“Women who stepped up were measured as citizens of the nation, not as women. This was a peoples’ war, and everyone was in it.” – Olivia Culp Hobby, engraved on WWII Memorial in DC With pride, thousands of women signed up for military service after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. But, millions of women […]
Category Archives: Cleo Thoughts
“Everybody’s life looks better when you’re standing outside it, looking in, but that’s never how it really is. We all got good things and bad things…” –Torey Hayden, Special education teacher and author Homework Club exuded all the trappings of success. So it appeared on the surface. Fifteen students finished their assigned work before going […]
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“What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.” – John Steinbeck Time for the winter quilts. The icy season descended upon the Midwestern States with a Halloween snow storm. Mercury lies in the lower end of the thermometer for days. Instead of shivering or turning up the […]
“Quilters cut with hope, stitch with grace, quilt with dreams, bind with laughter, share with love”. -Anonymous Most quilters are fabric hoarders. They joke about this tendency to squirrel away fat quarters, swatches or whole bolts of choice designs. But, on a deeper level, fabric is a symbolic material that represents the core human needs of […]
The students in my class for behavior disorders leaned forward on their desks. “We don’t got no leaves where we live.” For three days, I had begged them to bring in autumn leaves to press between pages of a catalog then use for leaf rubbings. On day four, still no leaves from them. “I find […]
“When creative juices flow, catch them with a needle.” -Quilter’s sayings by Monroe County Library System When my brother married Lois, he introduced me to a weaver, quilter, and seamstress. Fabric is the medium in which Lois creates and designs. When I attended college, Lois stitched a tropical blue dress for me to wear to […]
An enthusiastic and emotional “welcome home” honors those who served in the Vietnam War. (Tribune photo by Phil Greer) On June 13, 1986, I squeezed my way to the curb on Michigan Avenue in Chicago with my three children and two of their friends in tow. The half million people lining the streets of the […]
Inspiration for the American Dream is embodied in the lives of Walt Disney, Ben Carson, and Benny Goodman. All of these men achieved success in their lives despite difficult beginnings. They are not the exception, but the rule that America has always been the Land of Opportunity. Watching the movie, Saving Mr.Banks, with my friends, we […]
“Volunteers don’t necessarily have the time, they just have heart.” -Elizabeth Andrews Crafting for Courage and Service On any given day, Sue Myers works hard at crafting her latest mystery novel. A member of Sisters in Crime, Sue learned how to research her Chicago based books before creating a riveting plot. Creativity, attention […]
“In everything, turn, turn, turn There is a season, turn, turn, turn And a time to every purpose under heaven. A time to be born, a time to die A time to plant, a time to reap ’A time to kill, a time to heal A time to laugh, and a time to weep.” The […]