Grandpa's Tools

I'm hoping that after a long creative slump, I'm finally getting back into the swing of scrapping and creating interesting layouts. A new camera certainly helps! I finally finished a layout today... It's been two weeks since I created an actual layout! That's pretty pathetic! But I've been thinking about this one for awhile. I have a couple of very old, kinda cool tools that belonged to my Grandfather Clark... an old ice pick (or perhaps it's a leather punch, not sure which!) and a very old folding yard stick. My grandpa wasn't exactly Mr. Fixit...I don't really remember him doing any building or repairing things. I'm sure he did, I just wasn't privvy to these episodes of manly activities.  During my childhood he had an office in downtown Los Angeles, running his own grain brokerage. My Dad and Grandpa worked together until Grandpa's retirement, then Dad took over the business. But Grandpa had other, less sedate businesses in his early years, long before I came into the picture. Grandpa had been a rancher, a dry farmer, and at one time, a nurseryman. He was responsible for providing and planting many of the trees in Brigham City Utah, and I'm sure, lots of other places as well. In the 1930s, Grandpa was a Utah State Senator.  I'm sure all of these different types of jobs made Grandpa a jack-of-all-trades, and handy with a shovel, plow, or ice pick.

But what I really remember best about Grandpa, was his storytelling.  When Grandpa was a child, growing up in the late 1800s, early 1900s in Cache Valley, Utah, it was common for young people to perform in school and church programs: telling stories, reciting poems, singing songs. There was no TV or radio, so families, churches and schools had to be the community entertainment source. Grandpa learned 'pieces'.... poems or stories that he memorized and then recited for his friends, family and neighbors. He was very good at it! One of the things that set Grandpa apart, was his sense of humor and fun. He could make any grandchild shriek in terror or laughter when he recited "The Bear Story", or "The Cremation of Sam McGee".  He also created his own stories and told them well. He had a fascinating way of captivating his listeners, telling stories of his youth and stories about his ancestors.

He greatly admired Will Rogers, and often quoted him, or recounted an anecdote from his life. I inherited several of Grandpa's Will Rogers books, one of which is in my layout. It just seemed to epitomize Grandpa's best tool: his wit and humor.