college – Page 4 – Lemon Drop Pie

Aug. 25, 1987

Dear Ginny,
I will try to make Tues. my day to write to you. Your Father has already written, as he cannot stop talking about leaving his little Ginny at college…I hope that today you will have good luck registering for classes and getting your books. Everything else should be a piece of cake! As classes start, I’m sure you’ll get into a routine and settle in quickly. Of course, many people asked about you Sunday (it couldn’t be because Daddy mentioned taking you to college in his sermon, could it?!) Everyone wishes you well.

We love you,
Mom

********************

Dear Ginny,
This is my day off, but I had chapel today and did some other stuff…Last night Mom and Meredith went to the Lyric Opera. The G—-‘s couldn’t go so they gave us the tickets. I couldn’t go with Mom — had an appointment and PTL meeting — so Meredith went. It was a modern one, so a little boring — but O.K. I guess. I love you ginny — God keep you safe. Behave and study a lot!
Dad

********************

8/24/87

Dear Ginny,

Did you really think I wasn’t going to write you? What kind of a sister do you think I am?…People keep asking me if I miss you. Of all the stupid questions! I must’ve got asked that 15 times yesterday. It was driving me absolutely nutso!… I think I shall write a letter to K, too. —From hearing stories about what her roommate is like, it sounds like she could use a little cheering up! So I’ll say goodbye — you could write back, if you really wanted too! Have fun (but be good!)

                                                                      Love,
                                                                      Meredith
                                                                      (your sister)

********************

Tuesday, August 25, 1987

Dear Ginny,
   Thank you very much for the two-dollar bill. I will never spend it. The year when it was printed is the year I was born in!….How is the weather you’re having? It rained last night and has been raining almost all day. How are you getting along with Peggy? Is she nice? By her picture I would think she is. When you get this, I won’t expect you to write back right away because you’ll probably be very busy. When you do write back you could combine letters on one piece of paper.
                                                                      Yours truly,
                                                                       Jamie (your loving brother. HaHa)

********************

Sept. 15, 1987

Dear Ginny,
    I’m sorry I haven’t been writing. I haven’t forgotten about you. Actually, I kept reminding myself to write to you. School is keeping me busy (probably not as busy as you, but busy).
    This typewriter is driving me crazy. You must be glad to have the new one. Have You used it much?…I don’t mind if you show this to your friends, but if you do, tell them I’m doing the righ t fingering, not just picking it out with my first finger.
   Don’t get homesick, just keep in mind that we love you. Write as much as you can, because I love mail, too. XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO and many more!!
                                                                    Your Loving Sister,
                                                                    Heather Jo

P.S. Which is X and which is O?

As I was going through my memory box for earlier posts, I found a stack of old letters I had saved. These are excerpts from letters I received soon after I left for college.

Continue telling Mommy’s Piggy TALES with me! Starting October 11, I’ll be writing a guest post on my Young Adult Years each Monday at Mommy’s Piggy TALES! We will write six posts remembering our young adult years. Janna, author of Mommy’s Piggy TALES, and I will provide suggested prompts to help you write your posts. Please email me – lemondroppie(at)gmail(dot)com – to sign up!

Emmy entering the installation “From the Inside Out.”

Ever since I can remember, my little sister Heather has been sewing. (This really isn’t true, since I remember when she was born.) Using the fabric scraps from my mom’s projects, she would sew little blankets for her dolls, and small presents for our parents. Now that she’s an aunt, she sews little bags for Lily and Emmy. The bags arrive filled with gifts; books and ribbons and stickers; all the wonderful trinkets little girls love. So it was no surprise to me to see Heather sewing scraps of fabric together every time I saw her this winter. But I was surprised to see what she made those tiny scraps of fabric into.

Lily and Emmy’s bookbags, which arrived with surprises inside

I received a postcard in the mail a few weeks ago; Heather was collaborating with her good friend Nicholas Nyland and her students at Bradley University to create a special installation and exhibition. This was an art opening I couldn’t miss, so I packed the girls in the van and headed to Peoria.

View from the balcony above

When we arrived, we found a wall in the shape of a spiral extending from the inside to the outside, draped with quilted fabrics of all colors and textures; there was a doorway and peepholes and little creatures hiding in the patterns. Lily was excited to spot the same fabric that her sister’s bookbag was made out of in this huge, quilted piece. At first, I told the girls DON’T TOUCH! Heather reassured me and said when they were creating this installation, she imagined the girls running around and playing in the exhibition. They played for the whole two hours of the opening, touching, exploring, laughing, twirling, and taking breaks to eat cookies. (Yes, art openings usually include food!)

Lily and Emmy run to find their aunt’s hand coming through a peephole.

Heather was quoted in the local paper:

“While this exhibition is not about the history of quilting, there is a tradition of saving things that can be used, and that’s part of what we’re doing here,” Brammeier said. “We usually think of fabric as a feminine material and part of the feminine arts. This is not going to be limited that way. It’s not going to be a feminist piece. But it is going to incorporate those qualities where we think of fabric as comforting.”