Saturday, January 9, 2010

Even Pink Can be Transformed

First congratulations to Elisabeth Davis, our high donor in save the horse art contest. And thank you to all of you who donated. A larger nation wide contest for another painting starts today, with details (we hope) on the hollowcreekfarm.org site.

Now that our commercial break is over, I will return to my regularly programmed erudition of the mundane and often ignored common events that make up a life. Also, for the record, I just learned that erudition is a word.
Last year, I spent a lot of money to get Asherel really good and supportive, warm boots since we get so much snow in North Carolina. I was determined that should it snow we would be ready. We also have 3 snow tubes in the attic awaiting this big event and a full snowsuit and waterproof face covering. I got her these magnificent boots in her all time favorite color- pink. It snowed once last winter, a half inch dusting. The boots still had the factory smell on them when we put them away after that blizzard.

So now in a week, along with needing to be fully prepared to dress to the nines for the wedding, we must be prepared for snow. I did not worry nearly so much about that as the wedding finery since I had the wonderful almost unused pink boots.

I pulled them out to begin packing eight weeks ago. My philosophy of life has always been that if something is worth doing it is worth doing early. If it would not despair my loved ones, I would already have my grave dug with my best clothes laid out neat and ready. At any rate, Asherel took one look at the pink boots and ran from the room. I am sure you think I am exaggerating, but that is exactly what she did. and she went into hiding. I opened the closet door where she was shuddering in a corner.
"NOT pink," she told me.
"Pink was your favorite color last year!" I cried.
"Well it is my least favorite this year."
"Asherel, these boots were worn ONCE. I am not buying new boots for one week of snow."
I of course in my kindest unkind voice told her to get out of the closet and stop this nonsense. She would wear the pink boots and that was that. It wasn't a fashion show. She bit back tears and glanced sideways at the pink boots as she returned to her school work.
Each time she saw the boots over the next few weeks, she would ask in a new and creative way if she had to wear the pink boots. If she had this much tenacity over her math, I am sure she would be out of college by now.
"Can we spray paint them?" she asked. Hmmm, maybe.....
"I know!" she said,"Can we duck tape them?!"
Now I am quite sure that many of you are snickering behind your hands wondering how someone who could so confidently toss out the word "erudition" would in the same story use the term "duck tape". I know all you smarty pants think it is "duct tape". Well, for your information, duct tape was first called duck tape as it was invented as a waterproof material made of cotton duck to protect soldiers' weapons from water. I am a font of knowledge in things that don't matter.
"It would just come off," I countered.
"Not if we shellac it," she said, her troubled eyes reflecting the pink boots.
"Will you wear them happily?" I asked.
Her head bobbed up and down like a cork and she raced off for her supply of many colors of duck tape. Since the wedding dress crisis of past blog posts is now averted, I can tell you that she was making a dress of duck tape for it, but in the end, we felt the bride would not appreciate being thus upstaged.
A day later the pink boots were totally transformed- shiny bright royal and baby blue, and fully sealed with tough shellac.
She gives new meaning to the verse "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Romans 12:2. In a sense, we are all pink boots with the potential of being transformed in glory.
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6 comments:

  1. Oh, please post a picture of them!

    Here is another meaningless piece of knowledge from Sarah Palin's book: Alaska had the most duct tape sold of any Wal-Mart store in the US. Besides duct taping their boots and other outdoor accessories, her husband and other competing in their marathon outdoor races actually duct tape their faces to keep from getting frost-bite!

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  2. p.s. I have to post as Anonymous since I still can't seem to get this blog system to recognize me. It took me literally days to get the thing to make me a Follower.

    -- Cousin Carol

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  3. Yes. Please let us see the boots! : ) I've seen duct-tape purses. Now for the duct-tape boots. Somehow I saw that coming when you first mentioned pink boots.... A couple of my girls acquired the same aversion to pink at Asherel's age. By the time they hit 17 or 18, pink was back in their wardrobes.

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  4. ok, adoring fans. i will take a picture and post it if i can soon.

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  5. It only takes a 12 year old to figure these things out. I am officially turning in my Math/Computer Science college diploma.

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