Holding Onto Memories

[Eugenia Thomas]

As I get older, I realize that my memories have become very important to me. All the things that we were have made us the people that we are.

I remember that I could not think of what to get my Grandfather for his 92nd birthday. I designed him a 20" pillow with a picture of him and my Grandmother on their wedding day. My Grandpa loved it but our family loved it more. My Grandpa died last year at the age of 93 years old.

Sometimes, something as personal as a photo long forgotten can bring back a flood of memories. I design pillows, wall hangings, quilts, and bags with precious photo memories. I also design (and give) greeting cards, collage frames, and scrap booking to keep the memories alive for everyone.

What are you doing with your pictures? Are they kept in a box, still in the envelope fading away as the memory does?

Let's share!

[Eugenia Thomas]

Hi Fred,

What great memories you have. How much fun is it to reminiscence? Since you want your quilt by the winter, and I'm the designer for my best friends birthday in December, let's discuss you getting your pictures to me ASAP. Pick out the ones you want (at least sixteen) and the colors that warm your soul and we can get it started.

Music makes my spirit sing! Songs tell such a story. Maybe on another blog post, we can have a challenge to write a story out of song titles. Let's make it happen!

[Fred Walker]

I WANT MY QUILT FOR THIS WINTER,LETS GET IT ON. DO ANYBODY REMEMBER OUR LIBRARY ON THOMAS AVE? WHO REMEMBER THE PIE MAN ? I REMEMBER EVONNE RICKS DANCING ON HER TOES. THELMA SMITH HITTING NOTES ON SONGS THAT WOULD TURN THE HEADS OF THE GREATS . MR PATTON SPEAKING TO US SO ELOQUENT AT OUR REGULAR ASSEMBLY.THE PEP RALLIES WHERE ATHLETES BECAME POPULAR. I REMEMBER THAT SQUARE BLOCK OF ICE CREAM THAT FIT PERFECT ON A SLICE OF CAKE. THE GOOD FEELING THE DAY AT SCHOOL ,AFTER A BIG WIN . I REMEMBER GROUPS ON CORNERS UNDER THE STREET LIGHTS ,AND IN THE REST ROOMS , SINGING ,OH WHAT A NIGHT,SINCERELY, GOOD NIGHT SWEETHEART AND SILHOUETTE . I CAN REMEMBER SECOND GUESSING MY TEACHERS ON REPORT CARD DAY.I WOULD COMPARE MY GRADES, WITH WHAT OTHER STUDENT RECEIVE.I CAN HEAR IT NOW,ME SAYING,I KNOW I'M SMARTER THAN HIM. THE DANCES AT THE YWCA AND YMCA,AND THE FEAR OF ASKING FOR A DANCE AND BEING TURN DOWN. I ALSO REMEMBER A FEW SLOW DANCES ,WHERE THE ANSWER WERE YES,ALL I CAN SAY IS ,OH MY,OH MY.

[Eugenia Thomas]

Wow, I think that it's going to be wonderful! What I need to know to design the Bulldog Quilt is how many will send a picture (has to a special memory) Once we know how many want to participate, we'll set a deadline for pictures and the special memory to be submitted.

Once that I have all the information, we'll figure out the best way to have a portion of the quilt made for those who would like to invest in one. But first things first...

We can organize it in sections starting with the Class of ????

[Carolyn Hill Morris]

Eugenia, I love the idea of a BULLDOG QUILT. I think our campus would embrace that with open arms. I KNOW SEVERAL OF US WHO WOULD WANT ONE.

[Eugenia Thomas]

Hi Carolyn, What a wonderful tradition to have and to remember. Laughter is the medicine that makes like livable! Thank you so much for sharing this memory and what do you think of a BTW quilt? Your square, or the shape of a bulldog space (wow that's the ticket!) could have your picture with Laughter...its the sound of happiness, good times, family and friends! I'm likin' that all ready! What are your thoughts?

[Carolyn Hill Morris]

One of my favorite memories has to do with the Dallas Cowboys. My mother lived in close proximity to the Cotton Bowl. I come from a very large family 8 brothers and myself. So many
nieces, nephews, cousins, aunties, in-laws, and good friends...we could walk to the games on Sundays. Well, we all jockeyed, for a place to park our cars at mother's and go to the games. When the game was over...you could see us hurrying out of the Cotton Bowl through that back parking lot toward Lagow street to mothers' house. It was so funny. Grown men, women, and children sprinting to the house, because we knew mother's had the table filled with all our favorite foods and we all wanted to sit at the table. Friends would want to linger and talk, everyone would say, come on over to MOTHER'S OR BIG MAMA'S and eat with us, we can't stop and talk right now...they would show up too. And the amazing part of it all to me was that no matter how many of us and our friends showed up...THERE WAS ALWAYS ENOUGH FOOD FOR ALL. We would laugh at each other's running and try to be the one telling mother about everything. You could just see the joy in her heart as she watch her kids with their families and friends continue what she had always taught us. There is always room for one more at her house and table. I will NEVER forget that. What a blessing those days were. I think thats why I laugh so much today...LAUGHTER..ITS THE SOUND OF HAPPINESS, GOOD TIMES, FAMILY AND FRIENDS. This happened every Sunday the Cowboys had a game. I think its the reason we're all so close. I love my family and friends more and more everyday, this includes my BULLDOG family also.

[Fred Walker]

I want my quilt and I want my jacket, on the wall.My camera is so important to me that I carry it in my front pocket and my wallet in my back pocket. When I think of a bank,I think of a store house for valuable. When we associate memories with a bank, as my memory bank.That alone tell me ,theres some values there.Then we place our memories on , memory lane.So go to your memory bank,out there on memory lane and share some of that wealth.Here is one more , We were playing The Lincoln Tigers a game of basketball. All our games with Lincoln our number one rival were very fierce and competitive.Their forward by the name of ,Cocky Lynch caught be with a powerful elbow to the gut. It almost knocked me out.We call time, with all the respect we had for our coaches.That was the first and only time my coach heard a curse word out of my mouth.I will share part of what I said with you filling in the blanks.I said for all ears to hear ,I'm going to get that--.Needless to say coach benched me.

[Eugenia Thomas]

Fred, Thank you so much for sharing part of you and to recognize how important a camera can be because a picture can tell a story. If you would like, you can contact me and find out how we can get you a quilt made. The jackets that you treasure, can be made into art for your walls. The jacket can be framed in a shadow box acrylic frame and you can enjoy them in plain sight (how about that!).

One of my favorite memories was when I went to live with my Grandmother and Grandfather. We were generational Methodist, my Great Maternal Grandfather was a preacher. It was during Black History Month that my Sunday School Teacher, Ms. Buchanan, challenged us to write why "What Being Black Means To Me." It was Black History month. I wrote my essay and won the contest. My gift was "Before the Mayflower" by Lerone Bennett and after I read it, I realized more than ever that we are great people that have come so far.

I know that God gives us gifts and when we're a blessing to others, it is then that we can be blessed. Maybe we can take a picture with the memory and together we can create something special for BTW alumni. Just something to think about.

[Fred Walker]

While in school I didn't care for history,once out of school and over the years,I don't only yearn for history but I love it.Memories are history, and it can help define who you were as well as who we are today.We should do all we can, to help preserver our history.Let me give you a head start,get your carmeras out, go to Griggs Park and take as many pictures as you can.Some time in November of this year The City Of Dallas will convert Griggs Park into a Dog walking park.Memories come to us over the years in many different ways.Some of my favorite memories are those that only I know. But our BTW site are filled with lots of good memories ,from the State Theater ,Papa Dad ,Aristocrat,and now The Mow Cow.Pictures are gold and I have thousand of photos,but I don't have a quilt and I want one. Memories that are not in my closet ,that should be in there,are my basketball jackets.If we don't preserver our history, who will .Please share some of your memories.I will be first.My first interracial experience came at Booker T. in 1959.My basketball team coach by the late Mr Harold Wiley accepted an invitation to Thomas Jefferson High School basketball game against Hillcrest High School.It was a very tense moment for me. I'm glad I had my basketball Jacket on that night.We walked in as a group we sat as a group and we left as a group. No popcorn at half time.However everything went find.