A Quilted Gift

When I moved here, I had a very clear, well-defined personal reflection on the subject of sewing.

“Sewing skips generations”

and it skipped mine.

I didn’t like to sew.  I could do it and had a few (very few) projects to my name that I enjoyed making.  My kids learned to take their important mending projects to their Grammy and then even to My Loving Spouse. I had heard of quilting groups and maybe, possibly rolled my eyes a teeny, tiny bit.  Moving to the country did not really change my image of that at all. I did, however, move to a town where I had not one girl friend.  This is what we call a desperate situation, where one is forced to take desperate measures.  I was invited to the quilting group at church.  I told them I don’t really sew, that phased them not.  I told them I really don’t know how to quilt.  They were undeterred.  Oh, we’ll teach you.  I went quite honestly, because I knew enough to know, that I needed girl friends, and if I had to sew a bit, well so be it (pun intended). I was ready to join what I assumed would be a quiet, pious bunch.  Luckily, that was not the case.  What I did join was a group of gals with a love for fun, teasing natures, great senses of humor, creative talents, a love for God and amazing gifts of sharing and caring, did I say fun? There is a funny little room at our church built into an upper alcove for a previous pastor who needed ‘quiet’ to meditate or write or whatever.  This funny little room had become a random storage place until one of the quilting gals got an idea.  A really, really great idea that had sharing all over it!  Another quilter had a long arm sewing machine (the machine one uses to do the actual quilting) she was happy to have at church and teach us all how to use it!  As these machines are quite costly most of us quilters would never have the means to buy one or the space to store one.  Not only was she willing to share, she was excited to share, to teach and to encourage us. Using the long arm is a bit like free form doodling on fabric, but after all the work put into the quilt, it is both nerve-wracking and exciting.  My friend quilts for her first time on her son’s wedding present. My first quilt for ‘us’, not a gift of service a fairly big job, because I didn’t know what I was doing.  I took on a harder project than I realized, making up my own pattern.  It really wasn’t until I got my new sewing machine, that I realized why my new friends like to sew/quilt.  It was easy to know why I kept showing up…I liked being with them.  They helped me each step of the way… occasionally uttering a few, “Ut oh’s, did you mean to do that?”, then helping me out of whatever jam I’d gotten myself into.  With all of their help, my first quilt for our home goes through the final stages… In the long arm for quilting, with the lady bug fabric for backing, as we still have a LOT of ladybugs who like to hibernate inside here.  There are two reasons to add quilting. 1.  It holds the backing and the batting all together. 2.  It hides a lot of the mistakes. Off the quilter and ready for binding… The quilt is now at home on the bed it was planned for, and I’d have to say that was the only part of the ‘plan’ that I actually ‘planned.  Patching bits of fabric together is fairly forgiving.  I am proud of this quilt where I did all the steps myself, but what it reminds me of is the great gift I have received…. the acceptance, the encouragement, the fun, the laughter and the love which has been so freely given to me from the quilting gals, my new friends…and I am grateful.