Last week Auntie had her first visit from a professional companion-homemaker. I was enlisted to be on hand and make sure things went as smoothly as possible. It was a bit of a roller-coaster ride, a difficult transition for her to have “strangers” in her cottage, but after a while she relaxed a little and even put her feet up while the friendly and cheerful young woman cared for the cleaning chores that have become too much for her. (And too much for us!) We’re keeping our fingers crossed that this week she’ll be able to cope without one of us having to be there while the homemaker cleans and shops for her.
I grew up knowing that my paternal grandfather was artistic. Pop, Auntie’s father, carved wood and even crafted his own violin as a young man, and I was told he could also draw. I had been told that my aunt could draw, too, but I had not seen any evidence of it. So I had a lovely surprise when Auntie and I went into her bedroom so the homemaker could vacuum the living room. She pulled a collection of DVDs off of a shelf on her nightstand and brought out two things that were hidden behind the DVDs. One was a jewelry box, but I was far more curious about the other thing. It was a sketch of Clark Gable! Auntie shrugged it off as something she drew a long time ago and had no use for, and so it was given to me!
Today I finally got around to taking the faded and yellowed drawing out of its unattractive frame with broken glass, and photographed it as best I could. On the back Auntie had written, it would seem 70 years ago, “Clark Gable as Rhett Butler in the movie Gone with the Wind, 1940.” I couldn’t resist trying to imagine the 25-year-old girl who drew this. She had already been married for six years and had a four-year-old son. Since she was 42 when I was born, it’s hard for me to picture her young, romantic, and perhaps a little star-struck! I found a better frame for my new treasure and hung it on a wall that gets no sunlight so it won’t fade more than it already has. It looks great with two other drawings I have, one of Dave Mathews and one of Van Morrison. My collection grows…
Edit – December 14, 2010: For some reason looking at the color I call “yellow mud” turns me off. So this morning I finally figured out how to use Photoshop to transform the drawing from color to black and white. Now it is easier on my eyes, anyway…
I seem to remember my mum was a fan of Clark Gable, I can imagine her having done similar drawings at that age, too!
Nice post, Barbara. It sounds like the helper/companion will work out.
🙂
I guess Clark Gable was quite the heart-throb in his day. 🙂 Did your mum draw?
She was an artist and sculptor and she drew and painted from quite early on. I’ve a lovely sketch she did of her cat, I must post it to my blog sometime!
🙂
I’d love to see it! 🙂
If you have seen the movie GWTW many of clark gables scenes are in the late afternoon yellow glow of sunlight or glow of flames. Three just in his and scarletts exit from burning Atlanta on the road to Tara just ahead of the union army advances. This movie is an excellent one for school children to see the changes in lifestyle and the cast off of slavery and what effect the carpet baggers had on future life in america post war. On top of all that the effect of female america on the hollywood industry that in 1939 pre war II was about to ” explode” with war theme love story films. The photo is a beautiful momento of your aunts skill and interest in the period of time in her life that inspired her. Thank you for sharing it and keep inspired to preserve your aunts existence. Just keep inspired.
Thank you so much for your kind comment, jb. I read the book after I saw the movie and was amazed that the movie had to leave so much out, even though it was a very long movie. Both do have a lot of historical value. But it’s been many years since I’ve read the book or watched the movie and I have a feeling I would get different things out of it now that I am older.
Auntie is 99 now… I wish I could find other things she may have drawn… She kept this part of herself well hidden, from me, anyway.