Friday, August 28, 2015

MY GRANDMOTHER'S HANDS



I don't know about you, but I had the most amazing grandmother.  She cared for us while our parents were at work, baked and cooked traditional recipes from the proud heritage of our people who grew their own food and shared with their neighbors and welcomed strangers in need to their depression homes.  She was the daughter of immigrants with her family spread out too far to stay close.  She was the bearer of disappointment and loss and the keeper of babies and flowers.  And she made quilts.  Nothing fancy; she made the kind crafted with love from scraps and worn clothes to warm and comfort her family.  None of the luxuries of our time distracted her work.  Only making do with the materials around her, and making her house a home with hand made and hand grown and hand cooked simple foods that raised two generations of children through the heartbreak and resilience that marked her generation.  She was gone too soon from me to teach me much about her skills, but I remember her hands.  Browned by making a warm and loving home.  Bent by making her way when necessary picking cotton and slinging hash in an early part of the last century in the poor country of the south and then the midwest.  Her hands dried my tears and tended my scrapes.  Her hands lifted me to see out the window.  They braided my hair.  They held me close.

I only have one of her quilts.  It's a tattered crazy patch, tied with yarn, and repaired with newer fabrics as the years passed.  There are little pieces of embroidery here and there all hand done when she had a free hour.  Some of the threads are faded but the designs are still happy, little daisies with faces and teapots and baby animals dancing.  The quilt is yellowed and frayed, but I use it every Christmas as a tree skirt, no matter what the decor or where we now make our home.  I keep it safe, the way her hands kept me.

My mother sewed a bit from time to time, but was never that keen.  The gene must have skipped a generation.  Because from my first home economics class and the first costume crew I worked on in high school, I was never far from a needle and thread.  And now, as I quilt, I see my own fingers starting to bend from arthritis and age and the hard use of making a home, raising a child, growing our food, tending pets and livestock.  I see the shape of her hands in my own now.  And I am so comforted.  I'm thinking of my Grandmother today as I look at my hands to sew.  I can almost feel her hand on mine.  Smiling that I continue her good works.  I am blessed.



14 comments:

  1. I can relate to your memory as my Maw (grandmother) also quilted , crochet and tatted. I miss her and think of her often. She could grow anything from a cutting as well.
    I loved your story.

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    1. Thank you so much for stopping by, reading my little blog memory, and for your kind comment. Aren't Grandmothers the most significant and awesome influence. I had a great Auntie that taught me to tat. I still have the little shuttle she gave me. Thank heaven for them. Best!! Beth

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  2. Your so welcome!
    I am a novice sewer but will try to do a few to show on the blog.
    Look forward to reading your blogs.
    Have a great week.

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  3. Beautifully expressed! My paternal grandmother was a talented quilter. My precious mother was a sewist her whole life and made her own clothes, my clothes, my sister's clothes, and sometimes clothes for friends. She also adored children. She kept children in our home, and even today, those successful adults greatly appreciate my mother's positive influence on their youth. I lost my mom in 1995, but I feel close to her when I sew. Years ago, I wrote an essay about my mother's hands for a college writing course. I strive to live as a testament to my mother. My hands are a vivid reminder of her.

    By the way, I am thrilled to have discovered your other passion. I have long been a devout fan of Y&R! I write recaps of Y&R episodes for soapcentral.com. I've been watching your videos and look forward to gleaning useful tips from you. Your machine quilting is amazing! I don't have a longarm, but I do have a Bernina with a stitch regulator (BSR) and I recently purchased the Brother Nouvelle 1500s. Maybe someday I'll own a longarm!

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    1. Anne, this is so awesome!! Isn't it interesting how a small, everyday thing (like sewing) can follow us through our lives and so inform who we are and become. I'm so glad you carry on your mother's art, both in sewing and in gracious communication through your writing and beyond. Glad to meet you here!! I'd love to see what you sew! Every good thing to you! Beth

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  4. It's interesting how the sewing bug moves through families. My mom sewed a lot of our clothes when we were in elementary school, took drapery making classes and made a gorgeous set of drapes and matching ruffled bedspreads for our room. I picked up the sewing, then later quilting bugs. My sister, on the other hand, skipped the sewing completely.

    My grandfather was an upholsterer. Not wanting anything to go to waste, my grandmother made a trip around the world quilt out of the remnants of brocades and silky satins. It's gorgeous, and I treasure it.

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    1. It IS interesting!! My daughter and my sister aren't interested in sewing at all, but my niece loves it and sews for her home and kids. My daughter is crafty in other ways (jewelry making) but it is definitely not environmental!! ;) Thanks for commenting.

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  5. This piece brought me tears, esp in thinking of my own grandmother, and my great-grandmother whose quilts I have. Like my Grandmother Quick, I have RA and Fibromyalgia. I even walk like her now, and my hands are taking on a bit of an arthritic look as the osteo-A gets worse. But, I keep cutting, piecing, quilting, cross-stitching, baking, but I really miss gardening. But, I am thankful to God that when our two daughters were young, I could do everything for them a mother could want, teaching them everything my mothers and grands taught me. This is part of how we keep the blessings going, isn't it? Thanks for writing such a loving and devoted piece about your grandmother. She must have been one beautiful and incredible person!

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  6. Thank you, Elizabeth. I see you found me here too, and I'm so glad. Yes my Grandmother was amazing, and I am so blessed by her care and love and memory. I'm sorry about your condition getting in the way of what you love a bit, but so inspired that you won't let it stop you from doing all the things you have passed on to your children. I can just imagine the lovely things you have created over the years that all will have to treasure as well. Keep quilting!!! hugs, Beth

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  7. I never knew my grandmothers as they died before I was born. You were so lucky to have known yours. I look forward to seeing you on Y&R. I didn't know you quilted!

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    1. Been doing some sort of textile work since I was about 13. Love my long arm system and quilting in general as an historic bond to sewers of all ages and interests... I'm sorry to hear you didn't know your grandmothers, but know we have the fantastic alternative to choose wonderful friends to fill in our 'family'. I hope that for you. I'll see you on TV on Christmas Eve. Thanks for saying hello!!

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  8. I never knew my grandmothers as they died before I was born. You were so lucky to have known yours. I look forward to seeing you on Y&R. I didn't know you quilted!

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  9. Growing up in the Amish community, quilting was a way of life. Your quilting and sewing is much like the water the Amish people quilted. Yours is a lot like theirs. Very beautiful. Love you on Y & R. And miss you.

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  10. Thank you, Jim! What an honor to be compared to Amish quilting. I have a great regard for their color ways and simple graphic designs! And I'll be seeing you again on Y&R on Christmas Eve. ;) Thanks for saying hello!!!

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