Just as a quilt or piece of needlework is comprised of many separate stitches, a book is also made up of separate entities: words, sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and then all of the directional components such as table of contents, an index, and list of works cited. Making a quilt and writing a book are similar endeavors, and whether it is the last stitch one is putting in, or the last dot over an “i,” there is a sense of completion and joy when the work is all finished.
One reason for that is that it is downright fun to create, with words or needle, something that has not existed previously. It is a rhapsody when we create a whole, from parts. The process of both endeavors is the important part, and the fun is in the doing.
How many times have I heard someone say to me, “I could never do what you do! I wouldn’t have the patience!” I always feel sorry for the person because I wonder what they do with their time. Is the person stuck in some dronish job every day, just “working for the man,” giving time in exchange for money. Hey, money is not bad, but I’d rather have time. There will always be money and for those who are married to the idea of loving it, they may realize at the end of their mortal existence that one never has enough time and no amount of money will buy more time.
So, here I sit, writing serious, historical essays and books, and sometimes, some silly, not so serious blog entries. There is always a mix in life – “a time to laugh, and a time to cry.”
Now that my “serious” writing project of 355 pages and 340 photos is complete and finished, as of yesterday, as soon as I am able, I’d like to turn to a quilting project.
May all of your stitches be happy ones, and may you “be a stitch” who holds the lives of others together. The last stitch in a quilt always comes as a surprise, and the last word in anything written, has the same effect. We (Jim and I) have arrived at an end point in our latest work, with elation, and with finality. The folks we met along our path was the most fun of all!
Patricia Cummings
