“As much as I love to converse with sages and heroes,
they have very little of my love and admiration.
I long for rural and domestic scenes,
for the warbling of birds and the prattle of my children.”
-John Adams-
journal entry:
This is my second family group made from paper scraps. There are twelve grown-ups and eleven children in our immediate family. This “portrait” is quite different than the first one I made. The symbolism in this one is based on the “hearts of the children being turned to their fathers . . . and the hearts of the fathers being turned to the children”. It is an Old Testament scripture from the last Old Testament prophet Malachi. Thus . . . throughout the “portrait” the arms and hands of angels reach in to my family. Some hold white hearts while most touch those on earth with their hands and join the unbroken circle that is our family. The angels reach upward from the bottom . . . which are the ancestors who have gone on but who are still interested in us. From the sides the angels who are among us reach out and into our family group. And, from above, those special people who are not yet born but are connected to us . . . reach down from Heaven. They bear their hearts in their hands and clasp ours although we probably are not aware of them.
This time I made the girls and women fancy. I made full and ruffly skirts. I made layered, textured blouses. I added shiny buttons and bracelets and necklaces. I fixed their hair like Sunday. Every hand touches another hand or shoulder or arm. They touch heads and put their arms around each others’ backs. The boys and the men are dressed nicely too. They mingle with each other. Grandpa and I are in the middle at the bottom. Next our children are slightly above us indicating the difference in the generations and at the top of the “portrait” are our grandchildren. The third generation of living immediate family. One daughter even has the right colored eyes; one green and one blue.
“I have a family here on earth . . . they are so good to me.”
-A Primary Song-