Harvest Basket
Jonathan Kline's Workroom
Jonathan Kline, Country Living Guild, and his baskets brought back special memories.
It's been more than twenty years now, but I still remember the first time I saw Sheila. The year was 1983, and we had just moved to Florida. Eager to make new friends,I accepted an invitation to join a new home Bible study. A guest would teach "belly dancing" of the same style performed during the Bible days. She would bring unleavened bread made from a recipe she had acquired during her travels to the middle east. That totally sparked my interest and I showed up at the Bible study home bright and early on the designated day. I rang the doorbell, the door opened and there stood a pretty young woman, my age, with long bright red hair. She was wearing unusual clothing and was barefoot. " My name is Sheila." Very shortly, I would learn that she was the belly dancer and she had brought the bread. That day, our laughter would be out of control at times, as we, mostly conservative young Christian women, tried to mimic her gyrations. Sheila was a fascinating person, with lots of stories tell. We went on to become close friends. I would learn that she was a modern day pioneer style woman. She knew how to spin wool, make yarn and produce her own clothing. She spoke fondly of having been raised in the country, of making cheese and butter, growing her own food and never wanting for anything. A lasting memory of Sheila, was her teaching me to make split oak baskets. We spent hours, days and years together sharing life experiences, laughing and weaving. I knew she was homesick for her old way of life. She and her husband bought land in North Carolina, and built a log home. One day she moved away, back to the mountains, back to her style of living, back to her roots. Now and then I think of Sheila. I remember how we talked about life, churning butter, old timey recipes. I remember how she taught me to make split oak baskets. I remember as we sat in church, bowing to pray, I would notice she would be barefooted.
