For me there is a story behind each and every item of our experience and so it is for the cut-glass Val Saint Lambert carafe above.Had my forebears not made the ocean voyage to the land of plenty ..... had I lived in Ireland.... whenever census-taking time rolled around I would have loved to enroll myself as "seanchaí " ( shawnkee ) or storyteller.... caretaker of the lore. What a wonderful calling in life..... not the oldest profession on earth.... but maybe the the one that gathered and told tales about the oldest one !! BG. So here goes for the carafe !
It was Christmas Eve , 1965 , and me and my old 1960 VW were mushing our way through the back roads of Maine pushing snow ahead of us as we plodded doggedly onwards in a southeasterly direction. The Trans- Canada Highway was still a dream so I decided to take a shortcut home from Quebec City to Saint John , New Brunswick to be with my parents for the holidays so cutting through Maine was the best option open. I had just reached the outskirts of the twin cities Bangor - Brewer and psyching myself up for the last lap of the trip through the dreaded no man's land.... 100 miles of forest with only the odd squatter's hut along the roadside.... to the Calais - Saint Stephen border crossing to New Brunswick
Just as I was about to be swallowed .up by the darkness of the road and the night ahead I looked to my left and spied a small boutique ... right there on the edge of town. Now it was about 8 oçlock on Christmas Eve and I figured this would be my last chance to buy a gift for my Mom ..... so I pulled over and stopped. And there it was !! ........ shining and glittering io all its splendour !! Just sitting around doing nothing there on display in the front window !! I went in and inquired about the price .... $ 25.00 ! I dug deeply into my "student-loan" pockets and bought it outright. Needless to say ... Mom was delighted....... not only for the carafe but also .. and primarily .... because the prodigal son had made it home for Christmas !!
Good to see you are keeping it dusted.
ReplyDeleteRight on , Barb... there among Fluff's collection of "quackers "!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely post Gerry! And that is a nice piece of glass indeed! I can imagine how happy your Mom were for that gift, but like you already mentioned... I am sure she were happier to see you! =o)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing! KRAM
Have you ever taken the time to "Bless" the carafe? (c;
ReplyDeleteHey Mona... glad you liked the story .... and yes , Mom was always pleased to see me whenever I could get home for a while since up till then I had spent most of my life after age 13 either in Ontario , Italy and Germany or in Quebec... I cherish dearly this carafe and it brings back warm memories... Hugs and double kramar !
ReplyDeleteYes , Jim.. I have both blessed the carafe and in turn been blessed by its contents .... only Pauillac , Saint-JUlien or Saint Estephe wines
ReplyDeleteI'm gonna' check out them wines and If I don't like them I'll be sending you the empties. **LOL**
ReplyDeleteIt would seem that you had found them pleasing to you , Jim.... if all I get in return are the empties !!
ReplyDeleteI am a Bordeaux wine guy... not Petrus at $ 4000.00 a bottle .... word of wisdom from a Médoc vineyard owner and winemaker to me.... any label marked in French " mis en bouteille au château , au clos , au domaine or à la propriété " ( bottled at the chateau , at the cloister , at the manor or at the property ) sold between prices $ 13 to $ 15 a bottle is as good as wines sold at $40 to $50
ReplyDeleteSo, OK. At $4000.00 a bottle I WON'T send you the empty Petrus.So there!! (c;
ReplyDeleteI taught at the Université de Bordeaux back in 1991 and lived in Médoc amidst the vineyards and châteaux .Lafite- Rothchild was about a kilometer from where I stayed in Cussac... I had to go by Beychevelle , Saint JUlien and Pauillac on my way to the supermarket every day.... so a friend asks me to bring him back 4 bottles of Petrus in my carry on bag !! ... $ i6 , 000.00 worth ! and I reefused , of course !
ReplyDeleteGreat story & a beautiful piece of glass!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you very much , Julie Ann..... I just couldn't help myself ... had to give more info about the carafe than necessary I guess.... I hear that in certain circles storytelling is often referred to as painful expatiations !!
ReplyDeleteSuch a lovely story.
ReplyDeleteYou really are a great person.
I always admire people who love their family so much.
Great carafe you have there. I like the bold color it has.
Have a great weekend there.
Come and take a look at my Glass Thing in:
http://shoppingfreedom.multiply.com/journal/item/447/I_DARE_YOU_Glass_Things
Enjoy (^_^)v
This story almost made me cry. Really!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fine son you have been. I could only hope for sons as good as you were.
What a lovely present for your mother. Since my son has made his way in the world he bought my husband a bottle of wine for Christmas - one of those with more than two figures in the price. He said to me he never thought he would be able to buy such a bottle for his father and was so proud when he told me and I know my husband was proud when he received it.
ReplyDeleteShoppingfreedom..... that's quite a mouthful of moniker !! Thank you so much for your visit and kind words. Yes, I was truly blessed with a warm and loving family life .... and I shall visit your site soetime today... as soon as I clear away the 2 feet of new snow that fell yesterday from my entranceway..
ReplyDeleteThanks , Cindy Anne , for those warm words... as you well know I left home to roam the world at age 13.... however , I always managed to keep close ties to back home wherever I was and felt loved all my life by them. Hugs !
ReplyDeleteI think I know how your husband must have felt , Pat ,,,,,, the goodness of the son and the taste of fine wine.... I had a bottle of fine 14-year single malt Oban given to me under the same circumstances..... herrlich !! Thank you for your comment , Pat , and please come back often.
ReplyDeleteVery touching story and a beautiful carafe it is.
ReplyDeletePS: I was also the proud owner of a 1960 VW in 1963-64 and it never failed to take me to my destination. whereever it was.
That was a wonderful story, told so well, and it really makes that carafe more beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI'm really partial to VW's. But mine is of the new variety, a dark blue 1999 New Beetle. My hubby was driving a blue Beetle when I met him. Not sure, but maybe a 1969? And to go even further back, we had a hobby shop in the town I grew up in, that had coin-operated slot car race tracks. My brother took me with him one day, and bought me my own car of my choice. Yes, a blue beetle! :)
Thank you for the kind comment , Nina.... I bought mine from a guy who nowadays is married to someone you might have heard of..... Pauline Marois !! LOL Have a great weekend !.... and come back again ....
ReplyDeleteMille fois merci , Bjariella.... a thousand times thanks ! Your kind words are truly appreciated. I wrote a blog on January 22 about a special moment with my VW back in 1972 or -73.. take care now and please come back again.
ReplyDelete