The Gathering Room

Sunday..Monday..Tuesday..Wednesday..Thursday, Friday..Saturday

Just what did all those days mean on those towels? As a young girls, my sisters and I would be asked to help out a couple times a year at mom's Rebeckah Lodge Dinners. We would help with cleaning in preparation for them, but also had dish duty afterwards as well. One thing I remember, were all the red work towels they had neatly folded in a drawer for us to use ( what I wouldn't give for them now as keepsakes or the chest they were kept in!) the dish cupboard stood nearly floor to ceiling and had several drawers and was made from wood that I think was walnut. On top were several shelves that held iron stone plates, cups , glasses etc...and LOTS of depression glassware ... sugar/ creamers, bowls, platters, ect..mainly in the green or pink colors. In the drawers were the towels , wash cloths pot holders and other neat stuff that was often embroidered...probably by lodge members themselves. Many of the towels had days of the weeks...you know..Sunday , Go to church...Monday , Do the wash...Tuesday, iron the clothes....Wednesday, do the mending..Thursday, do the shopping....Friday ,Clean the house...Saturday Bake the bread...or something on this order. somewhere along the way, I failed to follow faithfully, "the red-written towel rules", how about you? I have sure admired the work put into embroidering them though! Some friends of mine know my passion for redword and made me these lovely pillows that I have on my decons bench in the kitchen. Thanks to Sharon M, Betty W and Donna W. , I will always treasure these! I think over the years I have never forgotton those red work towels nor the messages they were telling me.... Lets see...today is Saturday, Bake the bread????? NOT! I may remember, but don't always do them..LOL.

Added Note: My sister Karen , has reminded me of also being the entertainment at a few of these lodge meetings/dinners ...Mom would have us and friends tap dance or sing...(something I would rather forget..as I know how amusing that must had been seeing me dance...I was such a klutz! Mom figured I would become more graceful if I took dance lessons...I don't think it worked though..ha!) another thing..there was no running water. The women used a pump outside the back door that we could get pails of water from and heat up on this wood burning cook stove. They made their coffee in a larger three chambered drip coffee pot...(unlike dad, they didn't throw egg shells into it to make coffee) It always smelled good in there before a dinner.To heat the building was also an old oil burring stove...a scary monstrous thing in the back room that mom said scared her to start it up. In one closet was the most antique wooden wheel chair I have ever seen...Even then, we knew it was very old..I figured it came from the early 1900's. I .can't believe anyone actually used it ,can you sis???

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