The Sewing

I doubt that the way that word is commonly used among our people is well-known outside our circle.  Used as a noun, it usually refers to an all-day event on the first Tuesday of the month when women from the churches gather to stitch quilts, knot comforters, and prepare other items to give to people in need. 

Sewing drawstring bags to be filled with school supplies is one common project.  Another is layette bundles (supplies for newborn babies).  In my memory we've torn old sheets into strips to be used for cloth bandages.  Scrap fabrics have been cut into squares for quilt kits.  In Haiti, women can come to a sewing center and use the machines there to stitch together bed covers from the quilt kits.  I remember hearing that ladies who learned to sew were each given two kits--one to complete and use, and the other to make and sell. 

Before lunch we gather in the church sanctuary to hear announcements, take up an offering, and listen to one of the women share a meditation.  At lunch we eat packed lunches brought from home.  Someone prepares hot coffee for everyone. 

One of the neat things about being retired is that I can attend the sewing regularly.  Yesterday was the sewing day for November, and I enjoyed it more than usual. 

Margretta led us in thinking about how to practice the presence of Jesus, giving some really practical ideas gleaned from reading she's done.  The main idea was linking short meditative moments to daily activities--upon waking, taking a drink, eating a meal, etc.

The quilt I spent the day stitching on was one-of-a-kind, not typical at all of the kind we usually work on. Japanese dolls were the main feature of the fabric design--dolls in large colorful panels, framed by small multicolored rectangles neatly sewed together.  I nearly drooled the day when the remainder of the stash of Japanese fabrics was offered to ladies who wanted it.  I brought pieces of it home,   In what is a fairly familiar scenario, someone had bought more Japanese quilt kits than they were able to finish, and then passed them on to our sewing where some of them were utilized. 

The best part of the sewing is often the conversation around the quilts and over lunch.  Yesterday I took note of the fact that our group of ladies alternated freely between speaking English and Pennsylvania German.  Once though, Martha said something in Swiss, the language of her childhood in Berne, IN, one of the largest Swiss-speaking Amish communities in the U.S.  She told the rest of us the same thing in English as soon as she remembered how to say it.  Around the corner from me sat Dorothea, whose husband is a native Haitian.  She speaks his language, French Creole, although he also speaks hers--English.  Across the quilt sat Ruth, who spent many years in Paraguay, first as a nurse midwife, then as a homemaker/wife/mother.  She speaks fluent Spanish.  Grace was there.  Although she would likely not claim fluency, she speaks some Swahili, learned during years spent in Kenya. 

Some of the topics I recall were these: 
--Stories by Mary Emma about cooking at Calvary Bible School--which led to hearing various ideas about how to use bitty potatoes with a creamy topping, with or without cucumbers (guhmuduh suhlawt).  We also heard some stories about frugality--as practiced by some early staff individuals.

--Retha, our friend and church sister, who was spoken of sadly, since she was dying of cancer.  She did, in fact, die yesterday. 

--The Dawdy house where Vera used to live.  I heard that a basement wall had collapsed, possibly during one of the earthquakes.  It was not occupied when it happened. 

--What the unrest in Haiti is about (people want the president to leave).  To this information was added the fact that "some people here want to get rid of our president." 

--Sattler College will be making a presentation at the Pleasantview Activity Center soon.  We've had Kansans go to Boston (a niece and nephew among them), but this time Boston will be coming to us. 

--Larry N.'s decline and the effort needed to provide care for him.  Brad has a lot on his plate right now.

--Larry's brother William and his quips, which are often famously funny, even now, with significant dementia. 

--Stories about Johnny M. and Harley W. and the rollicking laughter that accompanied their reminiscing recently. 

--Yolanda's upcoming birthday meal prepared by Martha, along with a gift she had made--and a surprise for Eric, which included a memento from his youthful days of working at Quality Body Shop.  Martha credited Linda and me for giving her the idea for the main menu item when we served it for Miller breakfast (my dad's siblings).  It was a jazzed-up version of creamed eggs over toast.

--A gathering planned for the single ladies in the area who usually have a meal together once a month, often at a restaurant, but this time at Mary Emma's house.

--Who is responsible for fixing the florescent light that flickered maddeningly till the bulbs were removed.  Not Harold.  Marvin N., head trustee.

--Duane's phone calls to his sister--in which he sometimes uses an affected voice and pretends to be a sweeper salesman or some other unlikely character.  He's a copy editor for the Gazette in Colorado Springs. He has plans for who he wants to visit the next time he comes.  Ruth should plan to go with him on some of the visits

--What Ryan is doing in CO.  He's living in MJ and Kristyne's basement now.

--Lydia's kindness in letting Ruth carry around baby Marian after church--years ago. Ruth's mother wasn't sure that she would be capable of taking good care of a baby because she didn't have much practice with younger siblings. So Ruth didn't get to "beg" other Mamas for a chance to hold the baby.  Only because Lydia offered . . .   (I so miss Marian!)

--Marvin M. having bought Glenn M.'s place.  "Don't ask me what he plans to do with it," Ruth says.

--David Keim's death.  His brothers had come to visit him last week, and in a separate group, his sisters had also done so.  He died during the night after his sisters had been with him the day before.  No one expected death to come so quickly, although he was not expected to recover from his cancer.  He conducted the poultry auction at Yoder. 

--Games.  Memory. Farming.  Dollars and Sense.  Trivial Pursuit.  Elizabeth threatened and then followed through on throwing away some of the games her grandchildren used to love to play--because they did not put the pieces neatly back into the box after they were done playing.  She reported that she has since [repented] and replaced most of them again. 

--Puzzles.  Jo wants her grandchildren to like puzzles.

--Esther, who is being served by Bluestem Pace and her family and a network of others from the community.  In this way Melody can continue to provide tutoring at the jail for those who want to earn their GED.

--Sadie, who will be 100 in December.  When people ask her daughter Carol how she managed to reach such an old age, Carol says "Have 15 children and eat lots of sugar."  I've always known about the 15 children, but I didn't know about the sugar.  She seemed to reason that sugar was cheaper than fruit for feeding the family, so sweet foods were often served extra sweet so that it wouldn't take as much.

--Which boys had to work and which ones didn't when Waglers were in the middle of farm work and needed hired help to get it done. 

--What I used to call the stuff you spread on bread for tomato sandwiches--salad blessing.

--Bread as a required first food in every meal--so the rest of the food would reach.  It could be buttered, but jelly was not to be expected. 

And that's your serving of trivia for the day--Sewing Circle style.  It's not as good as having been there, but it will have to do.