Friendship

When I was just a little kid, I learned a song that has somehow stuck in my head. It goes like this ...

It is my joy in life to find, at every turning of the road...
The strong arm of a comrade kind, to help me onward with my load.
And since I have no gold to give, and love alone must make amends,
My only prayer is, while I live, God make me worthy of my friends.

A stupid, left-handed, failure as a kid, my one great success has been picking out friends.

The load is sometimes frustrating ... like the blog comments not coming to my in-box ...
   But my left-handed quilting friend waved her magic wand in my direction and it was all fixed.
   Thank you Kitty!

Sometimes it is just too much to do at once ... scout stuff or onigiri delivery while I am away at camp... There, too, friends stepped up to lend a hand ... even at 5:am in the poring rain or in a rain-filled camp.

Then there are financial worries ... taxes and bills and things going bump in the night ...
but in addition to my wonderful kids (like picking friends, I did a good job picking kids too)
friends have stepped up to even the road.

And, sometimes it is just conversation with my quilting friends that fills the often quiet hours that sprang up when Paul died.

Today I celebrated such a day.
Our group used to be an active one  that met several times a month in the homes of members.

The International Quilters were from all over, many accompanying their spouses  on temporary postings to Tokyo and offering their spacious quarters for the group to meet.

Over the years, all but a few have left and others have aged out due to health issues. Today was special to welcome back a long-time member we had not seen for years. We played "catch up" over a lunch and coffee (and a piece of rhubarb pie provided by our hostess, Suzanne standing beside me) What fun to turn back the clock and get caught up.

My friend, Kuraishi-sensei, in front on the right, is having a quilt show in the fall. She has asked me to contribute my "Lucy Boston" quilts. Yesterday I finished sewing a sleeve on the big quilt and took it to the park for a photo-op, as it was made before the digital camera days.

Oh my, I took a step ladder to hang it on the fence but had to hang it sideways because there was no part of the fence tall enough. Seen here flapping in the wind, I began to worry that it would be way too big for my friend's show and gave her a call.
Today she assured me that the Garden Gallery that will host the show has very high ceilings and size will be no problem.

In addition, she would also like to display my first attempt at this pattern.

I had to explain my quilt titles ... this one being "Star Crossed" ... as in star-crossed lover ... when you meet a pattern and fate has it that you pull out your notebook and sketch it down because it calls to you to try it ....

And then "Double Crossed" .... because you are doomed to make it again. (after swearing that all those little set-in seams were never again)

So, thin is a day I walk home from the bus, with the little song circling over and over in my head.

God had indeed blessed me with the best of friends and now will hear my plea to be made worthy.


Thank you, my many blogging friends who add so much to my days in kind comments (I can now see) and inspiration that keeps me motivated.