Resolutions

Another year has passed by and, like so many other people do at this time of year, I start thinking about making resolutions.  I usually make many resolutions each year.  Some of them are quite practical and reasonable.  Some are impossible.  And some are just silly.  I have this tendency to make goals about things that don’t really matter or even about things that I do just for fun.  For example, I’ll say something like, “I have to finish watching this TV series by the end of the year” or “I have to work on this puzzle before I can do anything else” or even “I have to play for 30 minutes three times a week on my Wii.”  These are all things that I do for fun, but I can’t help turning them into chores.  I’ll tell you, nothing sucks the fun out of something faster than turning it into a chore.  

It’s important to have goals.  Goals keep us going and keep us motivated.  I know when it comes to sewing that I am more likely to get the project finished when there is a deadline.  The same thing is true with my writing.  If I need something done by a specific time, then I get it done, but there are many stories and sewing projects that are still left unfinished and have been for years.

But aren’t we much more likely to do something, to work on something, and to finish something when we enjoy doing it?  And it is much easier to enjoy something when we don’t have to do it. When I was a kid, I wouldn’t clean my own room but I had no problem with helping my friends clean theirs.  When our recreations become obligations, they no longer feel like fun, they feel like work.  We can’t let our own eagerness to finish something distract us from why we are doing it, for fun.  That’s why I write, that’s why I sew, that’s why I watch TV, put together puzzles, and play Wii.  It’s for the fun of it.

Perhaps instead of turning our recreational activities into chores, this year we should try to turn our chores into recreation.  I heard once that one way to reduce stress in your life is to turn “I have to do. . .” into “I chose to do. . . .”  The truth is no one can force us to do anything.  Everything we do, we do of our own will and choice.  Looking at it that way, we can change our attitudes about what we do.  That’s why my resolution this year is to stop making goals, at least stop making arbitrary goals.  I want to learn to enjoy the things I do, even cleaning my room, and especially enjoy the things that I want to do.

Dear Santa,

As you know, I already have more fabric and projects than I have room for.  So the first thing I want for Christmas is more storage space for all of my sewing stuff.  Ideally, I would like my own sewing room with drawers for all of my notions, shelves to organize my fabric by color, style, and or project, and a peg board for my rulers, rotary cutter, and scissors.  A large cutting table would also be nice, and possibly a design wall.  I would also like more time to sew, so I can fully enjoy this dream sewing room.

 

If this is too much, then I would like my own long arm machine so I can finish my own quilts.  Of course, with this I would also need thread, fabric, and batting so I can practice using it.  I would also need more time to learn how to use it and more time to work on my projects.

If this is too much, then I would just like more fabric and project ideas to go with it.  I know, I already have plenty to work on, but you can never have too many ideas, right?  With this, I will also need more time to work on these projects.

Most of all, I would like to be able to get all of my projects done before Christmas so I can have time to spend with my friends and family.  That way, I can focus on what really matters.

So, basically, what I want for Christmas is more Time.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Your Favorite Quilter

And to All a Good Feast

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.  Anymore it looks like Christmas long before Thanksgiving or even Halloween.  My roommate recently expressed her frustration with this phenomenon.  She feels it is important to be thankful, especially when you consider all that our fore fathers went through to get us here. Yet there are no Thanksgiving carols, very few Thanksgiving specials, and it’s almost impossible to find a Thanksgiving movie.  Even the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade ends with Santa riding in signaling the start of Christmas shopping. Thanksgiving has become little more than a day we stuff ourselves and prepare for the craziness of Christmas shopping.  It is a sad statement on our society when we gloss over the holiday about being grateful for what we have and skip right to the holiday where we get more stuff.

I wish I could say that things were different in the quilting world, but in our shop we are already decorated for Christmas.  Dozens of Christmas lines come out every year and very few thanksgiving prints.  Thanksgiving patterns are hard to find yet Christmas patterns are plentiful. Of course a quilter’s view of Christmas is a little different than most.  A quilter’ main concern is, “What can I make so-and-so for Christmas?” or “How can I get all of these projects done before Christmas?”  When you hand sew all of your gifts, it makes sense to start a month or two early.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas.  I love making things for my family and friends that show them just how much I care for them and how thankful I am for them, but we can’t let our enthusiasm for Christmas cause us to forget to take this opportunity to stop and think about all our blessings.  We spend so much time contemplating the true meaning of Christmas, perhaps we could also take a little time to contemplate the true meaning of Thanksgiving as well.  What better way to start our holiday season.  To quote Sheryl Crow, “it’s not having what you want.  It’s wanting what you’ve got.” Perhaps this year before we get what we want for Christmas, we can be grateful for what we have this Thanksgiving.

Sew Therapy

When tragedy strikes those affected, either directly or indirectly, are often over whelmed with the need to do something, anything, to help.  It isn’t unusual for people facing hard times to be inundated with food, gifts, well wishes, and offers to help.  As a friend wisely told me recently, this is a much for the benefit of the person helping as it is for the one being helped.  We feel we must do something, even when we have no idea what we can possibly do. However, sometimes there just isn’t anything to be done.  That is when the tragedy can hit you hardest.

A few years ago, my grandpa passed away.  I found myself overwhelmed by this same desire.  I had to do something.  But there wasn’t anything I could do.  All the plans and preparations that needed to be done were taken care of by everyone else.  What do you do when there isn’t anything to do?  I started a quilt.  I still haven’t finished it, but just having something that I could work on, something I could just pick up and stitch on, helped me through the hard times.

Now as I face the loss of my grandma, I find myself once again searching for something to do.  Although I know in my heart of hearts that my grandparents are happy together again, I feel the need and the desire to do something.  What better tribute could I offer then to sew a quilt for the woman who first taught me to thread a bobbin?  Grandma hand quilted one quilt after another for grandchildren as they reached the age of 16.  It seemed appropriate to make one for her.  So when my mom suggested I make a quilt from her clothing, I was quick to agree.

I have often heard quilting referred to as being, “Cheaper then therapy.”  It is true that quilting can be quite therapeutic, and in more ways than one.  It gives you something to do when there isn’t anything else to be done.  It keeps you busy in times when idleness would drive you crazy.  It is a way to help people when there isn’t any other way to help.  It gives you a sense of accomplishment.  And sometimes it gives you something to yell at, a way to vent frustrations that would otherwise build up in side.

I know that I can never repay all that my grandparents have done for me, but I hope they know that they will never be forgotten and that I will forever be grateful for all they have done for me.

Until we meet again. Aloha ‘oe.

Dedicated to Al and Viki.