Bittersweet Vessels
These two vessels have very different stories, though they reside in bittersweet harmony in our family room. I found the vase on the left at a thrift shop not long ago. It is marked on the bottom “Apple Lane 6/77”. Research indicates Apple Lane Pottery was started by Bill Nagengast in 1972 in Bloomfield, MI. It seems he is still working as a professional potter! The piece is very “mod” in style and coloring, and I was attracted to its 1970s vibe. It is a sweet piece of American pottery and it looked lovely next to the “Erica” jar, with their similar colors and patterning.
The “Erica” jar story starts in the summer of 1978. My parents sent me to Spain that summer. Alone. Mind you I was 15 at the time, and was to stay with a family my mother knew. The family was lovely, and took me all over central Spain touring, shopping and enjoying wonderful meals. One daughter was a few years older than I, and we rode around on scooters with adorable teen boys, drank cervesa at the local outdoor bar, and lounged about their beautiful home and pool. I recall visiting Toledo and Madrid with the mother, as well as a well-known artist to tour his huge home studio. One evening we drove high in some mountains to an ancient monastery to eat a remarkable meal of octopus in black ink (a bit beyond the palette of an American teen raised on spaghetti and Pepperidge Farm). During one of our outings to a pottery business, I found a small jar labeled “SAL” which I brought home as a gift for a sister. The jar was a salt container, but Sal was also her nickname. The fact I made it home was itself a bit of an experience, but I’ll save you that long story – involving terrorists, bombs and much delayed flights.
Many years later, this sister went on a trip to Italy where she found an “ERICA” jar for me. Finding anything with my name on it is a slight miracle, and having it be a jar much like the one I gifted her was remarkable. Erica is the Latin term for the plant heather, and as it is not used in cooking, I was puzzled. It turns out the plant can be used for medicinal purposes, so this jar was more for pharmaceutical use. Research says heather is used to treat insomnia, depression, gout, stomachache, and skin problems! I might need to grow some of that.
My relationship with that sister ended many years ago, and the jar remains a bittersweet token of old memories. Placed as it is on a mantel in our family room, it reminds me of many things lost. But the Apple Lane vase reminds me of what we can find. Life is complicated, and it is wonderful to find love, sweetness and joy in the simple things. The memories of the past are part of our lives, both bitter and sweet. As I get older, I am trying hard to gravitate towards the sweet.