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Gnomes

A Wilderness Adventure

By Judy WorshamPublished 3 years ago 3 min read
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Four Brothers In A Family Portrait

Gnomes are not just for children! These elfish figures with there individual expressions and personalities steal the hearts of adults as much as they do children. Gnomes are similar to humans in their family structure. The men marry, have children, and most prefer to live in woodland settings. They have close family units. Gnomes are seven times as strong as humans and so hard work poses no problem.

The word gnome comes from a Latin word gnomus and was first used during the Renaissance period to describe small guardians of the mines. All the countries of Europe claim to have gnomes in one form or another, whether they call them elves or brownies or gnomes. In many instances they live underground. Usually their habitat is woodland. Sometimes they are the good guys in stories. Other times they are the villain's.

Many books have been written about the gnomes. Gnomes made a resurgence in America in 1977 with a book entitled Gnomes by Abrams which was on the best sellers list for 66 weeks. However, long before Abrams' book, in the Wizard of Oz Movie, the village king had been a gnome. In the J.R. Tolkien books, he makes his gnomes tall, slender, intelligent from Nodor (when translated into English means gnome). In C.S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia, the gnomes are called Earthmen. In J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter book series, she refers to gnomes as pests that live in witches' gardens.

Popular Musicians have written songs about gnomes. In 1973 David Bowie recorded The Laughing Gnome which became a hit. George Harrison's 1970 All Things Must Pass Album showed him sitting in a garden surrounded by little gnomes. Pink Floyd put a song about gnomes on his 1967 album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn.

After the original gnome book came out in 1974, gnomes were a hot market. There were gnome coffee mugs, gnome candy dishes, gnome soap dishes, etc. Then there were all the indoor statues you could buy in various sizes and made of various materials. You could buy small 6 inch gnomes of wood or a 12 inch clay statue. Florist were using them in their arrangements. Children wanted a soft gnome to sleep with so the market provided that too. Next came the market for lawn ornaments. You could buy them out of concrete or pottery.

I liked gnomes the first time I saw one in a book, but not like my mother-in-law, Hazel. She was a kindergarten teacher and grew up in a time period when the fantasy books she read to her class told tales of Brownies and Elves living in the forest. When she saw her first gnome for sale in a Hallmark store, a set of coffee mugs she was off and running with her new hobby--collecting gnomes. I have to say she did it tastefully. It was the way she lived her life. Everything had a place and a place for everything. There was never any clutter in her house.

One Christmas, I was having a hard time trying to think of something to give her when I saw a picture of a gnome in a book as a soft toy. I thought it would make a great gift if I could make it myself. She was a do-it-yourselfer and really appreciated the time, effort, and love that goes into handmade gifts. So I got started. I drew the outline onto a piece of watercolor paper. I used a charcoal pencil to draw the details. I cut out two pieces of muslin for each gnome. I sewed the fabric together, leaving room for me to stuff with cotton stuffing. Then I began to paint. I used watercolors . It took me about an hour to make each one. After I finished the first gnome, I thought , "That was pretty easy." "I can make another one." So you see that's how I ended up making four of them, They are 12-14 inches tall.

Everyone who saw them at our Christmas family dinner loved them. Hazel, my mother-in-law told me she thought more of that gift than anything else she received. I am so glad I made them for her when I did because she died of cancer later that year. It was truly a gift of love.

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About the Creator

Judy Worsham

I majored in Art as an undergraduate. I taught school for 25 years specializing in teaching chi8ldren with Autism.

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