~ Quotation by Mary Ann Evans, aka George Eliot

In 1860, Mary Ann Evans published The Mill on the Floss under the pen name, George Eliot. In the same year, Dickens published his first installment of Great Expectations.

Interesting people were born in 1860: William Jennings Bryan, Gustav Mahler, Anton Chekhov and Lizzie Borden.

In 1860 golfer Willie Park won the first British Open (or "The Open") golf tournament in Ayrshire, Scotland.

And in 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected 16th President of the United States. By his own account, Lincoln had left politics in his younger years, but found his way back into the political game. He endured financial problems, depression, the death of a child -- and yet managed to fulfill the uniquely challenging duties of his Presidency.

Lincoln's contemporary, writer Mary Ann Evans, published her novels (Silas Marner, Adam Bede, etc.) as "George Eliot." In the 19th century, many women used male names to ensure that their work be taken seriously. Even Joanne Rowling, as late as in the 1990s, was discouraged from using her "female" name, lest boys not take to her Harry Potter book. Her publishers suggested a name change . . . J.K. Rowling.

I hope that the publishing industry has finally evolved - that if Joanne Rowling were starting out today, editors wouldn't find it necessary to de-feminize her byline.

I've always loved Mary Ann Evans' quote: "It is never too late to be what you might have been."

These words seem especially appropriate this week, at the start of a new school year. Living in a university neighborhood, I always feel energized when students return to campus -- bright-eyed, hopeful, prepared for take-off. I bought a brand-new 5-subject binder today. I'm not enrolled in classes . . . it's just nice to start off with a clean slate.

It's time to start writing the chart for "272 Words." If you're planning on making charted designs, don't follow my example -- please! The gory truth is: I stitched this piece without a detailed chart, mostly eyeballing my way across the linen, fast and loose. Ideally, one should plot a chart and stitch from it.

Now I feel like Sherlock Holmes with the magnifying glass, poring over the sampler, counting stitches and spaces. The Case of the Uncharted Design. ;)

Thank you kindly for taking the time to visit last week. I am deeply grateful for your comments, which have energized me through the next phase of this journey.

"The Other Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863"

The first Gettsyburg Address preceded President Lincoln's by about two hours. Delivered by Former Secretary of State Edward Everett, the first oration on that day lasted 2 hours, as opposed to Lincoln's 3-minute address. Everett, a distinguished Boston orator in the tradition of Daniel Webster, opened with these words:

Standing beneath this serene sky, overlooking these broad fields now reposing from the labors of the waning year, the mighty Alleghenies dimly towering before us, the graves of our brethren beneath our feet, it is with hesitation that I raise my poor voice to break the eloquent silence of God and Nature. But the duty to which you have called me must be perfomed; grant me, I pray you, your indulgence and your sympathy.

Everett's 13,607-word speech is quite a contrast to Lincoln's 272 words. A Mahler Symphony followed by a Chopin etude. Or a Dickens novel followed by an Emily Dickinson poem. What a juxtaposition of scale! But art assumes all sizes, and the two men, each in his own way, honored the fallen soldiers at Gettysburg with grace and humility.

The next day's correspondence between the two men began with Everett praising Lincoln's brevity, to which Lincoln replied: "I am pleased to know that, in your judgment, the little I did say was not entirely a failure."

I'm trying to remember the last time I heard today's crop of politicians speak with such humility and elegance.

We have new followers to this blog - welcome all! A few of you have asked about "272 Words" -- will there be a chart? The sampler is still a work in progress and I'll post the answer here by mid-September. I'd like to make the decision after the piece is framed. Your inquiries and kind words have inspired beyond measure.

Back to the matter at hand . . . the sampler is on its way to the framer, and, for the first time in my stitching life -- I hated parting with the linen! Usually there's a happy dance, but not this time. That piece of linen has been a part of my daily life for months. No more tweaks or color changes. No more frogging, reconfiguring, re-stitching. It's time to let go.

Anyone interested in stitching the first Gettysburg Address -- Mr. Everett's -- on linen? It's a mere 13,607 words. :)

I'm taking a couple days' break from stitching, starting tonight . . . can you hear the Apple Martini being made? I hope you'll indulge in a cool drink as well . . .

Cheers, see you in a few days!