I’m a big quilt fan, and I especially love scrap quilts—quilts that are made from all different fabrics. I suppose I especially like scrap quilts because the many fabrics guarantee there’s always something new for the eye to see, and the many colors generally present such a happy image.
A few years back, a good friend and I spent a weekend in Cape May, New Jersey at a quilting retreat where we made scrap quilts. I chose a star pattern and Alison chose the bow tie block. We traded fabrics back and forth, expanding the colors and designs in each of our quilt tops.
You can get a sense of my quilt here (pardon the feline model, Spirit). The stars are made of a wide array of fabrics, everything from florals to dachshunds to paisleys. This quilt is a generous queen size, so in order to make it fit our bed just right, my husband and I know that a particular star has to go on the bottom corner of the bed, just so, and then the rest of the quilt will fall in to place.
That particular star is made from a wild red floral print, creating a memorable block and placeholder. (See the block in the photo at left.) When that wild red floral print star is in the bottom corner of the bed, the rest of the quilt will hang just right: equal lengths on either side of the bed, with just the right amount to fold back at the top for the pillows.
When I was making up the bed the other day, it struck me that lenten disciplines are a bit like that wild red floral print star. No, wait a minute, hear me out: When you engage in lenten disciplines—prayer, fasting, almsgiving, self-reflection—the rest of your life falls right in to place. Your priorities are set in motion, you achieve balance in your life and your relationship with God is realigned.
Ash Wednesday will soon be upon us, and we’ll recite again the extended Confession of Sin that marks that liturgy. We’ll be asked to reflect on our lives and examine our thoughts and behaviors.
What’s the wild red floral print star of your life that will help your life fall right into place this lenten season?
(If you’re looking for some lenten reading and reflection, consider Looking into the Mirror: A Lenten Reflection.)
Linda Post Bushkofsky made her first quilt in 1982 (if you don’t count the one she made for her Barbie dolls) and has been quilting ever since.