CollectIn Texas Gal: 03/2013

3/30/13

AtoZ 2013...Inspired by Texas Pioneer Quilters

I look over the landscape of genealogy to discover the footprints of those who went before me...My Ancestors. I am awed by their feeble attempt to speak to me through their paper trails, photographs and hearsay of where and how they lived.

When I meet with them at the threshold of history, the discover is so exciting to reconnect with those whom I never knew existed. It is a family reunion on the plains of imagination.

It is like meeting them this side of heaven before the grand finale of personal passage. The sad note is the wall that stands as a divider between me and them, yet to be discovered.

There is always hope of another discovery today...maybe...tomorrow on the landscape of genealogy.
(The Landscape by Fred M. Fariss)

I love this line....."I am awed by their feeble attempt to speak to me through their paper trails, photographs and hearsay of where and how they lived."

As a Family Historian, I have truly been awed by the voices of my ancestors as I follow their paper trails, pour over their photographs, research and study the times in which they lived, and wonder how much of them is mirrored in me. For instance, my lifelong interest in all things vintage especially needlework, sewing and quilting.

Was my Great Grandmother Martha Jane a quilter? I'm still searching for the answer to that question. Regardless, she has been the inspiration for many of the stories and posts in last years AtoZ My Family Tree including The Letter Q Post entitled...

Families Are Like Quilts...Stitched Together One Piece At A Time

Research and study of the women in my Family Tree, as well as Quilting History and Collecting Vintage Quilts through the years has given me a wealth of information in which to base the stories of this years Blogging From AtoZ April Challenge.

The AtoZ Lone Star Quilting Bee

It's Monday night and my first time to attend the Courthouse Stitchers Monthly Meeting. As I walked up the steps and into the foyer of what was once a grand old Texas Courthouse, I was struck by how familiar it felt. Weird, I thought to myself....I've never been here before, but there wasn't time to dwell on it, as Alma was waving me over to the center of the large community meeting room where THREE large quilt frames were setup in a horseshoe shape.

It didn't take much to figure out that Alma was the head honcho of the group as she rapidly explained how informal the meeting was and that the business part of the meeting was getting to the business of quilting. So without further ado she introduced me to the ladies sitting around the first frame which she referred to as the 'A-Frame'.

Please join me for the rest of 'The A-Frame...AtoZ Letter A' on April 1st.