Saturday Snapshot ... It's the most wonderful time of the year

Evelyn Bouma with my turtle footstool, after I had stitched in my horsehair

Well, the kids are going back to school.  I have a number of family members and friends that are teachers.  I can only hope that they will have as much an impact on the lives of the students they teach as some of the teachers of my past have been. 

Today, I am cleaning and rearranging my "work room" I sew there, paint there, upholster there, and do laundry.  I was flooded out some 4 years ago and even though all has been repaired, my room is still in a messy state, and I finally have found some floor covering that I like.  So while I was re-organizing I came across a bag of "horse hair".  The lovely lady in the above photo, was my upholstery teacher.  I decided I needed to shampoo the horse hair, would never have know you could do that, were it not for her.  So it's outside drying in the sunshine, I even used conditioner.  I acquired this product so I could re upholster my Eastlake loveseat and chair, I suspect that the professional upholster used "foam" that is a four letter word in upholster/restoration environments.

It got me to thinking of teachers that have impacted my life.  Miss Larman,(Pirosko) inspired the artistic portion of my brain.  I paint at least twice a week.  Mrs. Irene Paradisi, inspired me to continue my education, and Joan Rapsavage was instrumental in aiding me in making that choice, (long after I had left the school, where she would have been expected to aid in my quest).  Life long learning was Mrs. Von B's influence.  And a grade two teacher who's name I cannot remember was a great spiritual influence.  I'm in my early sixties and still I remember some of the kind words she taught us to live by. i.e, one of the things she asked us to do as a class, that I do to this day, when you hear an ambulance or a police siren, say a little prayer that those involved are o.k. And this is not to mention the teaching influences of my parents. And my embroidery teacher... my goodness there have been a lot of teachers in my life...

Presently I have a few teachers that are doing their darnedest to teach me stuff, hopefully, I'll be able to remember some of their words of wisdom.  Hat tip to Mike  W. and Shelley Prior, sorry if I'm a difficult student.

SO if I can say anything to teachers, it's make a difference in your students life, you never know what will keep them throughout their lives.

I might add that Evelyn (the lady in the photo) welcomed her 5,000th student in 1984, she continued to teach until her 85th year, right up until the morning she passed she was do planning for her classes. She passed away a few years ago getting ready for a workshop. So single handedly she saved the landfills of all those chairs and sofas that needed attention.  Imagine!