Yesterday morning, Roy drove up to the Farm with Lily, Elijah and Karma so the kids could hang with Levi while Roy attended an afternoon reception at Vol State Community College Art Gallery entitled, “Waves of Gratitude: Artwork of the Former Students of Doris Bills”. The show featured artwork by her former students, including Roy and Ellen Dedman (Millar) and honored Mrs. Bills’ 30 years of introducing her students to painting, drawing and sculpture.
In high school, Roy and Chris both were fortunate enough to have taken art classes with Mrs. Bills. Looking back I wished I had taken advantage of that opportunity as well. I did, however hang out in her classroom quite a bit with my friend Ellen and pitched in when it came to helping set up the annual art shows. What I do distinctly remember about Mrs. Bills, other than her kindness and enthusiasm for the arts, was her very distinctive handwriting. It was the very first time I had ever seen architectural lettering. Each letter was precise and perfectly scaled. It definitely made a lasting impression.
Later that day while Dad, Roy and the kiddos made a trek to the grocery, Janice called to ask us up for breakfast Sunday morning. The kiddos were going to help prepare and we were invited to join in on the fun. So when we arrived this morning the kitchen was in full swing. Lily was helping to make sausage gravy and Levi was stirring a huge pan of scrambled eggs.
Of course, cooking takes planning and preparation. So, before our arrival, Big Daddy showed Lily how to make homemade biscuits from scratch. Before long, those floury puffs of heaven were ready to pop in the oven.
Big Daddy also took a moment to show Lily how to easily slice a cantaloupe into bite size pieces.
Roy and Terry listen while Chris shares a story. I tried to sneak a pic of Josh and Jill from around a corner but they caught me.
Finally, with stomachs rumbling, breakfast was served and oh, what a feast: scrambled eggs, buttery biscuits, crispy bacon, sliced tomatoes and cantaloupe fresh from the garden, red grapes, lemon blueberry muffins, savory sausage and gravy along with jars of strawberry and peach freezer jams waiting on the table.
After a hearty breakfast on the back porch of the cabin and then cleaning up the kitchen, Janice asked Terry if he would be interested in seeing Bill’s vintage audio equipment and before you knew it the whole gang was on the move.
The kids, Roy and I explored the house and later Dad opened up Bill’s garage so we could look at his gorgeous collection of antique cars. They are show stopping amazing. We climbed in and dreamed of what it would be like to ride in such beautiful automobiles.
What a fun and memorable Sunday!
