A New Beginning And An Unfinished Project

I’ve been finishing up on some projects lately. Some things that I sew take only a few days. Some things take weeks. Since my weekly blog posts have caught up to my sewing, I decided to write about a sewing thing that Grandpa gave me.

About 15 years ago or so, Grandpa told me that he wanted me to have his mother’s sewing basket. I said I would be honored to have it, and the next time Grandpa was in town, he brought it to me.

Just for fun, here’s a picture of Grandma and Grandpa out on an adventure to Alaska. You’re never too old to live life to the fullest!

Over the phone I had no idea what the sewing basket looked like, or if I had ever seen it. So when he arrived with it, I recognized it. I’d seen it in their house, but never knew that it belonged to my Great Grandmother, Sophrona. It sat on a pedestal table at the bottom of their stairs. Also on the table there sat a really old photo album just above it.

My Grandparents always had a house full of treasures, so I had never really gotten curious about those items. There was always so much to look at and take in! Plus, Grandma and Grandpa themselves always had a fun story to tell about something, so it was easy to be distracted at their house!

Grandpa’s mother, the owner of the basket was born Nancy Sophrona Young, on November 4, 1880, in Millcreek Township, Ohio. She went by Sophrona or Frona. Here’s a picture of her as a young girl. Peek at what her arm is leaning on. It’s a family photo album, the one that sat on the table above the sewing basket. But that’s a story for another time!

I have zoomed in on this picture so much! I look at her dress, and how I think it was sewn. The collar of the dress, the sleeves, and I wish I could see her shoes clearly! I also see family resemblances in this picture. I see a glimpse of my Aunt Tamy, Sophrona’s Granddaughter, and I see a glimpse of my cousin Russell, Sophrona’s Great Grandson.

Here’s a picture of Sophrona when she was older. I love this dress! I love to see the things that my ancestors wore, and am so thankful that we have the pictures! (Thanks Cousin Melanie!)

Sophrona got married to a man named Roy Atkinson, and they had a son Laurel. For whatever reason, maybe the ancestry.com people in the family can find out, they moved to Clovis, Ca. Here’s a picture of Roy and Sophrona. I wish I was as fashionable and elegant as she is in this picture.

However in 1918, Roy died from the Spanish Flu, yep, the first pandemic. Sophrona and Laurel also got sick, but they recovered. Here is the newspaper clipping from Roy and Sophrona’s hometown where he passed.

Sophrona and her son moved back to Clovis, and Sophrona started working as a seamstress. Laurel, her son, was around 17 at the time, and was soon on his own.

Now you might be thinking, sounds like the end of her story. Son grown and gone, widowed and working to make ends meet, but no! Sophrona was about to have a new chapter in her life!

On June 14, 1923, Sophrona got married again, to James Bert Johnson, hooray for us! (Otherwise we would not be here) Here’s the newspaper clipping of their marriage! Yes, they typo-ed Bert and called him Bret.

Two years later, on July 24, 1925, a 42 year old Sophrona gave birth to my Grandpa, Bert Lewis Johnson. Here’s a family portrait of Sophrona, Grandpa Bert (looking mischievous) and my Great Grandfather, James Bert. I had always thought that Mia had inherited my dad’s chin, until I saw this picture! She 100% has James Bert’s chin!

Here is Sophrona and Grandpa Bert. Again I’m looking at their clothes, and shoes! And look at that apron, it screams “hard worker”. Side note; Mia says my arm looks exactly like hers. I told Mia it’s because that’s what your arms look like when you sew all the time! HA!

This is another favorite picture of mine. James Bert in his WWI uniform, and Grandpa Bert in his WWII uniform, with Sophrona in the middle of them both. I love the floral print dress, shoes, and of course, my Grandpa’s in their uniforms. *cue the Star Spangled Banner*, these guys are the literal picture of patriotism.

Sophrona and James Bert lived with Grandma and Grandpa as they got older. This is Sophrona as she became an old lady. Out in the yard, playing with her grandson Byron, my dad.

On August 27th, 1962, at the age of 82, Sophrona passed away. James Bert followed her a year later.

Grandpa Bert ended up with the majority of his parents belongings since they were living with him when they passed. Then here I am, all of these years later, being blessed to be the safe keeper of Sophrona’s sewing basket. Obviously it meant a lot to Grandpa since he had it displayed right in the living room of his house.

Today the sewing basket sits in a place of honor in my living room. Right above it is Sophrona’s ruler that she used while she worked as a seamstress. (See old blog post “Measuring Up To My Great Grandma)

The top of the basket has this beautiful tassel. And you can see that at sometime in the basket’s life, flowers were painted on it.

Inside the basket is everything that Sophrona had stored in it. I love this bonnet needle holder that she made so much! But I’ll never use it, I’ll keep it in the basket. Or maybe someday I’ll use it to draft a pattern and make my own.

Inside the bonnet needle holder are her needles, and a piece of old wax. You would use the wax to run your thread across to help keep it from tangling.

At the bottom of the basket there is a shoe hook, for buttoning old fashioned boots. I wonder what ever happened to the Reliable Shoe Co. from Fresno, Ca?

All of her threads are still in it

And of course, no sewing basket would be complete without a project in it! Sophrona tatted, amongst other sewing things. Tatting is what you would do to make lace by hand. I have a small linen piece that she tatted a border onto.

It sits on my Hoosier cabinet with this dish that Grandma clearly intended me to have, since she wrote my name with a sharpie on the bottom of it! HA! I don’t try to wash the sharpie off, I like having my name written by Grandma on it still.

So here is Sophrona’s last, unfinished tatting project. It is just something so small, and yet so meaningful to me. I like to be able to hold it in my hand, knowing that she held it in hers.

I took her some flowers the day that I sat down to write all of this. She and Great Grandpa James Bert are buried in my hometown, and you can see Grandma and Grandpa’s headstone from theirs. They are in close proximity to each other.

By looking at her life I can see that it wasn’t always easy, but you never know what new thing is waiting for you, just around the corner. You just have to keep going until you reach the corner! I know she felt like giving up at times, we found this letter that she wrote in 1943. In it, she says, “We are still very busy I’ve about decided no use trying for we will never get things done”.

“About decided”, but didn’t! She stayed busy, and kept trying. She became a wife again, and a mother again, just when it seemed like her story was over. She worked hard, a value that she instilled in my Grandpa. Look at that apron it the picture above. You only wear an apron like that if you are serious about getting some work done! Proof that she didn’t give up. The tedious nature of tatting, and the border around my linen is more proof of her steadfast nature.

But the only evidence I need is her unfinished project. She kept working until she couldn’t anymore. And she kept hope for tomorrow, how do I know? Why else would you start a project, if you don’t intend for it to be something beautiful tomorrow?

So start something today, tomorrow it might be beautiful.

I’m honored that Grandpa trusted me to be the keeper of his mother’s unfinished project. Which means to me, that there is hope for tomorrow.

As for me, onto the next!