David Heiller
My wife, Cindy brought the idea to words, although it had
been rattling around my head before then.
She asked
Pat Ring if he would make us a stained
glass window. She wanted it done in honor of her mother, who died in
October of 1998.
I quickly agreed with the idea. I
like honoring loved ones with something of lasting beauty. When my Grandma
Schnick died, we had a friend make a hutch as a tribute to her. That was 11
years ago, and I still think of Grandma every so often when I look at the
hutch. It’s a beautiful piece of furniture, and very well used, which Grandma
would appreciate. Plus it was made by a good friend. That makes it even more special.
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Therese and Rosemary are visiting in front Pat's work of art in in our Brownsville home.
It now resides in Malika's lovely home.
If you look carefully, you can see Pat's honeybees.
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Now hanging in the window next to the
hutch is another beautiful thing, a stained glass window by another good friend.
Pat Ring is not boastful. He’ll try
to deflect any compliments that come his way. He wouldn’t expect me to brag him
up, although hopefully he won’t get mad, because that’s just what I’m going to
do.
I wrote about Pat for a Home and
Garden Edition a few years ago. He has an incredible flower garden at his home
in Windemere township east of Sturgeon Lake. But his stained glass work is just
as impressive. It must grow from the same wonderful source within him.
Cindy and I wanted Pat to make a
garden scene featuring hollyhocks and delphiniums. Her mom liked gardens, and
gardens are a big part of our lives. We told Pat this, told him the size we
wanted. He gave us a price, and we said OK.
He made a
sketch and showed it to us over a cup
of tea at his home. The sketch in itself was beautiful, just like a DaVinci
sketch of Mona Lisa is almost as good
as the painting. It was a mosaic of shapes that flowed across the paper.
I asked Pat if he could add a couple
of honey bees to the scene, to
reflect my hobby of beekeeping. He said he could do that.
Pat E-mailed us
last week to say he had finished the
window. It contained about 750 pieces of stained glass, all cut perfectly and
soldered meticulously. His brother, Dan, made a fine oak frame for it.
When we saw
our new window, we were almost dumbfounded.
The photo of it here doesn’t do it justice. No way. Words don’t either.
The hollyhocks are two different colors,
pink and dark red. I’ve always liked that burgundy color. It reminds me of my childhood.
The
delphiniums are many shades of blue, with
the darker shades on the right side, as if the sun is shining on them from the left. The leaves of
the delphiniums are a lighter green than the hollyhocks.
The glass in the background is a
light gold. And the honey bees are the
color of honey bees. They tie it all together somehow.
We took the window home—very
carefully—and hung it over one of our
dining room windows. It instantly belonged there. How did our house ever
do without it?
The scene in the stained glass window seems to change
throughout the day. It’s on the south side, so the good old sun is always
playing with the leaves and blossoms and bees. Early morning light gives it softness.
Sunshine makes it sparkle. In the evening it is subdued. At night the window
goes dark, as if it is sleeping.
As the
seasons change, and the pitch of the sun rises and falls in the sky, the window
will change too.
It seems to have a life of its own.
It’s already growing on us, just like a real garden.
Thanks,
Pat, for this thing of beauty.
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| Our tradition was to have a thing of beauty made to honor our loved ones. I had this painting done for David. It is a favorite spot on the Reno Spillway. Our dear friend Sara Lubinski painted it. It also resides in Malika's home. |
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