The Christmas Quilt and the Zion Creek Ladies Circle (part 2)

tathelmillerwriter
6 days ago
9 min read

In case you missed part one of The Christmas Quilt and the Zion Creek Ladies Circle and want to go back and read it, here is the link. https://www.tathelmiller.com/post/the-christmas-quilt-and-the-ladies-of-zion-creek

Come into the Gathering Room at Zion Creek. Make yourself at home. Drink a cup of coffee, hot chocolate, tea--eat a slice of pecan pound cake, cinnamon roll, or munch on Estelle's famous Moravian Sugar Cookies or Bernice's peanut butter cookies. And then pull up a chair at the quilt frame--join in the laughter and sometimes tears, as the Ladies of Zion Creek share their Christmas stories of days past, as they stitch together a very special Christmas quilt.

And the two other boys played the shepherds–LeRoy and Matthew. Now have you ever heard of a shepherd in the Holy Land named LeRoy?! But LeRoy was a surprise–I later ended up marrying him. So I guess it wasn't too bad I was a shepherd."

“Oh my,” Cora gasps–with the other ladies'--in shock--their mouths hanging low like hound dogs on a hunt. “We didn’t know you’d been married before, I mean, before Charlie.”

“Please, let me finish my story!"

"I'm sorry, Bernice, please finish your story," Cora says, apologizing again for the interruption.

"Lands sake! Charlie's full name is Charlie Roy Baker and all us kids, we used to call him LeRoy. Now he's just plain old Charlie.

"Anyway, back to my story. Now, my sister, Lula May she was the Angel Gabriel. Me and LeRoy and Matthew, we were pretending to be asleep--sleeping shepherds. And one of the men in the church brought this big candle and he was standing in the back of the church and when he lit that candle and lifted it high, Lula May was supposed to yell, wake up shepherds! And when she did, LeRoy made this loud snoring noise just like my Daddy did when he was sleeping. The kids and the whole congregation roared in laughter and Miss Delia's face turned bright red--I thought I saw a little steam coming out of her ears too. After the laughing stopped and it got quiet again, the other angels came out on our little stage and I don't remember if it was someone playing an instrument or the sound was from Miss Delia's music box, but the sound was like a thousand birds' wings flapping--the sounds of angels' wings.

"I've thought about that play a lot--it was my favorite one, even though I didn't get to be Mary. I still can hear that sound--of the angels' wings. I don't know about y'all , but I'm looking forward to hearing the angels' wings in heaven. Think about it--close your eyes and imagine what that will sound like! Thousands upon thousands of angels' wings in heaven!

"And me and ole Charlie "LeRoy", after all these years, married and now raising sheep on our little farm. I was meant to be a shepherd. A shepherdess, that is!

"Bernice, I just love that story," Anna Kate says smiling while threading her needle.

Wilma picks up another scrap of fabric, a dark blue with red Christmas berries and cuts out a design that looks a little like a Christmas tree--a rather large Christmas tree.

"What in the crap are you doing Wilma? Christmas trees aren't blue!"

"Estelle, you can't tell me or anyone else here for that matter every stitch to make or the design of this quilt! You are not the boss of the quilt! Ladies, don't y'all agree with me that Estelle is not the boss and my Christmas tree belongs on the quilt--right here in the center?!"

Bea jumps up from her chair, "Ladies, I believe it's time for a snack break, wouldn't everyone agree? I would love one of Cora's cinnamon rolls and try one of Bernice's peanut butter cookies!"

"I have one more branch on my tree to cut and I'll be right there," Wilma shouts.

Estelle sneers under her breath, "Cranky ole woman."

"Look Estelle, my blue tree looks perfect! Right in the center!," and she laughs as she places her blue tree with the red dots down on its rightful place--no where will do, but the center of the Christmas quilt!

Minnie hurries toward the peanut butter cookies--five peanut butter cookies before lunch never hurt anyone--besides, in Minnie's mind they were good for you--peanut butter is an excellent source of protein. That's what they say.

"Those peanut butter cookies are divine Bernice! I love the way you sprinkle the sugar on them while they are still warm. Is this your Mama's recipe?"

"Yes!, Bernice says proudly. "She made them on special occasions and that is, when we could afford a little sugar. At Christmas time Daddy would buy extra sugar if he could, and Mama would bake three whole dozens! My brothers and sisters and I were only allowed to eat two cookies each on Christmas Eve and then on Christmas Day we had to share the rest with our cousins and Grandma and Grandpa.

"Bea, get over here!" Estelle motions--cinnamon roll in one hand--flapping her arm in the air with the other.

"What is it?"

"We can't let Wilma put that hideous blue tree in the middle of the Christmas quilt! It doesn't even look like a tree that much!"

"Estelle, please don't get upset with me, but it is called a scrappy quilt and can't you be just a little nicer to Wilma? She is your sister, you know, and have you forgot, we are in the Lord's house!"

Now, if the floors of the Fellowship Hall had been pavement, smoke would have rolled from Estelle's feet as she stormed off--back to the Gathering Room, she went.

The ladies took their places once again around the quilt frame--the weaving of the fabrics were coming together--looking more like Christmas. And there in the middle was Wilma's blue Christmas tree with the red dots--the tree--a little off centered--a little wobbly and jagged. She's ready to sew her beloved tree on the quilt and picks up the green spool of quilting thread. She struggles to thread her needle--her eyesight, not like it used to be.

"Darn, these needles! I believe they are making the holes even smaller! Anna Kate, would you mind threading this needle for me?"

"I'll be happy too, Wilma. But before I do that--would you be next?"

"What? Next at what?"

"Would you be the next lady to tell us a story? This is my first time at the Gathering Room helping you and the other ladies make a quilt and I am so anxious to hear your stories."

"Please do so, Wilma and I'll sew the stitches around your Christmas tree," Minnie says while tying the knot in the green threads.

"Go ahead, Wilma! We're waiting," Estelle says pointing her needle at Wilma's face. Wilma rolls her eyes--her sister believes no one can start telling their story until she points the needle at them. Like the checkered flag at a NASCAR race! Don't start until bossy Estelle points her needle at you.

When we were growing up--now most of you know, but Anna Kate doesn't ,so I'll tell it again. I am the oldest girl in our family. There were twelve of us. Daddy and Mama always said they wanted a dozen and they got a dozen, all right--half-dozen girls and half-dozen boys.

We lived on a farm and there was always something to do. We worked all the time--feeding pigs--gathering eggs--hoeing taters--picking up pecans, and whatever Mama and Daddy told us to do--we did it. I remember Mama tried her best to teach me to milk Gertrude, our ole milk cow--but those "things"--I won't say what they're called here in church--but I couldn't get them to work. Not one drop of milk could I get to come out!

Mama had the patience of Job, but she didn't have the time to waste and so after a few days of trying, I was sent back into the house to help with the younger ones--meaning I had to change Estelle's stinky diapers and boy, let me tell you--she could fill them full!!

Wilma slaps her leg so hard in laughter, her chair tilts slightly and if it hadn't been for Anna Kate on one side and Cora on the other--the dragon lady would have hit the floor--flat on her derriere.

Not amused with Wilma's story, Estelle points her needle at Wilma once again, "Get back to the story and we can do without your dirty diaper humor!"

Wilma, her face flashing spunk and sass, she continues on...

In the winter time we didn't have the garden to tend and of course we stayed in the house more. Mama taught us girls all how to sew and knit and I just loved pretty things, even though we had very little. You know like dresses and petticoats and stockings and rouge and lotion and lipstick.

"What's rouge?" Anna Kate asks Wilma.

"Dear, see how pink and rosy my cheeks are, Wilma patting her hands on her cheeks. "Although I have this natural glow--I still apply a little rouge on my cheeks."

"What we call blush now, Anna Kate," Bea chimes in.

"Back to the pretty things. We had this lady in our neighborhood and she had a driver's license and a car! Now this was rather strange during my childhood because not many women drove. But this lady did. Her car was a Chevrolet with what looked like two shark fins over the back tires. I remember it being a bronze color--not brown and not gold though--in between color. She would drive around to the back of our house when she came to visit. Come to think of it--no one ever come to the front door, unless it was a stranger.

"The first visit from this fancy lady that I can remember, she got out of her car carrying this brown looking little suitcase--looked more like a toolbox or what men call tackleboxes where they store all their fishing gear. She was all dressed up with her purple polyester skirt--a jacket to match, and a white blouse with a big bow tied around her neck. Her high heel shoes--pumps, they were called--I learned that later--shiny black--so shiny you could see your reflection in them. And of course--nylon hose--beige--never the nude color--always beige. She looked like she was going to Sunday meeting down at the church--however, she couldn't be. This was a Tuesday.

"i watched her from the window. And the lady knocked on the back door and I distinctly remember Mama saying, oh no, I don't have time for Mrs. Brown today. She told me to let her in and ask her to come into the kitchen. Our Mama was always kind to everyone.

"Hello, Mrs. Brown, nice to see you, my Mama said. You can put your things on the kitchen table there. Please have a seat, would you like some coffee? Coffee was always brewing on our warming stove--for Daddy. Mama reached into the cabinet and got one of our nicest coffee cups out along with the small dish that goes under the cup--for spills and such. I learned that later too--cups and saucers--they are called. Mrs. Brown, give me a minute to get the kids outside to play--the babies are asleep in the next room. We can have some quiet time to talk then.

"I didn't want to go outside. No sir, I wasn't going--I wanted to see what this Mrs. Brown had in her tool box. But Mama was having no back talk from me. Not that day. Out Wilma. Go play with your brothers and sisters.

"I was mad--mad as an ole Billy goat. I ran out the back door and watched as my brothers and sisters ran down to the hog pen to see the piglets. Then I turned around and quietly snuck back into the house. Our house had a back porch on it and a person had to go thru the back porch to get inside the kitchen. And there was a window on the back porch where I could see the kitchen table. So I hid behind the curtain just enough to where I could see what was going on, but more importantly, not get caught by Mama.

"Mama and Mrs. Brown were talking about church and Mrs. Rhoades' new baby while they sipped their coffee. And then it happened--Mrs. Brown unlatched her toolbox and inside, well she had more colors in her box than any crayon box I'd ever seen! The tray in the box was full of these little tiny plastic tubes--each one a different color--pinks and reds mostly. And fancy small boxes. She laid the boxes out one by one on our kitchen table and there were colored bottles too, and oh the sweet smells--where they coming from her toolbox?

"Mrs. Brown handed my Mama this big mirror--it was pink and my Mama could hold it in one hand and look at her face at the same time. Next, Mrs. Brown reached into the tray and lifted out one of the little tubes--no bigger than my pinky finger and she took what looked like a cap off of this tube. Then she touched the bottom of the little tube--turned it--like she was twisting it. But I couldn't see very good. She handed my Mama the little tube and told her to try it.

"Try what? I thought.

"And what happened next? I couldn't believe my eyes! I saw my Mama put this little tube up to her mouth and rub it across her lips and her lips--they turned pink--and shiny! It was pure magic! Once my Mama's lips were pink, Mrs. Brown told her to look in the mirror again. My Mama held the mirror up to her face--this time a little closer, and she smiled. It wasn't a big smile--but I'm certain she smiled.

"What is happening to my Mama I thought? Pink lips??

"And then Mrs. Brown reached a little deeper into her bag and got out this little paper book and she laid it on the table--inching it closer to Mama--and all I could see were four big letters at the top of the book.

A V O N"

Second in the series--available each Tuesday evening/Wednesday morning for the next few weeks--maybe longer--not sure yet. :)