The fabric of our lives

From the Heart

On Friday evening, Emily sent me a picture where she and Leah were snuggled under a quilt that my mother had made many years ago.

Chuck had driven to Tampa in September and Emily requested he bring along a few of her grandmother’s quilts.

Leah had been talking about her Nana. She had questions. Emily did her best to give her the right answers. Leah told her mommy that Nana Audrey is old and will someday go to heaven to be with Pop Pop and Jesus. At five years old, there are so many questions that she has for her mommy and the answers don’t always make sense to such a young, inquiring mind. She trusts her mommy with having the answers.

For over a year now Emily, Drew, Aiden and Leah have been calling Tampa, Florida, their home. They make a lot of phone calls and share live videos. With each trip back to Indiana, I know, it is hard for them to leave as they wonder … well you know.

Leah and Aiden recently sent Nana a Build-a-Bear. They recorded their voices, telling her that they love her. Nana keeps it tucked near her chair. Often we press the bear’s palm so that Nana is reminded that while they may be quite a distance away, their love is close by.

Leah told Emily that the quilt had the scent of Nana’s home. It was a comfort for Leah to feel close to her Nana under the soft patches of fabric. I doubt that when Nana stitched those pieces together, so many years ago, that she knew the treasure she was creating. It was just something Nana loved to do … quilting.

I wonder what my mom was thinking as she hand stitched each small piece. I have a feeling there were some prayers prayed while she sewed the pieces together.

Each piece of fabric, in the quilts, was taken from leftover material from a dress or outfit that someone in our family had worn. Even leftover fabric was never thrown away. It’s just the way my mom’s generation did things after the Depression. They would find ways to use even the smallest of any kind of leftovers.

Truly my mom’s quilts are the fabric of our lives. Christmas and Easter dresses. Prom dresses. Outfits for school. Costumes made for school or church plays. Even some from my old maternity tops that Mom made when I was pregnant with Emily and Brandon.

My mom has always had the gift of sewing and crocheting. Her sock dolls are her most recent creations. She has no idea of their value to our hearts.

I truly believe her quilts are our favorite treasures. What a wonderful legacy we have to hold on to.

Snuggling under a quilt will always remind us of the love that my mom had for her family.

The touch. The feel. The fabric of our lives. A tapestry of love, woven in every stitch, forever warming our hearts.