S is for Sequoyah's Syllabary, Sogwali, Sequoia

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

Sequoyah 1776- 1843

Sogwali was born in 1776 in the village of Tuskeegee, near Vonore, TN about a twenty minute drive from Campagne Maison. His mother, Wut-teh was the daughter of a Cherokee Chief. His father, Nathaniel Gist, was a white Virginian fur trader. Sogwali's name was changed to Sequoyah by the missionaries but he was known to the white man as George Gist.

Sequoyah became a Silversmith by trade. He married a Cherokee and had a family. Along with other Cherokees, Sequoyah enlisted on the side of the United States under General Andrew Jackson to fight the British troops and the Creek Indians in the war of 1812.

Although Sequoyah was exposed to the concept of writing early in his life, he never learned the English alphabet. Unlike the white soldiers, he and the other Cherokees were not able to write letters home, read military orders, or record events as they occurred. Driven by the desire to see literacy for his people, after the war, Sequoyah began in earnest to create a writing system for the Cherokees. He started by making symbols that could make words and reduced the thousands of Cherokee thoughts down to 85 symbols representing those sounds.

Sequoyah devised a game of this new writing system and taught his little girl, Ayoka, how to make the symbols. In 1821, after 12 years working on the new language, he and his daughter introduced his syllabary to the Cherokee people. Within a few months thousands of Cherokees became literate.

Sequoyah's Syllabary

By 1825 much of the Bible and numerous hymns had been translated into Cherokee. By 1828 they were publishing the "Cherokee Phoenix," the first national bi-lingual newspaper, along with religious pamphlets, educational materials and legal documents.

In recognition of his contributions, the Cherokee Nation awarded Sequoyah a silver medal and a lifetime pension. He continued to serve Cherokee people as a statesman and diplomat until his death.

The Sequoyah Birthplace Museum is located in Vonore, TN, Loudon County, TN. It is open Mon - Sat, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. and on Sunday from noon until 5:00 p.m. It is the property of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians whose mission strives to promote the understanding and appreciation of the history of the Cherokee people.

"Never before, or since, in the history of the world, has one man--not literate in any language, perfected a system for reading and writing a language" (taken from www.sequoyahmusuem.org/ website)

It was also noted that the great Sequoia trees were named in his honor!

I am linking up with Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday for this week's letter "S". Grab her button on my sidebar and head on over there to read all the other great "S" words.

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit today. We love having company!

Au revoir,

http://www.wikipedia.com/

R is for RED Skelton

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

"R" is for Red Skelton, the artist

Richard "Red" Skelton

Triple Self portrait

On July 18, 1913, America's beloved clown, "Freddie the Freeloader", was born. He was named Richard "Red" Skelton. Red's father was a Circus clown who died shortly before his son's birth. It soon became evident that the clown gene was passed onto Red as he began working with the circus, but "Freddie the Freeloader" didn't made his appearance in 1951.

When Red was 10 years old, he was introduced into show business by Ed Wynn. And, by the time he was 15, he was working full time in burlesque, showboats, minstrel shows and the circus. Although Red Skelton is most noted for his success as a comedian and actor, he was a man of many talents including an accomplished artist. It was his love of clowns that actually motivated him to start painting. When asked why he became an artist, Red related a story that reflects his wit and humor.

"I walked into this gallery and was looking at a painting of a clown when the salesman came up to me. I asked him how much the painting was and he said, five thousand wouldn't touch it. I was shocked and immediately told him I was one of them and left."

As the story goes, Red Skelton went out and bought a set of paints, and began painting. A Red Skelton original could sell for as much as $80,000 prior to his death in 1997, and may bring more today. Red Skelton clown paintings are coveted by collectors around the world. His works are a sound investment in art, as well as a recognized collector's delight, revealing the man who painted them. His art work has proven its value with other contemporary artists and their worth has no limit. They are intensely moving, winning him the Footprints in the Sands of Time award... one of the highest honors an artist can receive.

Red was inducted into the International Clown Hall of Fame in 1989 and was presented the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Governors award in 1986. He was also a Free Mason, a Shriner, a member of both the Scottish and York Rite, and a member of the LA Shriners. He composed music and wrote children's books in addition to breeding quarter horses on his ranch outside Palm Springs. In the early 1960's, Red was the first CBS host to tape weekly programs in color.

Red's famous sign off at the end of his weekly television show was "Good Night and God Bless".

On September 17, 1974, at the age of 84, Red and Freddie passed away. Their body lies in rest at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, in Glendale, CA.

I am linking up with Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday. Please grab her button on my side bar and head over to class to read all the other student's "R" words.

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit. We love having company.

Au revoir,

http://www.redskelton.com/BIOGRAPHY.htm

Q is for "Quinn the Eskimo"

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

"Q" is for "Quinn the Eskimo"

......Come all without.....

....Come all within....

You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn.....

"Quinn the Eskimo (Mighty Quinn)" is a 1967 folk-rock song written by Bob Dylan during "The Basement Tapes" sessions. The song became a hit in 1968 for the British band Manfred Mann, who released it as a single using the title "Mighty Quinn".

The subject of the song is the arrival of the mighty Quinn (an Eskimo), who changes despair into joy and chaos into rest, and attracts attention from the animals. The metaphorical lyrics have prompted suggestions that Quinn is a village elder. Dylan himself has said that the title character refers to actor Anthony Quinn's role as an Eskimo in the 1959 movie "The Savage Innocents". Dylan has also been quoted as saying that the song was nothing more than a "simple nursery rhyme".

Anthony Quinn 1915-2001

"The Mighty Quinn" with Denzel Washington

More recently, Dylan in his autobiography Chronicles Volume One (published 2004), makes further reference to the song: "On the way back to the house I passed the local movie theater on Prytania Street, where The Mighty Quinn was showing. Years earlier I had written a song called "The Mighty Quinn" which was a hit in England, and I wondered what the movie was about. Eventually I'd sneak off and go there to see it. It was a mystery, suspense, Jamaican thriller with Denzel Washington as the "Mighty Xavier Quinn", a detective who solves crimes. Funny, that's just the way I imagined him when I wrote the song--- The Mighty Quinn, Denzel Washington".

Dylan originally recorded the song in 1967 during the Basement Tapes sessions, but did not release a version for another three years. Meanwhile, the song was picked up and recorded by the British band Manfred Mann, who released it under the title "Mighty Quinn." The Manfred Mann version reached #1 in the UK Singles Chart for the week of February 14, 1968, and remained there the following week. It also charted on the American Billboard chart, peaking at #10, and reached #4 in Cash Box.

A later incarnation of Manfred Mann, Manfred Mann's Earth Band, included a dramatically different live version of the song on their 1978 album Watch.

A demo of 14 of the Basement Tape recordings, including the first of two takes of "Quinn the Eskimo", was produced in 1968, but was not intended for release. Recordings taken from the demos began appearing on bootlegs, starting with Great White Wonder, a double-album bootleg that came out in July 1969. The first official release of the song was in 1970 on Dylan's Self Portrait album, a live recording from 1969's Isle of Wight Festival. The live version was also selected in 1971 for the second compilation of Dylan's career, Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II.

When Columbia finally released The Basement Tapes in 1975, "Quinn the Eskimo" was not among the double-album's 24 songs (although an Eskimo was featured on the album cover, alongside Dylan, The Band, and several other people meant to represent certain characters from some of Dylan's songs). However, ten years later, in 1985, the second of the original takes appeared on the three-disc Biography set. This version from the Basement Tapes was used again on The Essential Bob Dylan, a compilation released in 2000.

...when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, everybody's gonna jump for joy...

I am linking up with Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday. Please grab her button on my sidebar and head on over to class to read about all the other "Q"s today!

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit. We love having company.

Au revoir,

http://www.wikipedia.com/

Happy Mother's Day 2010

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

Happy Mother's Day 2010

to my Mom

Sylvia Kathryn Deckelman Gillentine

Mom and Lisa

The mother of nine children -- all birthed at home! Busy rearing all us, she still had the time and patience to foster the 10th one, Lisa Kay, pictured with her above. Mom will be 88 years old on July 2nd.

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit today. We love having company.

Au revoir,

The Silent P

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

"P"

Dear Ms. Matlock,

I saw my physician yesterday and was diagnosed with pneumonia. He sent me to the pharmacy for some medication. While I was there, I saw some photos of people with psoriasis and started having phantom pains. I can't stop scratching! Then, on my way home, I stopped for supper and developed ptomaine posioning.

Today, I have to see a psychiatrist because I have developed psychasthenia. I should have listened to that psychic instead of accusing her of being a phoney. Maybe the best thing for me to do is read a Psalm and stay in bed.

I would turn in my paper with a pseudonym this week, but I know that you check attendance and would miss me. I have studied really hard on my spelling this week, so please excuse me from class today. I will return next week.

I am linking up with Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday. Please grab her button on my sidebar and head on over to read all the other "P" words for this week!

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit today. We love having company.

Au revoir,

The Deck of Cards

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

A Deck of Cards


Here is a new way to look at a deck of cards!!

It was quiet that day, the guns and the mortars, and land mines for some reason hadn't been heard. The young soldier knew it was Sunday, the holiest day of the week. As he was sitting there, he got out an old deck of cards and laid them out across his bunk. Just then an army sergeant came in and said, "Why aren't you with the rest of the platoon"?

The soldier replied, "I thought I would stay behind and spend some time with the Lord".

The sergeant said, "Looks to me like you're going to play cards".

The soldier said, "No, sir. You see, since we are not allowed to have Bibles or other spiritual books in this country, I've decided to talk to the Lord by studying this deck of cards".

The sergeant asked in disbelief, "How will you do that"?

"You see the Ace, Sergeant? It reminds me that there is only one God..

The Two represents the two parts of the Bible, Old and New Testaments

The Three represents the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost.

The Four stands for the Four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John .

The Five is for the five virgins there were ten but only five of them were glorified.

The Six is for the six days it took God to create the Heavens and Earth.

The Seven is for the day God rested after making His Creation.

The Eight is for the family of Noah and his wife, their three sons and their wives -- the eight people God spared from the flood that destroyed the Earth.

The Nine is for the lepers that Jesus cleansed of leprosy He cleansed ten, but nine never thanked Him.

The Ten represents the Ten Commandments that God handed down to Moses on tablets made of stone.

The Jack is a reminder of Satan, one of God's first angels, but he got kicked out of heaven for his sly and wicked ways and is now the joker of eternal hell.

The Queen stands for the Virgin Mary.

The King stands for Jesus, for he is the King of all kings.

When I count the dots on all the cards, I come up with 365 total, one for every day of the year.

There are a total of 52 cards in a deck; each is a week - 52 weeks in a year.

The four suits represent the four seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter.

Each suit has thirteen cards -- there are exactly thirteen weeks in a quarter.

"So, when I want to talk to God and thank Him, I just pull out this old deck of cards and they remind me of all that I have to be thankful for". The sergeant just stood there. After a minute, with tears in his eyes and pain in his heart, he said, "Soldier, can I borrow that deck of cards"?

My sister sent me this and I thought it was worthy of RE-sharing! I too will look at a deck of cards in a different way!

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit today. We love having company.

Au revoir,

Great Giveaways and a NEW Friend

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

I recently joined in on a craft swap and have met a new friend. Her name is Roxanne and she is a Miniature artist. I am not an artist and stand in awe at the talents that God has given others to create with their own hands.

Please take a few minutes to meet Roxanne and see some of her fabulous creations. Her miniature dolls--WELL, you just have to take a look at them. I have no words to describe how they speak to your heart!

http://bakinginminiature.blogspot.com/

I have two great giveaways to share with you today. You don't want to miss out on either of them, so hurry on over and enter for a chance to win!

http://laurieannas.blogspot.com/

AND

http://itsy-bits-and-pieces.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit. We love having company!

Au revoir,