Kaleidoscope

Barbara Findley Stuart, a wife, mother of two, grandmother of four, and great-grandmother of two, was born July 11th, 1928 in Jacksonville, Illinois. As a child Barbara loved to ride her tricycle along the sidewalk, often accompanying a passing-by neighbor no farther than the boundary set by her mother, talking all the way. Communication-and books and writing, any way to share her love of people and life-has always come first. As an adult her loves morphed into other kinds of communication. Music was often at the center, especially piano and singing-she sang for weddings, church, and funerals, composed songs and piano music, taught piano and school music-even played the Tchaikovsky piano concerto with the university orchestra. But family, especially her much-loved son and daughter, made the core of her life. And always there were words and people: teaching English, serving as an elected county board representative, writing stories, speeches, and opinion letters, and creating and chairing committees-committees that have worked to strengthen justice and prevent violence and racism. Then around 80, Barbara became too deaf for committee work or teaching. Fortunately, a good friend introduced her to a small group who also love books and writing. She soon came to value poetry as a bridge past her deafness, emailing her poems to friends and family and taking copies with her everywhere she went-and giving them to friendly people. Then, if her deafness did not keep her from understanding their speech, she would end up in a warm discussion of the poem's ideas. In her lifetime she planted 61 trees, the last a pink dogwood! At 94, Barbara is grateful that her poems are helping her make friends in her new life in a retirement home, and is especially happy to now have a poetry book, to reach out to others.