it is of green depression glass. it belonged to partner's mother and this is one of the few stuff i rescued from the auctioneers after mother died. i'm pretty sure mother would've been happy knowing she had an ally in me. i was the only one in the family who showed any interest in her stuff and i'm not even real family.
her name was jean. she was born in 1907. her parents were sort of well-off - her father owned the only car dealership in lynden, ontario. her mother died when she was young and her father remarried but she and the second wife were not close. she learned to drive when she was just 12 and travelled ontario extensively.
she was the family historian and i revelled in reading the dozens and dozens of binders she kept in her bedroom and cellar, all in her beautiful handwriting. i remember people dropping by sometimes to ask her when so and so died or to confirm someone's relation to a family in the next town. i so wanted to keep those binders but at the last minute one of her grandaughters wanted to have them.
she dreamed of going to scotland where her ancestors came from, but never got around to doing so. one time, i showed her a photo i took of a pub outside glasgow when i went there in the 80's. she abruptly stood up and took one of her binders and showed me a photo of a relative she had never personally met and known only through correspondence and that one photo - the relative and a friend were standing outside in the front of the same pub.
i remember her most when one day, partner's kids were visiting and they were playing cards or something with mother. the youngest one was being a hotdog, bragging that he would beat everyone. when mother won, she quipped to the young man: "i'm just old, you know, i'm not dead yet" and she promptly took the money from the pot.
-o0o-
thank you once again, my friends, for your views and comments; know that they are much appreciated.
What an amazing story! And the glass platter is also gorgeous! But her story was even better! I have been wanting to write down my mom's ( and other family stories) that I always tell my students..stories that are legend in our family but we may forget. and memories of just things mom and i did/know also. It is hard to find the time, but I really want to before I forget them! I think my brothers' kids will like to read them one day. Anyway. thanks for sharing this!
@espyetta - i say do it now. yes, your nieces and nephews and cousins will appreciate those stories. do it on your computer or open a blog account and just type away there. thank you, MB.
@pandorasecho - i did, dixie. she was probably wondering all those times who i was but i know she trusted me and she loved me. when she was already staying in a home, i would sometimes pick her up even when partner was away. as soon as she saw me, she picked up her cane and would say bye to her friends, and walked proudly towards the car. she said it made her depressed staying there. and you could see the other residents, with envy and longing in their faces. i loved that woman like i would have if my own mother was alive. thank you.
What a beautiful plate and awesome story about her, summerfield. So many families don't care about the history and the beautiful items that our grandmother's or other relatives cherished. Your loyalty to her is absolutely beautiful and heart-warming. You're a very warm and loving person ... and a special thank you for the little poem to go with my photo tonight. That made me smile and I appreciate it very much.
@karenann - thank you, karenann. it's also like my family and relatives. there's so many secrets that nobody wants to talk about. i tell them all they would suffer longer if they don't tell me and that if i made up a story they wouldn't like it. nobody's biting! you're welcome on the poem.
Fabulous story and fascinating life. Wonderful plate too. I do love depression glass. Family history is so precious. I have recently discovered new stories and personalities in my own family. I had no idea we were so interesting! I actually met two living relatives recently we didnt know we had until I started rattling the skeletons in the closet. LOL
a real treasure, as are you. i can picture her, walking proudly out to your car. what a joy that must have been for her. when my dad was in a home, i would just pop in - with my job back then i was always somewhere in the Kingdom. somedays he knew me, somedays he didn't but others did. my mom and sister had made it impossible for me to be there while they were around. it was awesome to spend time with him and the others there. he used to think he he was eating at a restaurant all the time and kept trying to pay for his meals - but did not have his wallet. yes, memories are precious and should be recorded.
@noo - thank you, denise. i've rattled a few nerves, too, but some relatives want to be 'paid' for telling me the story. did i bite? no way! i can put two and two together and when i tell them what i think they shut up...which means my suppositions could turn out to be the truth. i love family secrets!
@myautofocuslife - mother's partner was indeed an amazing woman. i loved her dearly. thank you, livia.
@steeler - thank you, howard. enjoy your weekend,too!
@catsmeowb - thank you, camille. this lady loved it when we came to pick her up on saturdays. one time partner was away and i drove her around, it was a beautiful summer day, and i treated her to lunch and ice cream. she enjoyed it so much, she told me when i brought her to her room, "let's do that again next time!" and i said, "you're on." and i could see the sparkle in her eyes.
@olivetreeann - thank you, ann. to tell you the truth, i didn't clue in on the white and green thing until you mentioned it. i was just doing the motions of photographing the radiator and putting something to prettify it :-) because i really didn't know how to go about this challenge. i also didn't notice the alignment of the black table cloth until danielle commented in the blue vase that something was not straight, and when i straightened it resulting in the mis-alignment of the black stripe that was the only time i realized there was also a horizontal line going on in my project. until then, i was totally clueless! :-)
@summerfield Some of those "coincidences" are something we "see" but we don't really see- it just happens as we shoot and then we're surprised by it when someone else notices!
@summerfield Thats the way to treat that behavior. Ignore em, You will find out eventually. My family secrets happened about a hundred and fifteen years ago. And as it turned out all of us alive now, were in the dark, no knowledge of the others. The internet is a marvelous thing. ~:)
@summerfield Ohhh OK. My great grandma was a much older mans mistress and she ran away with him in 1896. His wife put out an arrest warrant for him and they were pursued for three years before he was caught, in another state, and dragged home to his now rather elderly wife. Unfortunately my GGma was heavily pregnant with twins and she was left destitute when he was sent back to his wife. She had the twins (both died at about 6 weeks old from whooping cough) and she remained in my home town and the family eventually flourished from there. He was also the father of my Grandfather. She told everyone she was a widow. and that was the accepted story, but we knew something was suspect about the story. She had no living relatives that we knew of, she had never had any contact with any relatives, including her own, and my Gfather was an only child. We knew there was more to the story, GGma refused to speak of it or him, and it seems had told her son to do the same. We had hit a brick wall for so many years because of her silence and fragmented documents. Then I discovered the internet search engines and online forums and other web places and we slowly unravelled the story. Turns out he had a son to his official wife and the rellies I met were descended from him. I found a very interesting thread on a forum and made contact. We are now all very connected and extremely happy to have discovered the story. (all fully authenticated) And have noted some strong family resemblances. Thats the short version of the story but it has been such a journey to discover it. My mum has not met them yet, but we have plans to reunite, soon. Because of the age difference between my GGF and my GGM we are a full generation behind them. Great stuff. I am a fully addicted genealogist. The best part is I dont have to look any further for that family. My new rellies have the family line back to the 1000's and some lines to the 800's and beyond into dark and misty times. I am still amazed by it all. ~:)
@summerfield PS we only found out about the twins this year too. they were kept secret as well. Their brother (my grandfather) never spoke of them. (he died in 1956)
Fabulous story. Love your memories of your mother in law. Well written. I am glad you kept the plate. It belongs in your line up. Nice capture and again story.
@myautofocuslife - mother's partner was indeed an amazing woman. i loved her dearly. thank you, livia.
@steeler - thank you, howard. enjoy your weekend,too!
@olivetreeann - thank you, ann. to tell you the truth, i didn't clue in on the white and green thing until you mentioned it. i was just doing the motions of photographing the radiator and putting something to prettify it :-) because i really didn't know how to go about this challenge. i also didn't notice the alignment of the black table cloth until danielle commented in the blue vase that something was not straight, and when i straightened it resulting in the mis-alignment of the black stripe that was the only time i realized there was also a horizontal line going on in my project. until then, i was totally clueless! :-)