Just for fun, here is a picture of a friend and I with George Washington, at the annual Old Fashioned 4th of July at Rock Ledge Ranch Historic Site! We both made our dresses.

I recently faced the moment dreaded by many artists and crafters: evacuation from a wildfire. On Tuesday, June 26th, I was evacuated from my home as flames, ash and smoke raced through the Mountain Shadows community in Colorado Springs. Over 30,000 people were part of the evacuation and many of us were out of our homes for almost a week. It was a terrifying ordeal, and one that has made me pause and reflect on what is important in life. This is what we saw:

I have discovered that being an artist and crafter presented me with a unique set of difficulties. One sentiment that I heard after evacuation was “things don’t matter, at least your family is safe”. While I agree that people are more important than things, I cannot deny that as an artist it is not easy to just drive away from years of effort. When you spend a year of your time making an original lace shawl it becomes something more than just a garment. Part of your time, your energy and yourself went into that piece.Thanks to some very courageous friends I managed to get out of my house with a significant amount of my handmade objects!

The problem is that in an evacuation you have only a small amount of time to make decisions about what precious items mean the most. What do you have room to take? Should you save the many handcrafted gifts received from friends, or the collection of historic clothing that took years to stitch? Should you call a friend to come and help, or would it be too dangerous? How much time can you take before you absolutely have to leave? I would recommend to anyone the importance of being organized and at least having an idea of what you would grab in an emergency.

In my case I left when the heat reached 115 degrees in the house, the power failed and the police knocked on the door to make sure we got out. By the time we left we had to wear masks to breathe because of the thick smoke and ash.

I am so thankful to the police and firefighters for their efforts to stop the fire. I am also so thankful to all of my friends who came immediately when I called for help, gave me places to stay, a shoulder to cry on, phone calls, hugs, food, and so much more. Thank You!