Friends

I have been thinking of friends a lot lately. As some of you know, I lost a dear friend a short time ago. It was a great loss to everyone who loved her. This resulted in my thinking about friends and I decided to share a little with you today. We moved from CA to the mid-west in 2003. My husband was two years into retirement so free to go. I am a quilter and was still working at teaching applique and hand quilting and can do this work anywhere, so I was also free to go. The incentive, our daughter and a beautiful five year old granddaughter. One day my husband said " I would rather see our girls every week and visit friends once a year", instead of the other way around. So we began the journey that led us here. There are no regrets but am reminded of loss when I come across something made for me by a friend. I am then reminded of a quote I read a long time ago and do not remember the source. A man leaves the place where he lives and "a woman leaves her friends." So, in the arrangement above I have made a circle. The cross stitch is my work and contains images I am fond of, a bird, a bowl of fruit and a home. Moving down in a clockwise motion, there is a tiny white oak basket made for me by my friend Karen B. It is absolutely perfect in every detail. The small quilt below was made for me in 1990 by another friend, Bobbi A. She moved first back to the east coast. Something about the Loma Prieta earthquake. I was born in Ca so I was somewhat immune but understand her feelings. The little quilt is approximately eight by ten inches. Picture if you can a 12 block quilt with two inner borders and a one inch outside border, hand pieced and quilted. Lucky me, but it gets better. All of the pieced blocks are made from fabric inherited from her great grandmother's quilting scraps. I feel better just looking at this evidence of dear friends.