1,000 Paper Cranes

I would like to introduce you to two of my good friends. Sarah and Yvonne. Sarah and I went to grade school together and we met Yvonne in jr. high. Sarah has Cystic Fibrosis. CF is a life- threatening genetic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system. When we were in jr. high, the life expectancy for someone with CF was about 18-21 years of age. Thanks to medical research and advances the average expected survival age is now about 37 years!

When we were in jr. high, we all read the book "One Thousand Paper Cranes" for our English class. It's the true story of a Japanese girl named Sadako who survived when Hiroshima was bombed during WWII. She suffered for 10 years of Atomic Bomb Disease before surrendering to the disease. "In Japan the crane is a traditional sign of long life and good fortune. According to folk tale, if one crane represented a thousand years of happiness, then a thousand cranes would mean one million years of happiness." - One Thousand Paper Cranes

One of the projects our class did was make 1,000 paper cranes for the sick children up at Dornbecher Children's Hospital. Sarah, Yvonne and I used to sit in the library and fold paper cranes for our class.

In the summer of 1999 Sarah became very ill and was in the hospital for quite a long period of time. Yvonne and I went to visit her and were struck by the reality of her disease. On the way home, we talked of how we were at the age that we used to dread for Sarah. That day we decided to make her 1,000 paper cranes.

Over the next ten years, Yvonne went away to college, I got married and had three children and she moved across the country to work as a copy editor for a newspaper. Every chance we had together we would try and fold as many cranes as possible. They moved with me several times. They even sat forgotten the year after my twins were born.

Finally, after several years, Yvonne and I were living in the same state again! We got really determined one night and had a marathon folding session to finish the last 200 cranes. But we still had a probelm. How were we going to present them to Sarah? We couldn't just hand her 5 boxes full of folded cranes. We had to come up with some sort of beautiful way to display them. We were at a loss... so they sat for almost a whole year, until we had an idea!

We finally came up with what you see in the pictures. There are 900 cranes on the bottom in strings of 50. The last 100 are displayed on top of the shelf. We are finally finished! Sarah loves them and is excited to put them in her newly remodeled craft room.

Today Sarah is in good health. But the fact remains that her disease will eventually claim her life if no cure is found. Together, the three of us will be participating in the Great Strides Walk on May 15th in Portland Oregon. The greater goal is to raise funds to help find a cure for CF. Our team goal is to raise $1,000, but I think we can blow that out of the water. With the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation about 90 cents out of every dollar goes to the research. If you would like to make a donation and help our team reach our goal you can do it easily and safely online at www.cff.org/Great_Strides/JessicaBanister We greatly appreciate your part in helping find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis!

Trilliams

Trilliams are beautiful flowers that grow all over in the forest. We were always told never to pick them though. Once picked it takes them seven years to produce another flower. You must know, I only know this because someone told me. I've never actually researched it for myself.

The house that my parents bought from my grandmother had trilliams growing in the yard. My Mom told me that they were brought by my Grandmother, from her previous house. When my parents sold their house, my Mom dug the trilliams up and took them with her.

I love these little flowers. I don't really know why. Maybe it's because they're so simple and delicate. Maybe it's because they remind me of my Mom and Grandma. I can't say really. I just love them! We came across several on our hike the other day.

Depth of Field

In my reading I've learned about "depth of field". It's quite interesting, and something I never really looked at before.

This picture is an example of "great depth of field". Meaning almost everything in the picture is in focus.

















Where, this picture is an example of "shallow depth of field". Meaning only certain things are in focus.

















I can only hope that knowing these things will better my photography skills. My goal has never been to be a professional, but I do want to have the ability to take beautiful pictures.

Crown Point

I have been reading about landscape photography lately. I'm not very good at capturing really good scenery pics and want to be better.

On Thursday we took a spontanious trip up to the Columbia River Gorge so I could practice some of the stuff I learned in my books. I'm still not very good. Like anything else it will take lots of practice.

At least now I have something to guage my improvement by. This is taken from a view point just west of Crown Point at sunset.

Weekend in Sisters OR, Part 4

Sunday was our last day in Sisters. We had our breakfast at the lodge again, and of course, decided that a visit to the Sisters Coffee Co. was a necessity.

After we checked out, we got into the car and turned onto the highway. This is where we noticed something strange. A group of people parked on the side of the highway with camp chairs waving American flags. We wondered aloud what they were doing, but kept driving. We were, after all, on a mission for caffine!

As we pulled into town, we noticed more of these locals sitting or standing on the side of the streets waving flags. Some of them were holding home made signs. We caught a glimpse of what these signs said. "WELCOME HOME TROOPS!!!" Ahhhhh... it was all making sense now. We discussed how nice it was that this town came together to show their pride toward these brave men and women! We were still on a mission though.

After getting our coffee, we decided to cheer for the troops along with these nice people. We found a good place to stand so we weren't in any one's way, and waited. Pretty soon there was a loud noise in the distance. Then you could see a cop car followed by at least 200 rumbling motorcycles decked out in red, white and blue!

All of the sudden fire engines started screaming and horns started honking. People were cheering and whistling for what we realized was a bus full of troops. But it wasn't just one bus... There were 8 buses!

I snapped picture after picture. And as I focused my camera, I was overcome with emotion. Suddenly, I had tears streaming down my face. I was so proud of all these men and women! They had bravely fought to protect our country!

It was an indescribable event to be a part of and I'm very glad to have been witness to it! Here are some of the many pics I snapped through my tears of pride and joy.

Weekend in Sisters OR, Part 3

As most of you already know, the Banisters LOVE coffee! I realize that you may think it's a bit ridiculous to designate an entire post to a single coffee place. What you may not realize is that we were a bit nervous about where we would get our caffine dose in such a small town.

We ate breakfast at the lodge Saturday morning and immediately went in search of the best coffee in Sisters. We had a tip from a good friend that there was a fantastic coffee joint right off the "main drag" in town.

Well, we found what we were looking for right away. It was a place called Sisters Coffee Co. and it really did have some amazing coffee!

The owners started with what looks like a very tiny space that has since been torn down to make room for a huge coffee house. They now have a wonderful building with a cozy seating area with a nice crackling fire in a stone fireplace. There is a balcolny that overlooks the rest of the shop which has lots of game tables and several different games to pass the time while you enjoy your perfectly brewed americano.

If you'd rather sit outdoors and enjoy the clean, pure air that central Oregon has to offer, Sisters Coffee Co. has a lovely wrap-around porch and flagstone patio with plenty of seating for your enjoyment.

When you walk in and are disappointed by the long line because all you wanted was a regular cup of coffee, no worries! Instead of waiting, there is a bar to your left with at least 6 different blends of coffee waiting for you to serve yourself. "But what about payment?" you might ask. The ready-made coffee is all on the honor system! There is a jar, with a list of the prices that you deposit your cash into. Now tell me what could be better?

I hope that if you're ever in Sisters, or even just passing through, that you'll remember to turn off of the "main drag" and grab a cup of some truly fine coffee at the Sisters Coffee Co. Unfortunately, I was enjoying my americano so much that I only took one picture, and it's not that good. You'll just have to go and check the inside out for yourself!

Weekend in Sisters OR, Part 2

When we arrived at the Five Pine Lodge, we discovered that our cabin was even better than we had hoped! It was named "Sorensen" after the man who owned the first filling station is Sisters.
















When we stepped inside, we were greeted with a nice bottle of cabernet and some wine glasses.
















The fireplace/tv area were nice and romantic with a lovely view of the forrest behind the lodge property.
















The king size bed was nice and soft. It had lots of feather pillows and wonderfully luxurious bedding. And of course, a heavenly down comforter!
















Oh, and the best part... the bathroom! I could seriously LIVE in this bathroom! We've decided that the boy's room will be converted into a luxury bathroom for us. (We aren't sure where the boys will sleep yet...) The very large soaking bathtub was filled by a faucet IN THE CEILING!!! It scared me to death the first time I turned the tub on!