Warning to all of you who are reading my posts, this is going to be a long one, because I am taking a trip down memory road. But you are welcome to come along.
Today is my mom’s birthday. She would have been 81 had she lived. She died 8 years ago. I miss her. She was a very kind, gentle and considerate person. She definitely was a small woman but not easily overlooked. She could have an attitude! And she would fight anyone, especially someone she thought was hurting one of her kids. Even when we were all grown up. Wenn we would complain to her about some boss or neighbour being unfriendly, she would stand there in her whole 1.40m looking all ready to fight and offer us to come along to give them a piece of her mind.
My mom and dad (he died two years ago) are buried in a cemetery in my home town. I live very close by. I could visit their grave all the time if I wanted to, but I never do. I am there maybe once a year to clean it before All Saint’s Day, but other than that, I never go. It just doesn’t mean anything to me. It is literally a dead place. There are no good memories there, just memories of funerals and grieving. I don’t feel close to them there. But I have some very ordinary things in my home that harbour so many wonderful memories and that I truly love. When I look at these things, or when I use them, I feel very close to my parents, as if they are still with me.
Here are some of the things of my mom I cherish.
My mom and dad (he died two years ago) are buried in a cemetery in my home town. I live very close by. I could visit their grave all the time if I wanted to, but I never do. I am there maybe once a year to clean it before All Saint’s Day, but other than that, I never go. It just doesn’t mean anything to me. It is literally a dead place. There are no good memories there, just memories of funerals and grieving. I don’t feel close to them there. But I have some very ordinary things in my home that harbour so many wonderful memories and that I truly love. When I look at these things, or when I use them, I feel very close to my parents, as if they are still with me.
Here are some of the things of my mom I cherish.
First there are these two books. One is an original dr. Oetkers baking book from the fifties. It has detailed instructions and recipes (with pictures) of all the different kind of pastries you can make. And all of it is done by hand, there is not even an electric hand mixer in sight. But the recipes are very good, they never go wrong. The book is all greasy and dirty from being used so much, and it still gets dirtier because I continue to use it. The other book is a cookbook of my mother she had and used when she was in boarding school when she was a little girl. Back then good little girls were sent to the nuns for a year or two to learn how to be good housewives and mothers (what those nuns knew about being married or having children I don’t know, but they sure did learn my mum how to cook and bake!). This book is full of very basic how-to’s in the kitchen and the best are some scribbled notes from my mother, her handwriting was terrible.
Everytime I use my sewing machine I feel that my mom is very close to me. It used to be my mom’s but it isn’t the one I remember her with most. She used to own this old grey singer machine. Very reliable but heavy! Men, you could kill an elephant with it, that is, if you could find someone strong enough to lift it and throw it. As a child I often wore clothes my mom made herself, and I think my older sisters started out with only handmade dresses and skirts. My mom was great at all kinds of crafts: sewing, spinning, weaving, needlework, knitting, you name it, at one time she even was into making lace. But it ran in the family. Her mother was a seamstress who owned her own shop and sewing workplace (She definitely was a modern women for her time! I never knew my grandmother, she died before I was born). I still have one of the wooden clothes hangers form her shop, with her name printed on it. I so wish I had inherited these women’s talents, but I do have my love for fabric and crafts from them.
And in my kitchen I use these. Some of my mom’s baking tools. They bring back strong memories. On Saturday, especially if we were expecting company on Sunday or all of my brothers and sisters would come home for the weekend (I have four siblings, two of each, all older than me) she would bake pies. ‘Vlaaien’ to be precise. And they were good! I remember her rolling out the dough on the kitchen table and me mixing the sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle over the apples. She’d bake two or three at the same time. And the first one coming out of the oven would be put outside or in the garage, to cool off faster. And we would eat it while it was still so hot that you would burn your mouth on the hot fruit. But that smell was just too good to resist. I truly regret not having learned how to bake those pies myself. I have the recipe she used though, so maybe one day I’ll give it a try.
I also have and use her wedding China. It is a very lovely flower service. It is from some German factory. Some of the pieces are stamped with ‘made in the American sector’, so it dates back from just after WWII. She only used it on special days like Christmas, and so do I. I even still make a little rose in the butter for our Christmas breakfast, just as she taught me. Of course since I inherited the ‘Christmas China’ I have to host the Christmas gathering as well! And love to do it! With all of us children, their partners and the grandchildren there are 13 people (and occasionally an extra guest), but my mother had good foresight, so the service set is big enough for so many people.
And finally my master piece. And hers for that matter. It is a round table cloth. It is knitted! But so delicate you could mistake it for lace. She used to call the technique ‘artknitting’ (kunstbreien) and she made it as part of her wedding trousseau (uitzet). She told me each of those last lines at the outer rim would take her hours to finish and she was a fast knitter! There are beautiful flowers knitted into it. I don’t dare to use it though. There are a few holes in it and I am scared to death that if I use it, it will start to unravel completely. I have looked all over the internet for an expert who could repair it for me, but I haven’t even had any luck in finding someone who knows the technique used. So if any of you wonderful ladies out there, could help me with this, I would be forever grateful!!!!!
Well mom wherever you are, Happy Birthday to you! I am proud to be your daughter.
Je post raakte mij enorm. Ik zou hem, op wat verschillen in details. zelf geschreven kunnen hebben. Helaas. Je moeder zou trots op je zijn.
Ik heb toevallig wel een boekje over kunstbreien met patronen. Toen ik het kocht schreef ik op Picasa, ik weet niet of ik er in dit leven nog aan toekom, maar… Helaas heb ik zelf ook nog nooit geprobeerd, maar zou een oproep op MP misschien een idee zijn. Mensen die dat soort handwerken beheersen hebben vaak hun eigen familie al meer dan voorzien met allerlei nuttige en onnuttige handwerken. Succes!
Je post raakte mij enorm. Ik zou hem, op wat verschillen in details. zelf geschreven kunnen hebben. Helaas. Je moeder zou trots op je zijn.
Ik heb toevallig wel een boekje over kunstbreien met patronen. Toen ik het kocht schreef ik op Picasa, ik weet niet of ik er in dit leven nog aan toekom, maar… Helaas heb ik zelf ook nog nooit geprobeerd, maar zou een oproep op MP misschien een idee zijn. Mensen die dat soort handwerken beheersen hebben vaak hun eigen familie al meer dan voorzien met allerlei nuttige en onnuttige handwerken. Succes!
Hallo Marianne, allereerst wil je heel erg bedanken voor het toekennen van de award voor mijn blog. Voor zo’n beginner als ik, is dat een enorme opsteker hoor !!
Verder wil ik mij aansluiten bij de vorige reactie over jouw post betreffende jouw moeder. Wat fijn dat je zoveel tastbare herinneringen hebt en zelfs gebruikt. Zij is er dan altijd bij.
‘n Fijne dag toegewenst vandaag.
Janneke
Hallo Marianne, allereerst wil je heel erg bedanken voor het toekennen van de award voor mijn blog. Voor zo’n beginner als ik, is dat een enorme opsteker hoor !!
Verder wil ik mij aansluiten bij de vorige reactie over jouw post betreffende jouw moeder. Wat fijn dat je zoveel tastbare herinneringen hebt en zelfs gebruikt. Zij is er dan altijd bij.
‘n Fijne dag toegewenst vandaag.
Janneke
What a lovely post. Brought tears to my eyes. You will miss her for the rest of your life, but you also have all those lovely memories of her.
Your post reminded me of my granny, who was like a 2nd mum to me. She passed away little over 4 years ago and would have been celebrating her 84th birthday this year. That generation was tough as nails and had all those amazing skills we (or at least I) can only dream of…
What a lovely post. Brought tears to my eyes. You will miss her for the rest of your life, but you also have all those lovely memories of her.
Your post reminded me of my granny, who was like a 2nd mum to me. She passed away little over 4 years ago and would have been celebrating her 84th birthday this year. That generation was tough as nails and had all those amazing skills we (or at least I) can only dream of…
Beautiful post. I loved going down memory lane with you. I'm sorry she's no longer with you, but it sounds like she was a wonderful woman and talented too
Thank you for sharing your wonderful treasures.
rue
Beautiful post. I loved going down memory lane with you. I'm sorry she's no longer with you, but it sounds like she was a wonderful woman and talented too
Thank you for sharing your wonderful treasures.
rue
Hello Marianne – thank you for joining the party! What a beautiful post. So sentimental and sweet. Those cook books are so neat. Especially the one your Mom had in boarding school. I love the cover. And the hanger with your Gramma's name on it is so cool! Love the baking tools from your Mom and her pretty china
Hello Marianne – thank you for joining the party! What a beautiful post. So sentimental and sweet. Those cook books are so neat. Especially the one your Mom had in boarding school. I love the cover. And the hanger with your Gramma's name on it is so cool! Love the baking tools from your Mom and her pretty china
oops, part of my comment was cut off! hee hee. I just wanted to finish by saying that I love the table cloth. I've never heard of artknitting before, but it's very beautiful!
Blessings,
Marie
http://emmacallsmemama.com
oops, part of my comment was cut off! hee hee. I just wanted to finish by saying that I love the table cloth. I've never heard of artknitting before, but it's very beautiful!
Blessings,
Marie
http://emmacallsmemama.com
I am enjoying seeing everyone's heirlooms and the stories that go along with them.
I am enjoying seeing everyone's heirlooms and the stories that go along with them.