Some fountains are majestic, some are dainty, others are modern and flashy. This fountain doesn't quite fit any of those descriptions. It's fun. It's unique. It's the sort of fountain you have to visit more than once [and I did. I dragged Mr A back there several times during our brief stay in the town.]
The elephant fountain is in Chambery, a lovely French town at the foothills of the Alps. We stayed there overnight on our way by train to Italy last year. [You can just see the French Alps rising up at the end of the street behind the fountain.]
My Mum loved elephants. She used to collect them. At one point most of the surfaces in her house were covered with elephants of various colours and sizes. As she downsized to a care home and then to a nursing home she discarded all but a few and finally lost interest in them altogether.
I've kept some of her elephants to remind me of her, not that I need elephants to help me remember, but somehow I couldn't bring myself to part with them.
Do you cherish an item that belonged to someone close to you?
Ah elephants ...
ReplyDeleteI can't believe I was writing this blog post while you were RIDING an elephant. Really Jo, you always have to go one better!! ;-)
DeleteI wear my Dad's wedding ring. I inherited a lot of art materials from him too, though they're more or less used up now, with the exception of some VERY expensive watercolour paper!
ReplyDeleteI have expensive art paper that I can't bring myself to use too, though that didn't belong to Mum. A ring is always very special.
DeleteOh that fountain is a unique work of beauty to behold. And yes, to glimpse at the Fr. Alps in the distance is thrilling too. Must have been a lovely trip.
ReplyDeleteMy Mother always had 2 teddy bears sitting out. Not those rolley polley silly modern bears but the old-style with a more snouty nose and moveable arms and legs. I don't even like teddy bears, but because they belonged to my mother, I keep them around.
I do like elephants and your mother's collection must have been beautiful.
It was a lovely holiday, Manzanita. Those bears sound as if they might be quite valuable. Take care of them!
DeleteOh, I LOVE that fountain. I would've taken a bunch of pictures of it, too.
ReplyDeleteI have several poems that my mother wrote when she was in her fifties or so. Just seeing her handwriting tears at my heart, but connecting with the feelings she was expressing in those poems is worth more than diamonds and gold.
I can well imagine how painful it would be to see that writing. I sorted out some embroidery pieces today and found something of Mum's with the needle still in the place where she left it and a line of leaves sketched out for her to embroider.
DeleteHi Ros .. my uncle and his wife had elephants (from their Kenya days) all over their house and I have one or two here - but I don't want to dust too many!! Desperately sad the poaching that's going on in Africa right now ...
ReplyDeleteI've kept Hardwick (her dog with her through her last years - 'real-life look-alike'), a few pictures and some ornaments - not much .. and rather more books! Memories of Cornwall etc ...
The fountain looks amazing as does that view ... just not now - far too cold! Cheers Hilary
I agree about the dusting, Hilary and also about the cold. I suspect those elephants have snow on them today!
DeleteOoh that is amazing!!! Don't blame you for visiting it several times. I have an old junior school exercise book of DD's, where she had to write her 'news' every Monday. Nostalgia overdrive on every page...in wobbly caps with dodgy spelling. Will probably be buried with it.
ReplyDeleteI can well understand you loving every page of DD's school book. Wish I had some of my kids' school books.
DeleteWhat a lovely fountain. Elephants are very special and I think many people collect them, just like your mom did. I have many special things from my mom and my grandmother.
ReplyDeleteThere is something special about elephants, isn't there :-)
DeleteI have fond memories of the French and Italian towns around the Alps-don't think I've been to that one though. What a great fountain! We used to drive to Italy every year when I was a child through France-stopping along the way, camping or staying in bed and breakfasts-via Chalon sur Marne, Pontarlier, Valle D'Aosta to Tuscany. We drove over the Grand St Bernard pass several times. I think the object I treasure most is the vase my late mother bought for me when I left home. It's white with a blue pattern on it. At the time, I rolled my eyes and didn't use it until I was in my 20s. Now I use it all of the time, putting it on the mantelpiece-a lovely reminder of my mum.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like an amazing vase, Anita. I have a vase that belonged to my Grandma which I love.
DeleteLike some here I have rings as mementoes but this month I acquired a piece of embroidery my grandmother abandoned 50 yrs ago and I am hoping to finish it and make something memorable of it. I have a letter rack she made in battered metal too...and then there are family photos going back 120 years....great topic Ros.
ReplyDeleteOh Susan, how wonderful that would be to complete the embroidery. Perhapscould you post up some photos of it too.
DeleteLove that! Elephants are incredible creatures. I have a few mementoes I keep too. I have some horse statues that belonged to my grandfather and a couple of tea cup sets that my grandmother and my grandmother-in-law. They're items aI'll always treasure :)
ReplyDeleteMr A's Mum collected horse statues and he has kept some as momentoes too.
DeleteVery neat fountain and fun post. I wear a ring of my grandmothers. She and I wrote weekly letters back when I was in college and then moved to Texas. I treasure my memories of her in her sturdy shoes and house dress.
ReplyDeleteI never exchanged letters with my mum or grandma as I always lived close by but I do have some holiday postcards from way back.
DeleteMy mother loves elephants. Someone told her if you place ornamental ones facing the door of a room, they draw luck and health into the house. Since she has been doing this her own health has been stable at seventy nine. She gave elephants to a number of people down on their luck in the past few years, and they have ALL received financial luck! To this end, she presented me one this Christmas. It is currently on my mantelpiece facing the door. As for cherishing things that
ReplyDeletebelonged to someone close, I have an old watch from my grand aunt who died in 1996 at the age of 96 and a handwritten copybook of poems translated from Irish to Enlish which belonged to my dear departed Dad.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder, Claire. I'd forgotten about that 'facing the door' issue. Mum always insisted that all of her elephants faced the door too. I must go and check on them now!
DeleteI've got several things my brother gave me, he died age 30 in 2006, my most precious one is a dinosaur that was his when we where children.
ReplyDeleteopps I mean when we were children. :-)
ReplyDeleteElephants are my favourites too. I don't have any ornamental elephants and definitely no pet ones, but they are always the animals I want to see when I go to a reserve or game park. I have a number of my daughters' cartoon drawings she made as a twelve year old, and the best is a story book she made about her dog. That is really precious. But then there are my father's water colour paintings too that I have dragged around the world with me. They are even more precious now he himself has gone. Lovely post, Ros and a wonderful fountain! I'd like to go there a first time!
ReplyDeleteThat's a fantastic fountain! I'd love to see that in the flesh.
ReplyDeleteMy Godmother loved elephants and probably would have loved to see that fountain God bless her soul.
ReplyDeleteI have several thing given me by family members, pieces of jewelry,a tea set, salt and pepper shakers; all that I attach specific memories- good memories to and I feel close to the people who gave them to me when I use them!
I haven't really had anyone special leave me yet, but I have a sweatshirt who's story is the reason I'll never get rid of it.
ReplyDeleteI was working as a horse drawn carriage tour guide and was sitting in the rain waiting for my turn to line up at the counter to get passengers. Not very many people wanted a ride - I was in the rain a long time. But a tourist took pity on me and bought me hot chocolate, and then his friend peeled off his sweatshirt and gave it to me saying I needed it more than him. I had to wait for my boss to hold my horses before I could change into it, but it was so nice to drink that hot cocoa in the mean time. I'm keeping that sweatshirt forever.
Love the fountain. Will have to take Michael there. He loves elephants. When he was a little boy his soft toys were elephants, not teddy bears. I often buy him something elephant related at Christmas or birthdays. When we came to view our house, the knocker on the back door was an elephant's head. I knew as soon as I saw it that this house was meant to be ours.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful fountain. There really is something very special about elephants.
ReplyDeleteAs a child, I was fascinated by my grandfather's fancy looking pocket watch and was always asking him what the time was. He died in 1976 and now that pocket watch hangs on the wall by my desk. Hanging with that watch is a miniature pair of boxing gloves given to my dad by Jack Dempsey before I was born. I struggled to get rid of any of my dad's possessions and even have his driving licence. :)
What an amazing fountain. I used to have a little jade elephant on a cain round my neck,I wonder where it is. I have the usual rings and jewelry from parents and aunts but I have a little gift card from my mum I think it was on a birthday gift she has written inside that she didn't have fancy words like me to tell how much she loved me but I should know,it always brings me to tears as she never did say in actual words that she loved me but I knew she did. I tell my daughter I love her every time I see her.
ReplyDeleteI've had a fascination with elephant imagery since childhood. I used to like to draw them. I have a few elephant items around the house, but my wife does not particularly like them. If I did collect some kind of animal figurines it would be elephants.
ReplyDeleteLee
Wrote By Rote
Both chose elephants - rather different types :) that is a lovely fountain.
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