Blocks 5 and 6

 Today was Family Day again.

Whenever I think of my brother Lee

I automatically think of a baseball catcher.

I think that,

from the time I was four

until I was 14 or 15,

I spent every summer

at a baseball diamond

 watching him.

Well, truth be told,

I probably spent

a lot more of that time

playing at the playgrounds,

but you get my gist.

Block #5

is my representation of Lee.

Ever tried to make a ball out of squares?

How about a catchers mitt

 which is one big circle . . .

except for the thumb indent

and the squared off bottom

that opens for the wrist.

I can remember his mitt,

resting on,

or in,

the small dresser that was in his closet.

It felt so soft to the touch . . .

and the lacings were always worn.

I included the  lacing

so you can tell where the thumb has some motion.

Block #6

is for Grandma . . .

right next to Mom,

her daughter.

I have a lot of memories of Grandma.

The one that always comes to mind . . .

her sitting in her rocker

beside the dining room window

crocheting dish cloths

for Aunt Helen to sell

at General Tire.

Her pattern was nothing more than #10 cotton

crocheted with a steel hook.

It had a chain base

and the rows were:

 double crochet,

chain 1,

skip 1,

double crochet again.

This pattern was repeated

until the height she wanted

was achieved.

Dc, *ch 1, sk 1, dc,*

repeat from * to * across,

ch 2, turn.

Very simple instructions

for something that lasted forever.

Not only do I have

one or two of her cloths

but she also gave me my love of crochet.

You can tell by the complete photo

that I have two more blocks started.

To be honest, only 1 block is started,

that being the black one.

It is for my Grandpa Gaumer.

The brown X is just that

 a brown X.

(Oh,

I capitalized Grandpa's name for a reason . . .

he had the thickest white hair

for a man his age.

So I had to make his name thick and white.)

I have yet to decide what I want for myself

but I know I will be in this space.

I'm laughing because

 it sounds like

my plot at the cemetery in Logan.

I know I will  be buried right next to Mom

but I don't know when.

Dear Lord,

Thank you for allowing me to live with Grandma. I am sure it was rough on her . . . she would have been in her late 60's when I was born . . . but I can tell from the earliest pictures with her that she did enjoy me. It's just that the clearer memories are from when she got older and I am sure she would have loved to have had a quieter home.

And thank you for giving me Lee. I always knew how much I loved him, even though our family doesn't display affection. But when I went back home for the 1st time after we moved to Western New York, I could see how much he missed me in his smile. That truly warmed my soul. We seldom saw each other when I lived at home, except the kids birthdays and Christmas . . . but we each knew the other one was there, safe and sound. Now . . . the miles between us make the times we do see each other more precious.

Amen.

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