Personal Totem Pole --why I learned stained glass

I had always wanted a Totem Pole--preferably a real one--when I was in my 40,s I researched getting one--but the cost was prohibitive  . The it struck me one Sunday in church--I just knew you could make one out of stained glass--found a teacher and started the journey--I worked at honeing my skills --Loved stained glass and made many pieces leading up to the Totem--when we sold our business, sent the last of 7 children off to college and retired --I finally had time to develop the pattern and engineering to begin - this was in 2001--

It took me 6 months to reserach the meaning of all the native characters and chose those I wanted to incorporate--Did find out the most imptorant figure in a Totem is not the top -but the bottom--

This Totem represents my husband on top--he was a piolet int Army for 20 years--the middle is fish --if you put a character under another it refers to the one above--my husbands passion is fishing--

The Owl is for me--have collected owls all my life and I am a nature lover --the dragon heads can be good or bad--in this case they are good representing kindness and love--

There are steel rods in each seam--the wood seperators were made by a friend and are routed so the pieces fit down in a slot--there is a hole in the middle wood  for the lights to go through--using rope lights--

The Totem Ploe is 11 inches in diameter and 46 inches high- and it is my pride ans JOY.

I am addicted to stained glass--always have the next project stirring in my head-

• stained glass -sheet glass-