Bruce Barone

One of the many gifts my wife, Susan, gave me for my birthday, which was March 7, were two of these Edwin M. Knowles dinner plates. Some of you know how much I love beautiful china and I do love these.

Knowles was born in 1869, the son of Isaac Watt Knowles, founder of Knowles, Taylor & Knowles Co. (one of the largest American pottery companies at the turn of the 20th century). A graduate of Harvard, Edwin took control of Potters Supply Company in East Liverpool, Ohio in 1890. Ten years later, Knowles founded Knowles China Company, which became Edwin M. Knowles China Co; the manufacturing was centered in Chester, West Virginia, but expanded to Newell, WV a decade later. In 1931, the company would consolidate to a single plant in Newell. These two plants, operating at once, helped cement West Virginia’s place as the third-largest state producing pottery in the United States, behind Ohio and New Jersey.

Here are two recent dinners on these Knowles plates. Chicken and Asparagus Stir Fry on the left. Turkey Cutlet and Asparagus on the right.

I don’t think it is a stretch of imagination to regard the dinner plates as church offering plates (When I was a church deacon I passed the offering plates row by row–how long ago.). Now I cook for Susan and me and we give thanks every night before dinner; we offer a prayer of thanksgiving.

Susan also bought me this Jerry Lee Lewis record album and a “decomposition” spiral notebook for my birthday. I am planning to outline my novel in it.

I also bought myself a few record albums for my birthday. Rod Stewart’s new album, “Swing Fever,” which is fantastic. And an old favorite, “Turning Point” by John Mayall.

And I gave myself a few new books for my birthday!

“Prophet Song” by Paul Lynch. It won the Booker Prize in 2023 and it depicts the struggles of the Stack family, including Eilish Stack, a mother of four who is trying to save her family as the Republic of Ireland slips into totalitarianism.

“The Practice of the Presence of God” by Brother Lawrence. A modern translation of a beautifully simple but profound book about being with Jesus everyday. It is a book of collected teachings of Brother Lawrence, a 17th-century Carmelite friar, compiled by Father Joseph de Beaufort. The compilation includes letters, as well as records of his conversations kept by Brother Lawrence’s interlocutors.

And small watercolor sketchbooks.

Speaking of watercolor, I started a new and my third watercolor class on my birthday at the Springfield Museums; a perfect birthday present. It was a beautiful day and as I walked to class I noticed daffodils about to bloom. Spring is coming!

I began this watercolor below in class and continued to work on it at home–this time working at the dining room table instead of my photo/painting studio in our cold and damp basement.

The day before my birthday I hung beautifully colored plastic eggs on our weeping cheery tree. There are no children on our street who might walk past our home and enjoy this joyous site, but Susan and I enjoy them and they are a daily reminder of what the Easter season is all about. Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are decorated for the Christian feast of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are common during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). Just as Jesus rose from the tomb, the egg symbolized new life emerging from the eggshell.

Susan and I went out for hamburgers on my birthday. But she ended up having a Cobb Salad and I had Fish Tacos–so good from The Still Bar and Grill. Go figure!

During dinner we shared birthday laughs with new friends.

My brother’s birthday is March 11 and we celebrated his and mine at our daughter’s home, along with her husband, our grandchildren, and my brother’s wife. It was a wonderful Sunday afternoon; great food, good company and we watched the end of the Iowa State women’s NCAA Championship basketball game!

Here is a photo of our daughter and grandchildren at the celebration (And their dog, Bella, a Golden-doodle.) and a photo of Susan and Freddy.

And yes, another year to Heaven. I am grateful for my wife, dog, family, friends and the many gifts I have received and continue to receive.

I imagine standing near an angel holding “The Book of Bruce” and the angel saying “Bruce, reading from “The Book of Bruce,” I clearly see you have seen beauty. You have shared beauty. You have loved. You have let your light shine.”