter's Muse Publications, Concord, New Hampshire. All rights reserved. pat@quiltersmuse.com