Grand Canyon South Rim

 Mr. Cactus and I just got back from a little

2-day trip to the

Grand Canyon

 Now that we live in the Phoenix Metro

it's only a 3 1/2 hour drive to get to the

South Rim

 As many of you know, the

Grand Canyon is one of the 

7 Natural Wonders of The World

It's one of those places you must see for yourself

because pictures cannot capture the 

vastness, magnitude or 

immensity of the experience.

 We wanted to do some hiking.

I voted  to start with the easy

13 Mile 

Rim Trail

that winds along the top of the canyon .

 Most of this trail is paved,

and you always have the option of 

hopping on a Shuttle bus

that will take you to the next lookout point.

We did a mixture of hiking and riding,

which made for a very pleasant morning. 

 Layers of the Grand Canyon reveal 

40 % of the Earth's history.

Trail of Time markers

are set a meter apart

along the trail,

signifying 1 million years

of Geologic history.

Our National Parks are very family oriented.

We visited with people from all over the world

who came from long distances.

We heard many languages being spoken

from French to Italian to German.

In fact, very rarely did we

hear our native language of English

as we stopped at lookout points.

 There are 6 major overlooks

along the Rim Trail.

The South end of the Grand Canyon 

sits at an elevation of

7,000 feet above sea level.

 The deep fissures were carved by the 

Colorado River below.

 The Grand Canyon chasm is 277 miles long

and up to 18 miles wide.

 The monument to John Wesley Powell

at Powell Point

made us think a little bit of 

the Mayan El Castillo at Chichen Itza in Mexico.

 Powell was the first to explore the 

Grand Canyon in 1869

 This is

Monsoon Season

in Arizona

and as we traversed the trail

huge rain clouds began forming overhead.

Lightening strikes can be very dangerous

so the park began lining up shuttle buses

and requested everyone move off the mountainside.

I didn't mind much.

We headed to the Lodge restaurant with a

spectacular overlook

 and waited out the storm.

We dined leisurely on a very nice late lunch

while a torrential downpour

blanketed the skies.

I love a summer thunderstorm :)

Once things cleared up a bit,

Mr. Cactus was looking for a more rigorous hike

and  headed down part of the

Bright Angel Trail.

His descent of more than 1,000 feet was a little 

much for me so I stayed back and 

read, 

napped 

and enjoyed the most breathtaking views.

Are You The First Born In Your Family?

 As I mentioned in previous posts,

Sharon Schamber's lecture was as interesting to me

as her most AMAZING quilts.

 At the beginning of her presentation, Sharon shared with us a personal observation 

she has made about women who become quilters.

She noted that the majority of women who quilt 

are usually the oldest child in their family.

 At first, I didn't put a lot of stock in her comment.

 Then she asked 

with a show of hands

how many in the room were 

the first born?

 There were about 60 women 

gathered in the room

for our Phoenix Modern Quilt Guild Meeting.

 As I looked around

I would guess that at least 50 

of those 60 women

raised their hands!

 Really!

I was quite surprised to see so many raise their hands.

Sharon on the other hand, just nodded her head

expecting such a response.

 She said

"Women who are drawn to quilting 

are often 

Alpha Women,

who are Intelligent

"Take Charge" kind of women.

 In the study of personality traits of Birth Order

First Borns are usually the Alpha.

 First borns are the leaders,

who tend to be reliable,

conscientious, and 

perfectionists.

 Christy, who is a member of our guild

is Sharon's oldest child.

 Sharon teased "Sometimes the Alpha female 

can be considered somewhat bossy" :)

 But, they play an essential and 

very needed role 

in keeping things 

organized and

moving forward.

Without our Alphas

we would probably still be sitting in a cave.

 So, I ask you:

Are You the First Born in Your Family?

 I'm taking my own personal poll

and am curious to see your response.

I am the exception to this quilting norm.

 I am the youngest in my family

and am quite content

being the Beta in the group

who would rather follow.

 But, I have sat on several 

Quilt Guild boards.

 And from my personal experience

I can tell you that the board rooms

are full of Alpha women!

Very interesting discussions indeed!

My thanks to Christy for inviting her mother

to come and share her beautiful quilts with us.

I learned so much!

And thank you Sharon 

for your very interesting insights.

More From Sharon Schamber

I wanted to show you a few more quilts from

Sharon Schamber's Trunk Show

when she came to the 

Phoenix Modern Quilt Guild

Seeing so many AMAZING pieces 

one after another 

literally took my breath away.

 Our Children of Freedom (2003)

91" X 85"

 Sharon's daughter Christy 

taught elementary school for several years.

The inspiration came from the children 

in Christy's 2nd grade class.

 Sharon dedicated this quilt to the importance of the learning experience.

 Won Best of Show

Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza, Philadelphia, PA 2004

and several other awards.

 Emerald Reflections

 How would you feel if you had to make this quilt twice?

The original was destroyed in a UPS truck fire

in 2000 while on it's way to be photographed 

for Quilter's Newsletter.

 Putting in over 2,000 hours of work

Sharon remade this stunning quilt

renaming it Memories of Emerald Reflections

 We asked Sharon if she had a favorite out of all of the 

quilts she has made. 

Her answer:

A Perfect Moment (2002)

85" X 101"

 The image was hand painted

with the dress quilted.

But wait, there's more!

I'll be back tomorrow

with additional quilts by Sharon Schamber.

Do You Have Synesthesia?

As AMAZING as it was to view

Sharon Schamber's quilts during 

the trunk show/ lecture last Saturday,

I was equally intrigued to listen to her

speak about aspects of her life.

 As quilts were being held up for display, Sharon  began the lecture

by telling us about her

"4 conditions"

that have provided many personal challenges.

Yesterday I told you about  her

Hyper Focus

 Another occurrence that has had great impact upon Sharon's life

is a neurological condition called

Synesthesia

 Synesthesia is a condition in which "the stimulus of one sensory

leads to an automatic or involuntary experience 

in a second sensory."

For many people a number is just a number on a page.

But for people with synesthesia, they might automatically

experience a number also as a color, smell or sound.

 A common form is called Color Synesthesia

where letters or numbers are perceived as

inherently colored.

 This was a new concept to me!

But, as Sharon explained her condition,

immediately the woman sitting across from me

stated in a matter of fact way

 "Oh yes.  The number 5 is green."

 As with all conditions, there are many spectrums,

and Sharon felt most quilters experience

Synesthesia even if only on a small scale. 

 She asked 

"Do you have a certain color that you just love? Or

do you have a color that you just don't like at all?"

 All colors have vibrations

and often influence our emotions.

 So I ask you,

do you have 

Synesthesia?

 I came home and talked to Mr. Cactus about what I had learned.

 We looked up the definition in Wikipedia 

HERE

 There is a number form of Synesthesia

where numbers, months of the years, or days of the week

have a location in space

or a 3-Dementional view.

For example, the date 1980 might look

"farther away" than 1990.

 As we read the definitions, Mr. Cactus looked at me and said

"Of course.  A calendar year is a circle that goes counter clockwise

with higher points like January 1st. And then as you zoom in on a number

the patterns zig zag and have angles."

 I looked at him stunned.

We have been married for quite a long time,

and I knew he was very good with numbers.

But, I did not realize that we "saw" them differently.

For me a number looks just like a flat black one dimensional 3 or 4 on a page.

As an artist, Sharon Schamber's Synesthesia greatly 

contributes in her creative ability when making quilts.

Many great artists talk of their Synesthesia.

See Wikipedia list HERE

Did you know that when John Mayer

 hears music he sees colors?