America the Beautiful

This is a walking stick that I picked up during a hike up Payson canyon several years ago when I was working with our local scout troop. I then decided to decorate it and give it a personal touch this walking stick has some history to it the small beaded item was done by my grandpa Ralph Durfee and on the top of the stick is the cattle brand used by him. The other beaded item was done by my dad, and the bullet was fired at my his funeral in a The three-volley salute which is a ceremonial act performed as an honor to military servicemen.

The title and design were based on the song America the Beautiful, see if you can find the symbolism in the work as you read some of the lyrics.

Oh, beautiful for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea.

Oh, beautiful for heroes proved

In liberating strife,

Who more than self their country loved,

And mercy more than life!

America! America!

May God thy gold refine,

Till all success be nobleness,

And ev’ry gain divine.

After I designed it I spent most of my spare time over the next month to finish it. I learned this skill from my dad and grandparents at a young age. My grandparents lived in Montana for a while and worked with the native American Indians there. They learned this art form from them. The beads are put on one by one in what is called the "peyote stitch" it derives its name from the small spineless cactus “peyote.” and items that are decorated using this stitch are used in the peyote ceremony by American Indians.