Thea's quilting trials and tribulations.

Life teaches us many lessons! Some of the greatest lessons in my life have been taught to me by my quilts and the people that I have met through my quilting.

Butterflies

I have a special love of butterflies.  I had two conversations with my Dad just a day before he passed on from this world... I was sitting on my front porch both times.  I have soaker hoses that if you turn them over the water sky rockets into the air... I like watching them because it causes rainbows.  i was talking to my Dad on Wed and the butterflies were just dancing in the water in and out and around the flowers... My Dad was telling me that he had been afraid he had dimentia because he couldn't remember short term memory items...he couldn't manage his checkbook anymore... then the next day, I was again on my porch and again the butterflies were out there dancing - talking with my Dad and he asked me if the butterflies were dancing again for me... i told him see Dad your short term memory is just fine.  My Dad passed on the next day - he had a brain tumor that was inoperable...

I went to the memorial service for him and the funeral director gave mea pin of a butterfly and a beautiful poem to go with it.  It seemed unbelieavable to me..

so on the wall in my sewing room I have butterflies that I someday will make into a quilt - haven't decided how yet but here are some of them... one set are all applique butterflies - the other is a creation of mine with thread and and glitter stones and fabric.  There is an addtional butterfly on the wall that is embroidery on my sewing machine.

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I know my Dad is in a better place but I sure do miss him - someday I will make a butterfly quilt in tribute to him - these butterflys may or may not be in it but when I see them they give me fond memories of my Dad...

Published Mon, Aug 10 2009 2:17 AM by Thea

Comments

# re: Butterflies@ Monday, August 10, 2009 9:00 AM

althea    nice selection of fabrics.   from the photos the lighter fabric on the outside of the butterflies, makes them look like they are glowing.  these blocks will make a  beautiful quilt.  gini

by gini

# re: Butterflies@ Monday, August 10, 2009 12:40 PM

thank you Gini, it has been almost 5 years since Dad left us and it is still very hard for me - the anniversary of his death is just before my b/d.  Some day these butterflies will be flying across a quilt - I am slowly desinging it in my head...it will be a happy day.

God bless,

Althea

by Thea

# re: Butterflies@ Friday, August 14, 2009 9:50 AM

Very sorry about your dad. The butterflies ARE beautiful. And they will  make a beautiful quilt one day. Post pictures of it when it's made so we can see.

by Bridget Oglesby

# re: Butterflies@ Friday, August 14, 2009 9:49 PM

Bridget  - someday I will have this quilt completed - right now it is still forming itself in my head...lol... I do that a lot - I make some blocks - then have no idea what to do with them and one day i wake up and the first thing I think of is the blocks and I have an idea how to do them into a quilt.  I have a small idea for the butterflies - I want to make a huge butterfly and insert these blocks into it - plus all the rest of the butterflies that i have made... I will have it all figured out one of these days!

My Dad is very much missed - especially on a day like today when the preseason football games are starting... the last time I talked to him was the night of the 1st season game in 2004... I have a hard time each year when football starts...

by Thea

# re: Butterflies@ Friday, August 21, 2009 10:05 AM

althea,  just here thinking about your butterfly quilt.    what if,  you put the butterfly blocks together, and superimposed a butterfly over the whole thing, maybe out of a see-through material  so you could see the other butterflies through it.    or  using your quilting to cover the whole quilt as one big butterfly, you could make it stand out as much as you wanted with heavier quilting or contrasting threads.   it would be kinda like your dad was still there looking out for you.    the last day i was with my grandfather, we were going with my mom to put flowers on gramma's grave,  we saw a full double rainbow.  grampa was so enchanted with it. i never was with him again, but i have  rainbows now, to help me remember  what a wonderful man he was.     gini

by gini

# re: Butterflies@ Friday, August 21, 2009 11:59 PM

Gini, It is nice to have memories like that - I see a butterfly now and think of Dad... the last couple years we have had fewer and fewer but DH says they will be back  - had a hummingbird fly right by my head today was so pretty... I love when they flit in my Althea Tree... we have several that come through so am glad that my porch will be useable again... I love to go out in the afternoon and watch the butterflies and the hummingbirds dance in my garden.

by Thea

# re: Butterflies@ Thursday, September 09, 2010 7:43 PM

Althea,what a beautiful story. I love your butterfly blocks. Remember heaven is a real place :)

by jodekema

# re: Butterflies@ Wednesday, October 13, 2010 6:58 PM

We buried my mom on 7-7-07.  My sis and I stayed at the grave until she was lowered.   I was shoveling dirt and one butterfly was circling around the grave right over my head. God has a special way to help us get through the hard parts of life.

Elizabeth

by eesvette