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| Buffalo Botanical Garden Waterfall |
The number of people that I could nominate as my mentor are numerous; but when I consider influence and high self-esteem, I would have to
choose my Great Aunt Grace.
She was an educator (by nature), a poet and a day dreamer; and she was
my Savior in my adolescent world; she was my hero.
She encouraged an aggressive spirit, stating your case with
fact, and putting up a good fight for what you believe in.
Reading and drawing or anything "creative" was in, and the BOOB TUB was out. (That's what all
my elders called the television when I was kid). When we did watch television
at her house we watched “The Laurence Welk Show” and “That Girl” and “The Bob
Newhart show," among other shows.
Television today
would have had no place in her life.
Unusual art and whimsical collectibles filled her home and
made up a big part of her life. The stories she told were gripping and authentic
and caused the subject to take on a life of its own. She filled her home with a variety
of beautiful things from so many different places from all around the world;
they stirred my imagination and showed me that there is more to this world than Western New York.
Not that Western New York is bad ... there is just so much more beyond it's boarders.
She taught me how to sew a button on a sweater with a 12
inch single piece of thread, and get that thread through the eye of a needle in
one attempt.
Her flower arranging skill was also passed down and arranging a
bouquet of flowers was a thrill for me to learn. They never lacked in color,
and the height of each flower complemented the other. She was simply good at
it, and it showed, the flowers even seemed happy. To her it was effortless, and
though it's still a challenge for me, I still try to make them as beautiful
as possible.
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| My very first camera |
I was her very young photographer and at a very young age
she bought me my first KODAK film camera. Within minutes she gave me my lessons in how
to take a great picture of the most mundane objects, making them the subject of
my eye. My eye has developed over the years, and sunsets, animals, family and garden
flowers are my most coveted subjects. I have more pictures than picture albums, and it will probably always be that way.
She loved the forest and the trees; all of the forest flowers
and the beauty of what lay beneath the winter thaw. She taught me the names
of unusual and rare flowers like the Trillium and the Jack-in-the-Pulpits and
my favorite,
Doll eyes. A creepy looking plant – it was a
conversation starter for sure. It is an intriguing plant, with those little white balls
that look like Doll eyes, and they can still be found in the woods along the road
right where she introduced them to me.
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| Doll Eyes |
Her affection toward all things wonderful was curious and
fun, and her fondness for the simply beautiful ignited in me a desire to KNOW
THINGS. Lots and LOTS of things that might not have meant anything to me had
she not shown me their beauty. I now find great meaning in things that to most, would be
a waste of time.
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| My Aunt far right corner - Brant #1 School |
She was a High School Algebra teacher and went to "Normal School" where a few trades were taught, like teaching, and had one of the first school houses near North Collins, NY. She taught her whole career, and I am not sure on the span of years, but I believe that during the early 1950’s
though the 1970 she taught at a regular, large public school; she was the first woman to became the head of the Math Department there. Neither the school board nor the men in her
department were very enthusiastic about her advance ... but she was thrilled
and earned her position fair and square(so the story was told). She was a very
popular teacher.
She taught me to identify every native song bird she knew,
song and appearance, so I could put them together and
identify them for myself. Her favorite was the Chickadee. They would eat right out of her hand.
She taught me about respect and the importance of saying
Thank You. “Always, always say thank you," she said. "It says a great
deal about your character and how you portray yourself. A thank you, even for the smallest thing, is
never forgotten.”
She taught me how to drive a car, and how to maneuver it
through a bank drive-through window entrance. When I smashing the side of the
car into the cement pole guides on my first try she just yelled, “STOP! Now back up slowly, and try it again, one more time.” I made it through the
second time with flying colors, and I have never been in another accident in a
car that I was driving.
She then proceeded to show me how to make a bank deposit and check my
paperwork to make sure the bank teller did their job right. "Just because you know
someone at the bank, doesn't mean they will always be right," she said. That was a lesson well taught.
And she instructed me on the importance of keeping my mouth shut when the only
thing I want to do was blurt out a response in objection,
especially when I KNEW I was right. She gently reminded me that "people do
remember what is said if it happens to be negative, or is focused on the
negative; so it’s better to just keep it to yourself.” She said.
So I do.
Mostly she taught
me to be grateful for every blessing I am given, every day. She showed me with her actions how to love my
family when there were no words. She encouraged working hard at something I love
and to do my best in everything I do, and to be satisfied; because there is always someone who has it worse than I do.
She said to be true to my word and to always stand tall and proud,
because we are our best cheerleader. We need to always believe in the best, and
especially believe in ourselves.
Above all of these things – she instilled in me my love of
writing. What a gem to have had her encourage me, it is one of my greatest loves.
I never imagined I would use it to tell the world about her. (BIG sigh)
I am glad I learned the things that I did from her. Her contributions to my life have been priceless and enormous, and having
her as my mentor was a great gift. No one will ever compare to her and I feel
greatly blessed that I got to be one of her student; and her niece.
I hope I
can be as impressive of a mentor to my niece as she was to me.
Here's to my Great Aunt Grace ...Thank you for being my mentor!
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