Settling In
The older ones on Stauffer Avenue have had a whirlwind of items on the calendar. After each appointment or event, it pleases us to check it off and say, “Well done.”
Last night the telephone rang. Not even looking at the caller I.D., I had an inkling who it might be. My Aunt Lorraine from Arizona does call on a Saturday evening about the 9 p.m. time. Our visit last night lasted for a full hour. Lorraine is 84 and lives with her daughter after my uncle passed away. Lorraine is a retired teacher from the Jackson, Minnesota, area, who taught children in need of speech therapy. Our bond is family ties as well as the love of fabric and quilting. Each year as Lorraine visits her remaining three children in Minnesota, Dennis and I are always graced with a day’s visit from her. I feel very honored.
Through family connections, Lorraine has found a friend. Dick is a widower, about the same age as Lorraine. Lorraine and Dick enjoy going out for coffee and he enjoys taking her to various quilting shops to the degree that he is trying his hand at a project or two using her tools and sewing machine. A teacher and her student. It makes me smile. Lorraine’s son is a young widower and works in Hastings at a large printing company. Mark is on his feet for the entire work shift, and while Lorraine was visiting him this passed summer, Mark took her to several quilt shops in his area. As it turns out, his wife had been a quilter and he has a good sewing machine. Lorraine was happy to report that Mark has finished his first queen-sized quilt. Working with multi-colored layouts has given him an eye for color combinations. Being on his feet all day, the relaxation sets in as he whiles away home time sitting at the sewing machine being creative in his own right. Lorraine has managed to encourage two special fellows in her life to share her passion. Now there is a subtle, persuasive personality.
This scrappy quilt will be using more of what has been left over from previous projects. It will lend itself to more of the pastel colors, as Dennis’ quilt had the darker hues.
I have appreciated Dennis’ help in the sewing room, helping me to herd large quilts under the sewing machine needle as I put bindings on. This summer he tackled using a quilting tack gun to hold layers of the quilt together. Who knows? Perhaps Dennis will find himself being pulled into the world of lint, fuzz and threads. Not!
The calendar is clear for some time of appointments and events and I am ready to settle in and begin on my next scrappy quilt projects. I will be able to use many lengths of scraps that are two and a half inches in width, quite a bit larger than the ones used for Dennis’ scrappy quilt.
Balance in my day is what brings joy to my life. Checking out the flower gardens every day on a walk with Butter Ball comes first with a cup of coffee. As I type, we are in for some rain that will be coming out of the very dark clouds, insuring the gardens won’t need to be watered. I have an idea the sewing machine will be humming tomorrow.