Walk Within You

This pendant has a sweet story. January 2008, I had the honor of meeting Ralph and Idie at the Jewish Center for Aged. I volunteer there and visit with a dear 94-year old woman named Adeline. One visit, I met Ralph and Idie who were sitting in the hallway. Idie was dying of ovarian cancer and was in hospice care. After this short visit with her, I decided to come see her as often as possible. Her husband, Ralph, was at her side constantly…so I was able to get to know them well after just a couple of months. Just before she died, Ralph shared a poem with me. The name of it was "Walk Within You." Idie gave it to Ralph to read at the memorial service. It's a beautiful poem. This couple loved one another well. We had a small but beautiful window of time ministering to one another…and I will always remember sweet Ida Mae "Idie". I asked Ralph if we could continue to be friends…so now we visit and keep in touch. Thoughts of them never fail to make me smile!

In the pendant I cut out a portion of a photo of one of the quilts on exhibit at the St. Louis Art Museum…Idie loved art and collected it. On top I cut the title out of the last three words of the poem, "Walk Within You" and pasted them on top of the artwork. On the reverse side of the pendant, I layered some paper (one being a strand of hearts…representing how Ralph and Idie's love will go on forever). Then I cut her name from the Thank You card I received from Ralph (for attending the memorial) and pasted it to the other pieces. I used leather to create a key ring charm, so he could keep a memory of her near at all times.

My Best Friend

I designed a pendant for a friend who recently has been grieving the loss of her husband, Gene.

It goes like this...while at his funeral, I picked up his prayer cards and put them in my purse. I almost threw them out one day and I felt a nudging in my heart to put them back into my purse in the event I would need them. Later, I had this feeling of a creative pulse within me to design a piece for Gail (Gene’s grieving wife) using his prayer cards. One of the cards had a patriotic picture (since Gene served in the US military) on the front and the verses from Psalm 23 on the back side. So I cut out a section where I could capture the American flag, an eagle (he had great respect for this bird) and the bible and cross (he had a sincere love for the Lord) for one side of the pendant. I also cut his name out from the other prayer card and put it across the picture. On the other side, I glued two verses from Psalm 23 on a cutout of paisley paper. The verses were “The Lord is my Shepherd” and “He restoreth my soul.” Gene’s daughter, Angie, called me to remind me of an appointment we had. (She is my little sister’s best friend and our dads were friends long ago.) I shared with her that I made her mom this pendant and was anxious to give it to her, but I needed to know her father’s birthstone so that I could add it as a dangle. He was born in December and turquoise was his birthstone. I immediately recalled a small turquoise heart I had in my stock. I couldn't wait to add the stone, and then I gifted the pendant to Gail.