Bazaars.

Whatever happened to Church Bazaars??? On Friday when the kids and I were at the mall we saw table after table of people selling their wares. There were several consultants selling Tastefully Simple and Tupperware type things. But there were also regular folks selling homemade candles, chalk drawings, etched glass knicknacks to name just a few. All those tables got me to thinking.....whatever happened to good old fashioned Church Bazaars???

I have so many memories of being dragged to those bazaars when I was a kid (I say dragged because I know me, I am sure I never went willingly). And while I say I was dragged there against my will, ironically I have so many fond memories of those Saturday mornings.

There is just something about homemade brownies, cupcakes and chocolate chip cookies being sold on paper plates covered in saran wrap. Crocheted kleenex box covers in every color (and color combination!) imaginable with crocheted coasters to match. The handmade Barbie Doll clothes, the plastic beaded Christmas ornaments, the homemade house coats (complete with front pockets and rickrack detailing) and my personal favorite.....the embroidered flour sack towels. You could get those towels for every day of the week, every holiday; you name it! (seriously though~ I did love the flour sack towels)

While I am not a knicknack person, and I most definitely am not a crocheted kleenex box cover kind of girl, I do at times wish I had some of those things around my house. You see, my Grandma was always one of those church ladies selling her crafts. She sold her plastic beaded Christmas ornaments, her crocheted coasters and doilies and yes, my much coveted flour sack towels at the very same bazaars my mother would drag me to.

I remember always thinking I could hardly wait to be an adult so I too could have an embroidered dishcloth for every day of the week. And I remember thinking as I watched my Grandma talking to her church lady friends that someday I too wanted to have that kind of community; that sense of belonging. They were a funny bunch of women who proudly sold what they had taken the time and care to make (just picture a room full of Vicki Lawrence's as Momma selling knit Barbie doll clothes and there you go!).

I think churches should get back into having bazaars. Not only did they bring women together for a great time of fellowship and a chance to learn a new hobby, but they brought with it a sense of closeness. A sense of oneness that only women can share. A chance to pass along to the next generation the knowledge (and satisfaction) of being able to make something yourself. And what could be better than any of that?

These days not a table of crocheted doilies or plastic ornaments goes by that I don't think of my Grandma and all the church basement bazaars I attended. While I never did learn to crochet or get my set of embroidered flour sack towels and I most certainly don't dress like "Momma"; I have never forgotten the life lessons I learned on those Saturday mornings...... Be proud of who you are and be proud of what you can do. Even if it's making kleenex box covers for your church's bazaar.