Heirloom Registry Scavenger Hunt: Santa Elena Canyon

She was an artist. I didn't, or maybe I couldn't, appreciate it then. My daughter is an artist too. Does she get it from my Paw Paw? I don't know. Is that passed through genes? I like to think so.

And if I somehow passed that on to my daughter, I'm glad I did for I wasn't close to my father's mother, but to know I had some small part in passing on her artistic abilities to my daughter, well, it makes me feel closer to the both of them, even though my Paw Paw is painting in heaven now.

I never knew her well. In fact, I know her better now than I ever did when she was alive, and one of her paintings hangs in my office forever reminding me of the person I never bothered to know...not really.

A reminder of lost opportunities...of lost stories...

And of a remembered story...

For this particular painting is of a scene that she never saw in person, but I did. And so did my brother, my sisters, and my parents. She captured a happy time in my childhood...a time of innocence... a time before everything became so complicated, as it tends to do.

---

Santa Elena Canyon, painted by Rettie Maye (Martin) Marshall.

If you're familiar with West Texas, this is a painting of a popular spot in Big Bend {a national park} - Santa Elena Canyon. And we went twice as a family when I was young. I remember Dad renting an RV both times. 

I remember it was crowded in that RV, but the sense of safety...the sense of family was all around.

And fun. I remember the fun we all had...the laughter.

My Paw Paw took one of my father's, her son's, pictures of Big Bend and painted it. And she, I'm sure without realizing it, forever captured one of the most happiest moments of my childhood.

And I cannot think of a more fitting place to memorialize it and my memories and the story surrounding it and the artist than on Heirloom Registry, a secure online place to preserve and share stories behind family heirlooms.

Registered & preserved forever at Heirloom Registry.

I recently registered my Paw Paw's Big Bend painting using The Heirloom Registry™, which is a new product from Houstory®. The online registry allows users to preserve and share the stories behind family heirlooms and precious belongings. 

And you're in luck. I'm very proud to be a sponsor and participant in the Heirloom Registry's Online Scavenger Hunt. As part of the hunt, hunters will need to find the “clue” hidden in the Heirloom Registry record listed below. 

• If you’d like to start the scavenger hunt now, I suggest you first go to The Houstory Hearth blog’s special Scavenger Hunt Page. There you’ll find information about the hunt, the prizes – and most importantly the list of the other three blogs you’ll need to visit today. 
• If you already know what you’re doing, here’s the Heirloom Registry ID Code you need to obtain my secret word:  SUFI-800-219-4659-2012
• If this is your final stop for Hunt No. 2, be sure to submit your entry form with your secret words before Thursday, March 7, 2013 at midnight PST. Instructions for Hunt No. 3 will be posted at the Houstory Hearth at 12 a.m. EST on March 8. Good luck – and happy hunting!

For more information/instructions, watch the short video below:

And maybe I - no, I definitely - didn't fully appreciate my Paw Paw, Rettie Maye (Martin) Marshall, and her artistic abilities when I was growing up, but I do now, and perhaps - with the help of Heirloom Registry - my descendants will too.

~Caroline

Santa Elena Canyon, Joey {Joseph K. Marshall, III} & Caroline Martin (Marshall) Pointer, 4 Jul 1976, taken by Joseph K. Marshall, Jr.