Finished a quilt yesterday, the first official product of Mom's new machine. Happy. Happy.
Quilts are so much more than blankets to me. They're threads of connection to the past and to the indomitable spirit of women everywhere. In pioneer times, most women didn't have the resources (time OR money) for anything extra, anything frivolous. But they had this spirit this drive for beauty and community and expression.
And so they quilted. They used out-grown, worn-out clothing. They traded scraps with one another. They shared patterns and ideas and worked together. And what they had together was greater and more beautiful than any one of them could have managed on her own. By sharing, they created practical objects of great beauty as well as opportunities for community.
I quilt to honor those women, to continue the tradition, and to share with women I love. Plus, I adore playing with fabric and color.
*****
Saturday morning, something on Yahoo's front page got me thinking. E-mailed the curriculum publisher. He called later and we talked for an hour, each so excited about one another's ideas that we had trouble getting words out at times.
One of my ideas felt so right, so on track and in tune, that it had to come from beyond my little brain. I was thinking about the project, and suddenly there it was--a box in the middle of the hallway. All I had to do was open it. Really, when I recognized what I'd stumbled across, I felt like a puppy that the Universe had just handed a stick of Pupperoni.
When things work that easily, slip into place like well-made keys into well-oiled locks, I take it as a sign that I'm on the right path. For reasons that escape me, I feel that this particular journey might be quite a ride.
*********
In answer to your comment, Carrie: Yes, Mom has an iPod. AND a Mac G5, a sewing machine driven by a PC, a digital camera, and a camcorder. Knows how to use them, too! She downloads music, makes movies and burns DVDs. Even Photoshops images like a pro. 74 and learning new tricks all the time. Gotta love her.
8 comments:
Fabulous! It feels like flowers blooming this morning.
Where's the photo of the quilt? Must see!
Can you send your mom over to my house to teach me some techy stuff?
Your mom knows how to do more than i do. I'm not kidding. lol!
How do you get to write text books?? I want to write text books! I bet I would be good at that. I'm a huge nerd, with all kinds of facts in my crazy head. (NOT to say YOU are a nerd...lol!)
:)
Oh yeah, Amber. I'm a nerd. Totally.
I haven't actually been writing textbooks. I've been helping develop a new educational product aimed at parents who want to have fun learning with their kids. I'll write more about it when I get clearance from the publisher.
Meantime, I got the gig cause I spent more than 5 years writing textbooks in the early 80s. Worked for a publishing company owned by CBS. yeah, the TV folks.
You can find writing gigs at www.aboutfreelancewriting.com and at www.freelancewritinggigs.com
I LOVE quilts. One of my most prized possessions is a quilt I picked up while antique hunting with my mom. I was maybe 15, and I saw this beautiful quilt and I just about fell over myself trying to get to it. My mom took one looked at it and explained the history of the circles on the quilt -- she said they were wedding bands, or something to do with a wedding...I can't remember now. At any rate, the quilt is gorgeous, I hung on to it for years and when I found out I was having a girl I hung it in her nursery.
I feel like a puppy just handed a stick of Pupperoni reading this blog!!!!
And your mom, OMG, she is way too high tech for me. I am SO impressed! My mom does not OWN a computer. Say no more.
Love the creativity in you and your mom.
This post is just bursting with life, J. Glad to hear it. You sound like you are in the flow....esp with the publisher.
BTW, I sent you a long email about NTKOG....did you ever get it?
I don't understand the ipod, the concept completely evades me and where does the music come from? You have to buy it from a website? Can you ask your mom to give me a call?
Post a Comment