Cornerstone

I can testify to the truth that scriptures, set to music, are remembered. As I continue through the book of Psalms, so many songs pop up out of dusty decades-old files in my brain. They bring the accompanying flood of happy memories spent in fellowship and fun as I grew up in my church and in my faith.

This passage brought me back to a rather catchy song. I learned it at Winter Camp in the piney, snowy mountains. I was a “counselor” for the week, and the girls I was in charge of were a fantastic group. Snow was a unique experience in my Southern California childhood. I remember how it felt crunching under my boots as I trudged in the darkness to the fellowship hall. The warmth from the crowd, the fire, the happy noises, the music – I remember it all.

Did you sing this one in your youth group days?

Listen here

“The building block (building block)

That was rejected

Became the cornerstone of a whole new world.”

What a profound truth is proclaimed in such a silly way. In Psalms, hundreds of years before the arrival of Jesus on the earth, we read that He will be rejected. Despite the rejection, He will become the cornerstone of the new world, His new covenant.

I immediately think, yes, the Israelites, God’s chosen, will reject their Messiah. But more importantly, God Himself will forsake His Son. Jesus will be rejected by His own Father as He dies upon that cross. I cannot think of anything more cruel. But this must happen in order for Jesus to be fully man in order to bear our sins upon His shoulders. And Jesus submitted to that rejection because of His love for us.

Rising Sun quilt block

For a season, I participated in my church praise band. I sang and played guitar. My favorite part was finding a vocal harmony to fill out the sound. Reading David’s exuberant praises to the Lord reminded me of those worship songs. In fact, so many of David’s verses have been used in contemporary worship. All those tunes that I thought were forgotten have played through my head as I’ve read through the book of Psalms. Along with those tunes come memories of shared fellowship with other believers. Songs have a powerful way of reaching past your head straight to your heart. So a roomful of believers will join their voices in chorus and sing things like:

“Here we are, gathered together as a family.

Bound as one, lifting up our voices to the King of Kings

We cry ABBA Father, worthy is your name . . .”

(Remember that one from Maranatha Singers?) I imagine if we sat in a circle and chanted those same lyrics, an outsider might fear they’ve joined a sect or something. But putting them to music, we allow ourselves to bare our hearts to each other and express a level of intimacy with our Creator without discomfort.

And what a comfort it has been, remembering those simple old songs. They remind me to be still, to be present in the moment, to breathe in and breathe out in praises to our awesome God. I’m still considering why yoga has become such a huge presence here in the US and abroad. (See yesterday’s post). I find it interesting that people will pay money and spend time to travel to a studio where they will be guided through an hour of relaxation and meditation. Interesting.

Coincidentally, I am at this very moment watching the sun rise as I write this post about a rising sun block. In truth, I haven’t said much about the block. You know how I feel about curves. And the fabric choices don’t thrill me either. But it’s just one of 96 blocks, it’ll get lost in the crowd. I’m fine with that.

I’m not a morning person, so seeing the pink morning skies is a rarity for me. But on this early morning you would find me on a train headed downtown. Unlike so many other citizens, I don’t throw away my jury duty summons. I’ll show up at the federal courthouse and complete my civic duty.

Praise the Lord.

Arrowheads quilt block

This Bible passage ends with these words:

“Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place – the Most High, who is my refuge – no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.”

Wow, that’s quite a promise. It exudes confidence and peace. I’ll take it.

I just returned from a month of travel. We started in England, bounced around the coasts of Guernsey, Ireland, and Scotland, then spent time in London, France, and Germany. My plan was to continue reading through the Bible while traveling, because I peeked ahead in the book. The Bible Sampler quilt blocks almost jump straight from Proverbs to the New Testament. There’s a whole lot of Bible in between, and I wanted to take advantage of the time off the internet to read through those books the old-school way. By the way, I’m happy to report that LOTS of people still read books the old-fashioned way. I saw them in the train stations and subway systems throughout Europe.

But of course I was too busy looking at them, and other amazing things, and meeting amazing people, to keep to my own reading plan. And I couldn’t help but notice the changes since I’d last travelled there forty years ago.

One recurring change kept popping out at me. As I strolled the streets of London, the ornate Victorian buildings were unchanged. The parks, the streets, all still there. The city was as picturesque and grand as I had remembered it to be. I love London. I’d be ready to take a photo of a charming, historic city block, but a huge “YOGA” sign kept me from snapping the photo. Now I wish I would have. A collection of yoga studio photos of London would be – I don’t know – a commentary of sorts? Living in this first world of ease and increased leisure hours due to the advances of technology; yoga studios are flourishing because people need to go somewhere to “breathe”? Hmmm.

Now that I think of it, the last time I was in London there were no yoga studios. However, you could find a quaint little tea room within a minute or two of wishing for a good cream tea. They were tucked into the city blocks, little oases from the hustle and bustle of the work day. And I remember Britain stopping at 11:00 to have their “Elevenses” – a national tea break. I am not making this up. At first it was a cause for frustration, because I was accustomed to the consumer-driven service experience of my Californian upbringing. “You mean I have to WAIT twenty minutes for the person to come back off of their break?” But now, let’s just think about this. Isn’t it true that the richer society is the one that has mastery over its choices when considering the use of time, and therefore the quality of life spent in it? In time, I learned to embrace the elegance of the elevenses.

I also remember from forty years ago, with less fondness, Wimpy Burgers and coffee bars. I didn’t see any of these this time around. No surprise there.

So I guess stretching and posing and breathing has replaced cozy visits with friends while sipping hot beverages and nibbling sweets. My old crotchety soul wanted to use the verb “usurped” rather than “replaced”. Either way, it’s still about connecting with other people. And I will admit that yoga has a healthier result. So I suppose progress is indeed moving us forward, even though I think an hour spent in a tea room is much more appealing to me than enduring a sweaty workout.

Even better, an hour spent in the reading of Psalms would be the best use of my time. Namaste.

I’ve returned from a month away. My Betterhalf and I finally took that European trip we’d been talking about for years. It was amazing, and more on that later. You know what else is amazing? Being home again.

Look what’s happening over here:

Do you see all three? I feel sorry for the little guys, they’ve eaten up the last of the milkweed.

Speaking of little guys:I removed my garden gloves in the kitchen, and he was sitting there when I went back to put them on again. So where exactly was he hiding out before??

I’m enjoying a crisp fall morning weeding, pruning, and picking.The lacy ground cherry is charming, don’t you think?

I’m keeping this post short because I want to get back outside to see what else is happening out there.

I’ve just been to Ireland, Scotland, England, Guernsey Island, France, and Germany, but I have to say that there’s no place like home.

Do you think on the person for whom you are sewing as you stitch away the hours? Then when the quilt takes shape and is finished, do you enjoy its presence because you know its days in your home are numbered? These two quilts have been hanging on hangers in my guest bedroom closet for quite awhile, but their hour has finally come. Today’s the day. I made them for my daughter who is reaching a certain age where birthdays need to be acknowledged in a big way. I needed to give my sweet girl a real labor of love. So I will part with these self-created connections to my dearly loved one when she comes over later today.

My first Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt experience was 2017’s On Ringo Lake. Still a novice, I messed up early on – I think it was the second clue. I flipped the colors on the flying geese. So my version is probably not even recognizable when compared to the original. I also added more blocks to grow it to a queen size. But I know my daughter will love it.

The Elizabeth Hartman little bitty Fancy Fox quilt is for Audrey, her inseparable sidekick.

I started quilting mostly because of my mom. She’s still of sound body, but not of mind. Her memories are wiped clean, and she doesn’t recognize me. Although I’ve still got her physical presence with me, the good bye has already happened. I miss her very much. I admire her in so many ways. She had spunk and initiative, and was always ready for some fun. I followed in her footsteps with my career, my parenting, and my hobbies. She jumped into quilting in a big way when she retired from teaching, and so did I. She made my daughters, her much-loved granddaughters, quilts when they graduated from high school. I am carrying on her tradition by commemorating benchmark birthdays with quilts for my children. It would make my mom happy to know this. It makes me happy to feel close to her, in this small way.

I had two aunts, sisters, who lived states apart and only got to see each other two or three times a year. They were two peas in a pod, so very close, and ending those visits was just too hard. So they came up with a way to ease their sorrow. Instead of saying “Good bye”, they would part with the words, “Hello”, as in, there will be a next time.

So I say “Hello” to my mom, because there will be a next time. And I also say “Hello” to my daughter. True, she’s leaving a decade behind her, but she’s greeting the new one ahead. I made sure she’s got a big new quilt to help her embrace her big new future.

P.S. Quilts received. They like them!

Fly Away Block

I love how this block turned out. I broke my “rule” of keeping to one fabric, or at the most, two, besides the white neutral, for each block. Sometimes rules are meant to be broken.

Personally speaking, that’s a hard pill for me to take. I was the rule-following, timid child who probably didn’t have as much fun as my peers. Think prodigal son’s brother. But I didn’t cause any trouble for my hard working parents, so that’s something.

I named my blog with intention. It is to remind myself to chill out, and not let the intimidation of the unknown audience keep me from sharing. It reminds me to throw unnecessary caution aside, and run with those scissors. Also, I am literally only using scissors on this project, no rotary cutters. A commenter (hi, Ruth!) asked about my scissors. I have discovered that they are from Toledo, Spain. This quaint historic town is known for its medieval swords and modern sharp cutlery. If my blades could talk, they’d tell me that a tourist picked them up and brought them to me via a yard sale.

My other intention with this whole project is to slow down, enjoy the process, and meditate on the scriptures, rather than race to the finish. I’m almost to the halfway point in the quilt blocks, and it has been a rewarding experience. I highly recommend slowing down and being in the moment. It’s a gift, that’s why it’s called “the present”.

Like David says in verse 10: “As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, Or if due to strength, eighty years, yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; For soon it is gone and we fly away.”

So if I have the luck of good genes, I’ll have eighty years to labor down here below. If I’m unlucky, I might live longer than that. Actually, if I’m still of sound body and mind, I hopefully won’t resent the bonus time here on earth at all.

Here’s a final nod to the Fly Away Quilt block:

https://youtu.be/vGTOXtJt_2E

That movie is one of our family’s favorites, have you seen it? If so, what’s your favorite quote? Mine is:

“I’ve spoken my peace and I’ve counted to three.”

Here’s the next block in the Bible Sampler Quilt, “Bird’s Nest“.

I’m writing this post from my favorite place in my “nest”, my front patio. King David is writing this psalm from exile – probably in a cave somewhere – while his awful son Absalom enjoys the stolen fruits of David’s empire, Jerusalem.

But David is upbeat and even sings words of praise in this passage. You’ve got to hand it to him there. I tend to hold a bit of a grudge against David, which I should not be doing. But what about those major slip ups? (i.e. Bathsheba, the baby son, Uriah, Michal, etc.)

I am intrigued by nests. I find them all over our yard.

Some are cleverly woven, which amazes me. I couldn’t do that with a beak.

Some look like they’re sloppily assembled, but they get the job done.

Sometimes I’m surprised by the choice of location when it’s so close to where I regularly walk or sit. A hummingbird built her spiderweb nest right in this patio, and I saw the little family progress at eye level. It felt nice to know that the mamma bird trusted me.

If I were to have fun interpreting this passage of scripture, I’d say that David is yearning for his home in this psalm. He says that “Even the swallow found a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even Your altars, oh Lord of hosts, my King and my God. How blessed are those who dwell in Your house!”

So the birds could make their nests near the courts of the Lord, yet King David had to stay in exile if he knew what was good for him. He longed to be back home, and back in the temple.

Now I could take this opportunity to encourage you, dear reader, to stay close to God’s “court”: your church, to attend often, stay in fellowship, and don’t take the freedom of worship we enjoy for granted, etc. But I won’t, even though I believe these things are good to do. David reminds me that God is with me, not only in His holy temple, but outside of it as well. He is even with me in the deepest place of self-exile.

This passage finishes up with David proclaiming from his distant cave, “Oh Lord of Hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in You!”

I know, I said this blog was a politics-free zone, but I wanted to add my voice to the Ravelry conversation. After this, I’ll try my best to stay out of politics.

I realize it’s old news now, but like so many others, I deleted my account. Before I was a quilter, I was a knitter, so much so that I had to have a trigger thumb release surgery. The trigger thumb was caused by the repetitive nature of the very act of knitting and crocheting. So I switched up to quilting, which is more hand-friendly. It’s all good.

Anyways, I had years of archived projects in my Ravelry account since 2007, complete with darling photos. It was my online scrapbook that spanned many life events and showed the layettes, blankets, and holiday hats, scarves, socks and sweaters I made as gifts. I also had a pattern for sale, and patterns filed that I had purchased from others. But I shut it down. Why?

Because Ravelry’s “inclusion” policy excluded me. As a follower of Jesus Christ, I’m included in the great commission, which says in part, “Go, teaching them to obey the commandments I have given to you”.

What, exactly, are those commandments? Jesus said the greatest commandment was to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

Who is my neighbor? The great commission means everybody. “Everybody” means even the people who don’t agree with me politically. Or morally. People who are on the spectrum of life, from pre-birth to death. People who want to hate me simply because of my set of beliefs, my citizenship, my orientation. I am called to love them as much as I love myself.

I once heard a great quote. “Jesus meets us right where we are, but He loves us too much to let us stay there”. How many times did He heal someone, only to say, “Go, and sin no more”. He told his disciples, (and therefore me), that they were to be fishers of men. It’s His job to clean the fish, He only asks me to work the net with him. I do so gladly because being a follower of the Creator of the Universe is the only way I could live this life. I want everyone to live in this peace and joy. I’ve got a timid heart by nature, and it’s in my weakness that He makes me strong.

So, please don’t shoot the messenger, but I am commanded to confess the truth of God’s word as it is written, straight up, no holds barred. It’s not my job to try and make God’s words user-friendly for today’s culture, or to soften its sharp edges in order to fit in. Instead, I am to proclaim the Gospel, even to Ravelry, which is the good news of deliverance from sin and death through Jesus, freely available to anyone and everyone. That’s tolerance and inclusion. In fact, the only one who can actually pull off absolute inclusion is the Creator of the Universe. He will take care of the rest. I could’ve kept my profile open on Ravelry, but I was no longer tolerated there, and was asked to leave.

Okay, I’m done, thank you. Now, back to the Bible Sampler quilt and the next block:

Sunset Star

What can I say? Curves. Yeah, curves are right up there with “appliqué” in my estimation. As in, I won’t be going there ever. But I did, and I got through it. I assure you that the block looks better in real life. Photos find all the flaws, wouldn’t you agree?

The next block in the Bible Sampler quilt:

Forest Paths quilt block

Is it just me, or is the world really going off the deep end? I picked up my iPad just now to start writing, and this clickbait flashed on my screen: Apple News: “Why wealthy parents are giving up custody of their kids” I don’t even want to know.

The news networks present a world in turmoil. I hereby declare this blog a politics-free zone, so that lid stays on that can of worms. But social media aside, just being alive has its calamities. I’ve had my own personal experience with cancer, and with a school shooting. My beloved, faithful dog was bitten by a rattlesnake just last week. Emma made a full recovery, I’m happy to say. Life is messy.

The simple act of reading the Bible has had a surprisingly calming effect on me. Before taking this “challenge” on, my thoughts were more preoccupied with the craziness I saw happening and reading about in the news. I was disturbed by others’ poor decision-making, and troubled by the suffering that followed. I can’t explain how reading the Bible balances me out, it just does. Especially the book of Psalms.

David was a man after God’s own heart, yet when we read his writings, it’s obvious that he wasn’t “rejoicing in the Lord always”. Instead, he was all over the map emotionally. His verses swing from highs to lows, then back again. What a relief. I don’t need to get myself pumped up in order to enjoy a relationship with our Creator. God made us in His image, with a full range of emotions after all. He purposely included fear, anger, and sadness, along with happiness, in His creation. He can handle any mood we bring. Maybe David was the apple of God’s eye because of this authenticity.

The quilt block goes with this phrase, “. . .For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills”. The world and its fullness are His. God needs nothing from us in order to keep His plans moving forward. He wants us to join Him in His plans, so that we can benefit. So I’m not advocating cultural apathy. I engage in the culture wars where I am able. It’s like the old Shake and Bake commercials. God is in charge of the outcome, and He lets me take some credit just like that proud kid who says, “and I helped!”

I am reading (and singing) my way through Psalms and the Bible Sampler quilt blocks.

Guide Post Block

Can you guess how many pieces make up this block? 61. Since I have reached, and passed, that particularly birthday, I looked long and hard at this block when I finished it. So that’s my life, I thought, as represented in blue and white years. It sure doesn’t look like much compared to what it felt like to live it. So, so, so much living. From this vantage point in my life, I can say I’ve picked up a thing or two along the way.

More than once I have proposed starting a podcast to my husband. I do this while we go through our typical morning ritual of sipping our coffee on the patio. We usually discuss the current state of things. We solve the problems in our town, our country, our world. Sometimes I wish I was recording those conversations, not only because of their brilliance and clarity, but because of the cleverness of our banter. I would call our podcast, “But What Do I Know?”

It’s a passive aggressive title, yes. It’s said with a bit of grudge inflected in the voice, but stays way clear of sounding smug. We know that we really don’t know much. But looking at what’s happening in our world today, and seeing what people are falling for, we know a lot more than we think. Our knowledge holds wisdom borne of years of experience. But who wants to listen?

Then I return to being “me” and the idea fizzles. I’m sandwiched between two very different generations. The generation that formed my formative years is nearly unrecognizable to the generation coming into its own today. The generation that shaped “me”, as in, my perception of my place in the universe, had these differences:

Credentials – there were institutions to conquer and hoops to jump in order to hold position in society. Educators, journalists, publishers, broadcasters, doctors, clergy – these all had qualifiers in place in order for candidates to practice those vocations. Plumbers, carpenters, and other makers had their apprenticeships and guilds.

Authority – people were accustomed to looking for the qualifying credentials of the aforementioned practictioners and their vocations. If they passed the standardized scrutiny, then they were recognized and respected as experts in their fields.

Self-esteem – What was that? You obeyed your parents and showed appreciation for your lot in life. Any esteem you had was earned by measurable achievement. If you started thinking too highly of yourself, your parents made sure to knock you down a peg or two; it was part of their job description. They thought they were doing us all a favor.

The generation coming into its own today is very different. Thanks to the internet, anyone can be an “expert” and pontificate freely, regardless of their credentials. Their peers don’t care, the old rules and requirements are obsolete. My friend’s “kids” (adults, actually), have self published books, and they’ve created their own talk shows on twitch. I am mystified at the confidence this new generation exudes. You can hear it in their podcasts and on their YouTube shows. I’m glad they have the guts to produce these shows, because I enjoy listening to them. It is not lost on me that these new rules of engagement apply to me as well. I could take the opportunity to join in the fun. I think my husband and I would really like to add to the conversations, but what do we know?