Hello and Happy Poetry Friday! Be sure to visit Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect for Roundup.
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| Christmas tree shaped charcuterie board :) |
Last week several readers had questions about my new gig as a DAR Correspondent Docent in Training. Thank you!
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| my maternal grandmother, Ruth Lavinia Ralston Hedden Oslund |
My ancestor, Andrew Ralston, served in the Thirteenth Pennsylvania as a Sergeant. He participated in the battles at Germantown, Monmouth, and Brandywine, where he suffered a head wound. He was taken prisoner at the Battle of Long Island. Fortunately, he survived, and at the end of the war, he returned to York, Pennsylvania, where he married and started a family.
Funny thing: I didn't know any of this when we named our middle son Andrew! But now that I do know, it feels really sweet and special, like carrying on this name provides a vital connection to the past. Andrew thinks it's pretty cool, too.
If you've ever watched Gilmore Girls, you know Emily Gilmore was famously a DAR member. (Paul and I recently watched the entire series on Netflix. Love!) The show presents a stereotypical view of DAR as a hoity-toity social club for wealthy women. This may be true in some areas of the country. But my Warrior Rivers chapter here in Blount County, Alabama, is made up of wise, mostly elderly, down-to-earth women who are passionate about history, enjoy learning, and are eager to serve the community.
The DAR Museum is located in Washington, D.C., near the White House. It's dedicated to the preservation of life inside the home—anything to do with everyday life, from decorative arts to what we wear, to kitchen gadgets, furniture, toys, and so much more! There are 31 period rooms (sponsored by different states) and 3 rotating galleries.
I've never been to the DAR Museum, but I've received training about the museum so that I can be part of their Outreach team. Correspondent Docents deliver programs created by the museum's experts in their own home communities. Earlier this month, I gave a program on Holiday Traditions and how they've changed through the years. Next month, I will provide one titled "Sewn in America," which is about needlecraft, quilting, and dressmaking, based on an exhibit the museum held in 2024. Once I've given ten programs, I'll be a full-fledged Correspondent Docent and can drop the "In Training" part of the title.
Y'all, I love this! I get to learn! And share what I'm learning! I get to surround myself with other curious, history-loving folks! And who knows what stories and poems will arise because of it??
New life goal: visit the DAR Museum in person. For anyone reading this who'll be in D.C., it's free and open to the public Monday-Saturday.
Another DAR thing I'm doing during 2026 is facilitating an America 250 Book Club in our community. All the titles are related to the Revolutionary War. I'll paste in the list below. I'm excited!
The Founding Foodies: American Meals That Wouldn’t Exist Today If Not for Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin by Dave DeWittAngelica: For Love and Country in the Time of Revolution by Molly Beer
Founding Gardeners: The Revolutionary Generation, Nature, and the Shaping of an American Nation by Andrea Wulf
Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation by Cokie Roberts
1776 by David McCullough
Picasso in His Studio the Day After Christmas
The air, once sharp
with anticipation
has softened. The world
rearranges with or without
our help. Do we dare
rest? We cannot
know what beauty
and terror wait for us
behind the yellow
door. The new year steals
into every room with
the feet of a thief.
- Irene Latham
Oh Irene! If you come to DC, I want to go to the DAR museum with you. It's on my list of museums.
ReplyDeleteAnd I've read FOUNDING FOODIES, FOUNDING GARDENERS, and FOUNDING MOTHERS. Two of them were for research for a project that didn't sell and has since been abandoned.
I’m with Marcie! I think there’s a whole Poetry Friday group that would love to meet you and go to the DAR house. And, we’d definitely take you to off the beaten places to visit like the Lorton Work House where Marci’s book has scenes and fun maker places. Just say the word and we’ll be there.
ReplyDeleteMy sister is in the DAR. She loves it too. When I learned that my adopted daughters would not be permitted to join I decided that I’d let my sister be my. representative to the DAR and I delight in her enthusiastic particitation.
Your Artspeaks projects have inspired me so much over the years. Picasso was an extraordinary choice to focus on for the year. I look forward to what you select for 2026.
Please remember you always have places to stay, tour guides and friend-ubers to get you around the DC area!
Powerful closing poem by Rilke, "keep going," Yes! And biting closing line in your poem we'll have to be vigilant… The sharp angles and juxtaposed shapes in Picasso's art goes well with your poem… I hope a sea of goodness floods in through that yellow door, but we'll keep going regardless. Thanks for your keen poem Irene, it feels a bit like a prophesy. Fun finding-outs about your families connections, all the best with completing your Docent program!
ReplyDeleteLove all your exciting DAR news, including the American Revolution-themed book club!!! Your poem's mood so perfectly captured that day-after-Christmas mood for me, even that faint unease mixed with excitement in those gorgeous "...The new year steals/into every room with/the feet of a thief" Wishing you and your family a very Happy New Year! xo
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother was a member of the DAR and I believe my cousin has all the relevant information she shared in her application. Or maybe she gave it to my sister? I don't think any of our current generations have joined. I'll be interested in seeing where this takes you :) Your poem is a perfect match for the image and oh that yellow door! I really appreciated the power of your enjambment throughout and that final stanza is just perfect.
ReplyDeleteThank you for immersing us in DAR, Irene. With Ken Burns' new documentary, I imagine you will eat it all up.
ReplyDeleteYour poem has me thinking about how a year begins with "once sharp...anticipation" and as it ends, now softens. Perhaps laced with more understanding, some gratitude, some forgiveness? I'll think more about that as we bid adieu to 2025.
I, too, could be a DAR, but I passed all the paperwork to my cousin.
ReplyDeleteI'm in love with that yellow door! We opened it a crack the day after Christmas and such a flood of goodness streamed through! I know there is otherwise also lurking behind that door, but what a glorious way to end this dumpster fire of a year!
Irene, that line break after "We cannot..." Brilliant! And this program sounds tailor made for you. You will be such a wonderful ambassador for history and making and learning and sharing. xoxo
ReplyDeleteWhat a fitting final poem to your year of Picasso, Irene! I agree with Laura about the brilliance of that line break.
ReplyDeleteI love:
The world
rearranges with or without
our help.
And I've long loved that Rilke quote. Happy new year!
Oh, how beautifully Picasso inspired you! Thank you for holding up that yellow door to us all.
ReplyDelete