I’ve long had a quilt in my mind called Family Lines in which I would record oft-repeated lines from family members. It would bring warmth as a cover, but also warm memories for others to recall the voices from the past. Some of those lines I’ve already written about, like Daddy singing “Pa, he bought him a great big billy goat…” or Wallace’s oft-quoted line “you shore can’t sop syrup with ‘em.” Advice like Aunt Nellie’s, “Always plant geraniums in clay pots,” and Jim’s query to the girls, “did you unplug the curling iron?” will add practical notes, too. (Details of those stories are here, here, and here.)
One line I would have to include from my mother is, “You can make anything. But you can’t make everything.” I quoted this to a young quilting friend of mine last year as we were discussing some of the tempting patterns for making tote bags. Though they are lovely and give one a unique accessory that displays favorite fabrics and techniques, they are time consuming to make. She repeated my mother’s line and said, “Wow. That’s so true. And a powerful line to remember.”
Yes, she was right – it is a powerful message. I’ve had that line running through my head a lot lately. I look around my sewing space and see fabric waiting to go in the dye pot, fabric that’s been dipped in the dye pot and ready to compose into Rescued Remnant pieces, photos to print on fabric, strips of fabric waiting to be woven backgrounds ala Jude Hill. In my sketchbook is a series of churches I want to put on cloth. On my design wall are components for my Paducah journal quilt in progress. In another basket are luscious wools cut and ready to stitch. Of course, the time for the guild challenge draws closer. And there’s more, including a few UFOs that could command my attention.
Then there’s the avalanche of images and ideas that press into my mind wherever I look. Especially if I look online. Projects that are physically unbegun, but I have to resist the temptation to begin them. My mother also said, “Finish what you’ve started before you start anything else.” ( I know – the mention of a few UFO’s tells that I don’t always follow that advice.)
I try to use the brainpower generated by my morning walk to plan my “work” for the day. (I put that word in quotes because I do think of the “do the work” advice given to artists fits my daily activities, but in no way is what I do in the sewing room anything but FUN.) Lately my focus of that brainpower has been to narrow the field of possibilities and remember, to paraphrase my mother’s advice, “I can do any of these things, but I can’t do all of them today.“
The photos show snippets of today’s temptations. At least one of those will get some focused attention.
