Quilting Earth Mama: Hail, Hail Good ol' Earth Camp

My latest piece. Many of you have seen it, but I couldn't post it until I had given it to its rightful owner. I made this one in trade for the kids attending EarthCamp last year. It took me a year to get the right design and make it. I tried a few different times to make this quilt before I actually got one I liked enough to give it to someone and now, I'm really glad I didn't rush myself and that Pam was very patient with me. The house and the tree are my interpretation of the EarthCamp logo and I added the kids holding hands around because kids are what EarthCamp is. Pam Blanchard is the woman behind EarthCamp. It is her baby. She brings all these kids together in the woods for an experience they will never forget. They play in mud, they play in the rain, they play in the river, they catch insects and snakes and frogs and turtles, they make art, they sing, and did I mention they play in mud and it is all on the most beautiful 100 acres of woods just outside of Athens at EarthSong. Kids need to get back to nature and be in touch with it. They need to watch less television and play less video games and be and experience life and the infinite possibilities of play in the woods. I remember as a kid playing in the trees in my back yard was one of my most favorite things to do. I was always encouraged to play outside (thanks mom and dad). My dad had this compost bin (he gardened then - we ate all homegrown veggies when I was coming up). I would take it apart and build a fort under this tree behind his garden, but in front of the giant field behind our house and there I would read and imagine stories and play, and I think it really helped me to be in touch with myself now and have a much deeper appreciation of nature. Pam provides this for kids. She provides the adult supervision and lets the kids be wild and be themselves. There are few rules at EarthCamp and using your imagination is one of them. She brings kids who spend most of their days in school or in the city out and it is just beautiful to watch the kids and how they relate to the woods there and the relationships they create with the environment. It is close to my heart, as I feel it is of the highest importance that kids be exposed to real nature and be allowed to participate IN ITrather than being afraid of getting dirty or of touching things in nature. Most everything out there won't hurt you and dirt is actually good for us. It helps to build our immunity, so as the song goes... Hail Hail Good Ol' Earth Camp, Hail Hail Dear Ol' Dirt Camp!

Here's the close up of the EarthHouse. In real life it is made of cob and looks just like a hobbit hole. (Cob is a mixture or red mud, sand, straw a WHOLE lot of hard work).