My niece posted this photo on facebook yesterday. It shows not only her super-cool bed, but a bright colorful quilt.
A quilt my mother made for her birthday.
Nothing out of the ordinary there. A gift from a grandmother to a grandchild.
Except my mother is nearly blind.
Mom asked Amanda a year ago what fabric she’d like for a quilt and Amanda went to a fabric store where she lived and had them call the store where my Mom lives to make sure she got the right fabric. Then Mom set out on a year-long adventure of making this quilt.
It would be a daunting task for a lot of people, especially for one who is 80-years-young who can barely see. Mom had to give up driving about 20 years ago. She stopped being able to do a lot of handiwork about ten years ago and these days her vision is very limited.
But it didn’t stop her from tackling this quilt project. My other niece helped her cut out the quilt pieces, but Mom sewed them together, going more by feel than by sight. I happened to be there the day she pinned the top to the batting and bottom lining, reminded again of my inability to learn the art of quilting. Mom sat for months with a large hoop in her lap, quilting by hand the entire thing, one stitch at a time.
Is the quilt perfect? No. I think my dad was even recruited to help with it a bit to get it done in time for Amanda’s birthday.
But that’s okay. Amanda loves the quilt and knows, faults and all, that it was made by her grandma just for her.
A promise fulfilled.
Every stitch made with love.
And that is what really counts.
She Who Cherishes Her Own Quilts Made by Mom
