Legacies and Legends

May 29 was my anniversary -- my 32nd wedding anniversary to be exact. 

Thirty-two years is a long time to be with one person.  I've lived with Bill 11 years longer than I lived with my parents and I've now lived longer in my adopted hometown of Jamestown longer than I lived in my actual hometown of Graham.

It doesn't seem possible.  These three decades and some have flown by. In that time we've had children and watched them grow up. In turn we have become grandparents of the two most adorable munchkins ever.  We've had careers of our own and now own our own business.

I guess life is what happens when you're busy...

So, to commemorate 32 years of marriage, I gave my husband this...

It's a lap quilt.  I wish I could say I spent months choosing the pattern and fabrics, but that would be an untruth.  I started this quilt as a charity quilt for my guild, but when Bill saw it, he loved the colors and commented that "I would like to have it.  It matches my den."

So there you have it.  By that point it was already quilted.  I put the binding on, put a label on the back, and gave it to him.  And he loves it.

Isn't that part of what your quilting legacy is?  People loving your quilts? I have written about your electronic quilting footprint and the importance of labeling your quilt, and I have mourned and griped about knowing nothing about the antique quilts in my possession. But that is just part of what you will be leaving behind as quilter.

The other part -- the "heart" part, if you will, is just how much people love the quilts you make and if you've passed the craft on to another generation. 

I've also written about the quilt that started me on this journey -- the simple utilitarian quilt my great-grandmother made.  From what my mom has told me, Grandma Perry would be appalled at my reverence for such a simple quilt.  It wasn't her best work.  But as I sleep under the quilt or refold it, there is a feeling I can't explain, a connection to my past and quilting history that is simply precious to me.

Whether Grandma Perry knows it or not, that is part of her quilting legacy to my generation and hopefully future quilters in our family.

Not every quilt you make will be perfect.  Not every quilt you make will be entered in a quilt show.  Not every quilt you make will win a fist full of ribbons.  But every quilt you make can be an expression of your love.  Quilts have a way of hanging around for decades after it's maker has gone to meet her Maker.  Every quilt can carry that legacy of care and concern and love. 

So yes, it is important who inherits your quilts.  I've always told my children that if my quilts ever end up in a thrift shop or antique store, I would come back and haunt them for the rest of their days in the worst way possible.  While some quilts are made to be used up and loved up, there are certain ones that are meant to be heirlooms and should be treated as such.  That is your right as a quilter to protect your legacy. 

And who knows?  Sometimes these legacies become legends.  Back in the 1800's when Jane Stickle began to make her quilt, I'm sure she had no idea how important that quilt would become to this quilting generation.  But that quilt with it's four-and-a-half inch blocks and kites and triangles has spawned quilt groups, Facebook pages, websites, blogs, books, and software.  In my guild alone there are at least five members who are making this quilt and three who have completed it. 

Dear Jane is a legacy and  a legend. 

Don't think that can't happen to one of your quilts.

Love and Stitches,

Sherri