From Where I Left It

Effective, creative living takes practice and work. Learning how to live happily is a matter of acquiring certain skills. While our past can be powerful, our new, becoming self is without the strength of personal history. That younger self cannot gain power if it doesn't do the work.

The Kaleidoscope quilt is on the top of my to do list, so when I pulled it out from on top of the first bin, of course it needed to be pressed. Pressing gave me the opportunity to remember where I had left off, and to sort the pieces so that I could figure them out. 

For some reason, the pattern book seemed to be written in the Ferengi language, and of course, I couldn't read it. Luckily, there were pictures to follow.

After pressing, and looking at the pattern book, pictures in it showed me that it would take 11 of the kaleidoscope blocks to make up the twin size quilt.

When I left the retreat from sheer exhaustion, I had the good sense to pin the parts needed for each block together. There are seven completed blocks, one was partially pieced, and three were pinned. The partially pieced one is in four parts and just needs to be joined. It really helped me figure out the next steps. Everything is cut, but is unidentified. 

The theory of having a new, younger self for this project makes sense. When a person is not experienced and tries to tackle a new project, they feel confused and inept and are challenged with taking the next step.

My quilting always takes on a spiritual component. Somehow, there is an energetic relationship between my intentions and the person I make the quilt for. In this case, the quilt goes to my younger Son. Some people lift our hearts in very special ways, and our relationships are based on many things. I remember selecting the fabrics for it based on what I think he would like. 

There is a real pleasure for me as I work with a quilt from start to finish. Thing is, all the quilts I plan to complete in 2015 are going to go through this process. They were started and are in various stages, which means that if I left off working on them, I can only hope I left myself a note, and hope that I can pick up the work where I left it.

We all experience the interruptions of our life in some way. I had several days of immobility after finishing up everything for 2014. I couldn't go forward, even though I knew that if this was to be hand quilted and it would take time, work on it was all blocked. I actually looked for more things to do and kept avoiding the 2015 projects. 

I had to become my own guide, my own parent, my own teacher, my own counselor. This younger self has been a surprise to me, as well as a sweet gift. To think that she, my younger self, even exists is a powerful gift to my spirit.