John and Barbara have been friends for so long that I’ve stopped counting.

When common interests overlap and intersect, friendship is an easy and natural result.

I give Shirley credit. She was interested in everything.

Of course, there’s life, which provides experiences which allow us to decide what we like and wish to pursue.

Shirley’s interest in anthropology was expanded by the courses she took at PCC. The field trip to the Southwest began a love affair with all things Native American, with special emphasis on jewelry (oh, the collection she amassed!), pottery, weaving (rugs, shawls, and fabrics), sculpture (including Kachinas), food (who doesn’t like Navajo tacos?), dance (her Royal Academy training expanded to all forms of dance), and and and

So of course we became good friends (and customers) of Helen Snyder and The Turquoise Nut in Glendale, and Marilyn Cosentino who toured her collection to Pow Wows, and, and…

And, of course, locally, Santa Fe Crafts. Conveniently located on Mission in South Pasadena, the store draws clients from all directions, a community of common interest and enthusiasm.

Not every city has such a specialized store, and when you find one, you’ll drive for miles.

Shirley’s years working at the Folk Tree in Pasadena gave her access to World Arts and Cultures, which was her major at UCLA. She knew a lot about a lot.

But it wasn’t just the store in South Pasadena, it was the owners. John and Barbara are real people, friendly, intelligent, educated. You can spend a lifetime looking for such friends, and when you find them, you cherish them.

Of course, it helped that they’re near neighbors in Altadena. I’m overwhelmingly happy that their house survived the fires.

Over the years, we’ve attended events they hosted in their home, special sales, turquoise and silver, trays laid out on living room tables, before the South Pasadena store. I was impressed by their library, John’s special pride, a reflection of the family connection, his Father as administrator of the Southwest Museum, now subsumed into the Autry Museum on the edge of Griffith Park. We enjoyed his lecture in the room adjacent to the Santa Fe Crafts store.

John and Barbara are true Altadena, a house with roots. They intelligently as landlords rented a room above their garage, a source of income that helped allow them to pursue their career as Indian traders.

I loved it when John displayed his latest find of a rare volume for their library. And when he proudly displayed the renovations to their bathroom that didn’t cost an arm and a leg. And when Barbara displayed her prowess in the kitchen, and the back story of her early days.

We were all friends and would pal around and hang out. We took them to dinner at Polka, one of two Polish restaurants in greater Los Angeles. Then they expanded the recommendation and John told how a friend reported, “I had the Cutlet!”

We would drive around, and John wanted to be sure we knew the landmarks, referring with amused enthusiasm to “Touchdown Jesus.” I knew the statue, in front of the church in La Canada on Foothill Boulevard, Christ raising his arms to the sky. My inexperience with football did not immediately make the connection, but when John pointed it out, I laughed appropriately.

We were proud when Barbara went to Chicago to take the course certifying her as an appraiser. She’s an influence in the community. When I took some silver bracelets to the antique store on Colorado Blvd. to see if I could trade them for money (“No, we have too much silver already”), the owner loudly sang Barbara’s praises, “She really helped me know what my stuff is worth!”

They know South Pasadena better than we do, and recommended the restaurant on Fair Oaks, the Canoe House. We tried it and agreed it’s worth going to.

That’s what friends do, share experiences.

After Shirley’s loss, I’m slowly piecing together the shreds and shards of life, re-connecting.

I pulled together five bags of books from what remains in the house of the collection for the store we never had. I wanted to donate them to Santa Fe Crafts. It’s part of Shirley’s legacy.

Kristina said, “We can’t drive around with a few books here and there trying to find somebody who’ll take them. Do you even know these people?”

“Yes,” I said, “long-time friends.”

We loaded the books into the car, and again I was right. Kristina and Chaz are now part of this circle of friends.

Treasured memories when Shirley and I would go to the special trunk shows of Southwest traders. They came to Santa Fe Crafts, would spread out their rich collection and we would browse, and Shirley would buy judiciously (too much, sometimes with the excuse that “It’s for our store” that never was).

I remember one Trader, who explained that he was his own security against theft, and showed the big pistol he carried at his hip, with a barrel so long and large it was like a canon.

We would meet fellow buyers who frequented such events, and realized we were part of a community of common interest, knew each other, and updated our lives.

Native Americans would hang out at these gatherings and sales. Sometimes they were the artisans and craftsmen, and pointed out, “This is my new take on the old patterns. Indian jewelry is a vital growing contemporary art.”

One had his own store in Santa Fe, New Mexico. On one of our trips, we planned to visit him at the source. We were camping at the campground outside town, and in the morning, we got to talking with the woman in the next tent over. “You should see my son’s work. He has his own store on the main drag.” She was immeasurably proud when we told her we had come all the way from Altadena specifically to visit him and his iconic store.

Shirley made friends everywhere. At Santa Fe Crafts in South Pasadena, when she expressed a special interest in coral, Audi Yazzie custom made a special necklace for her and kept the price down to only a few hundred dollars.

Special friends and special interests make life worthwhile.

Kristina, Chaz, and I will come back soon to Santa Fe Crafts. I want to take us all to lunch.