A Different Drummer

"Why do you quilt?"
As I sit in dentist's or doctor's offices, or wait on my boys for their Boot Camps and races and what not, I usually bring something to work on  -- right now it's either Circuit Rider applique blocks or my English Paper Piecing Tumbling Blocks.  People are always admiring and say they "could never..."  It gets me thinking.  Why do I quilt?

Sam with his drumming practice pads!

I was asking myself this question as I waited on Sam to finish his drum lessons. Sam has wanted to drum since he was knee-high to a grasshopper! :-D  Finally we are able to get him going, and it's part of his curriculum as we homeschool.  A class in some kind of performance/arts is a requirement for graduation in our state, so we can follow Sam's muse. 

Listening to my 16 year old son blather on  (!so cool when kids are excited about something and want to tell you every single infinitesimal detail, huh!? :-D) about his lessons and their difficulty and his excitement about overcoming the challenges, it occurred to me that I quilt for the same reasons that I homeschool.

I want to pour my life into something that lasts beyond me.

Deciding on curriculum,  and tutors (where needed  -- Sam is learning drums and Spanish and chemistry from better equipped teachers than I!), and activities (youth group at church, Boot Camp, athletics, music) are all part of the fabric and design of my children's educations. 

And they are unique just as each quilt I make is unique.  Each requires different colors or patterns or skills.  Each is its own work of art.  Each brings me joy beyond just the making. 

 

Homeschooling is an investment in something -- in someone(s), my daughter and my sons as they become caring, responsible individuals, critical thinkers, patriots, statesmen and women, followers of Christ --  that has potential to impact the world. And my quilts (beyond preserving my sanity!)? -- if only to make the world a little prettier, a little more comfortable, a little more comforting -- they have an impact, too.

Ephesians 5:15-16 says "Look carefully then how you walk! Live purposefully and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as wise (sensible, intelligent people), making the very most of the time [buying up each opportunity], because the days are evil." (Amplified Version)

Investing in my children (and, yes, I think, in my quilts, too! :-D) is a way for me to "live purposefully" and "buy up each opportunity"  in these evil days. It's not particularly dramatic or noteworthy, but in our way we are making a difference.  When I am long gone, my kids will continue to change the world (and my quilts will be there to bless and comfort them and, hopefully, any generations that follow!) because I invested in them now.

And only Heaven will reveal how wide and how far their impact will be felt.  I can't wait to see!

Blessings,

Mary Lou