| Stella Bella Stained Glass and Copper Works |
BIO: In 1962, we went to live with Grandma. In the basement that smelled of wine and garlic, there were four rooms. In the big room, on a heavy wooden table, we would help stuff sausage and make noodles, turning the crank until our arms were limp. In the early winter, sausage was strung on the rafters. On the other side of the room, the wringer washer was hooked to life by thick black tentacles. In a small room behind, beneath shelves lined with jars of tomatoes from the garden, there were four wooden kegs. Lying on the cool concrete floor, we’d shimmy backward underneath a tapped keg and open the spout just a little. Sometimes we’d miscalculate and sticky red wine would pour over our faces and onto the floor. We never got caught. In the long room where we slept, one double and three single beds were placed so closely together that you could not crawl out without squashing someone. The thick cotton sheets smelled of lye soap, bleach and sun. When it was cold, as soon as we heard Grandma open the door, we’d quit wrestling or hide our books and flashlights. She’d tuck old worn throw rugs on our feet. We pretended to be asleep and then we were. The last room was forbidden: Grandpa’s workroom. I had to get a chair to reach the workbench. I loved the feel of the smooth wooden handled tools, the drawers, soft paper bags and old jars filled with things and parts of things. I got caught. Often. Grandpa would fume, “Mannaggiamericana!”, as he swatted me away. Forty years later, I discovered that he was calling me a Darned American. I have workbenches of my own now. I have drawers, bags and jars filled with things. I have tools with smooth wooden handles. I let others use my workbenches and my tools. But they have to put things back where they found them. For information, please contact Maura Marini Shumake at: |
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