(forgive me the ramblings of this post)
Some things are not like fish.....
many of you know I have a vacation rental
it's a small place usually rented by corporate travelers, nurses and military
usually for months at a time
one day, I found that the bamboo blind was no longer "working"
so I took it apart, grabbed some waxed twine
and restrung the roman shade
attaching the rings to the bamboo where they had broken free
one of my friends sat with me on the deck while I rebuilt the blind
"I just can't believe you're actually rebuilding this blind"
and the conversation wound around the fact that
anyone else would have just pitched the bamboo window covering in the trash
and purchased a brand new one
as I took apart the box fan this week
to completely clean the front back and blades of the fan
for the cottage guests arriving this week
I was reminded of the bamboo blind conversation
why didn't I just go out and buy new box fans
and toss my rusty one downstairs and the dirty one upstairs?
(well, for one, because of the heat along the coast, there is not a fan to be had)
as quilters, we are all about
s c r a p s
but in reality the
make do or do without
mentality
is all but gone for most
we purchase "perfectly good yardage"
cut it up
and sew it back together again
most of the "granny square quilts"
have a well designed color placement for that scrappy quilt look
be honest
when was the last time you pieced together
two small pieces of your very last piece of a fabric
just to make a 2" block
we rotary cut, depend on our computerized sewing machine
to produce our accurate 1/4 inch seam
and send our top out to be quilted
when do we connect with our projects?
where do we stitch in the love?
did that quilt project last it's 15 minutes of fame?
it's Mark Lipinski's lecture to give about
"Slow Quilting"
I won't give it here
but all of this leads me to one last thought for the week
s t i t c h
he is a loving, willing, soulful dog
that never really had much training for the first year or so of his life
when I met him, he was in a house, playing with kids and other dogs
running amuck until he
came over to sit in front of me, and looked deep into my eyes,
then plopped down in my lap as I sat on the floor to meet him
but.
once I adopted him
I found he barked at other dogs, went berserk when he saw cats,
had never been more than 15 minutes in a car
and didn't really know how to walk on a leash
let alone "go for a walk"
he pee'd and poo'd whenever he wanted
(at least he knew enough to do those two things out of doors)
I needed better tools
I called for some help
these days
s t i t c h
can
heel sit down off wait shake quiet roll over come leave it and kennel up
he has his own dog friends that he can walk with now
and no longer barks at other dogs that he sees when walking
he whines at the sight of a cat or possum
but we are now actually able to "walk on"
and when the day is done
he leans on my side, drapes a paw over my legs,
and puts his head in my lap
as pooh said,
"to be sure of me"
in the last two months, I have asked s t i t c h to learn a whole new language
some of the vocabulary
he does not remember
other times he
"does not hear"
but other moments
he rises to the occasion and becomes the very best dog
I have had more than one neighbor or friend
give me "that talk"
they inform me that I have to know when enough is too much
telling me that he may just not the right dog for me
or suggesting that I'm not the right owner for him
but I won't keep him chained up outside and let other dogs hassle him
and he won't let me work 16 hour days
I will keep him safe and healthy and buy sardines for him
and he will make me laugh so hard my sides hurt
just like we do with our friends and family
we adjust
we accept
we love unconditionally
my quilting projects and deadlines
take a little longer these days
their 15 minutes of fame will have to wait
because
s t i t c h
will be with me longer than 15 minutes
and just like cleaning a fan or making repairs around the house
some things are not like fish
you don't just throw them back
be.do.create
natalie.
(and stitch)
