Another loss ...

I have an Aunt here in town that has been suffering with Parkinson's for quite a number of years. She has been on a steady decline for about a year and watching her slowly go has been very hard. She went into a care facility about a year ago, care at home just became too hard for my uncle and cousin.

We got the call earlier this week that her days were few. She passed away quietly on Friday.

An end to my absence ...

Well, as you have noticed I have been absent for a while. Things are finally getting back to normal, or at least as normal as they can be.

Since the middle of this month I have been keeping to my "going to do quilting daily" plan. I don't have anything of my own to share just yet. I have a friend's project that I am getting completed and then it's on to my own projects.

So, for now I don't have photos of anything to share, but will in the very near future.

In Memorium

On Saturday, February 7, I attended the Memorial service for Marlene. It was a simple service just the way she would have wanted it. Those that spoke at the service included her father, brother, a few of her friends and myself.

Below is a photo of her quilt and what I said for my dear friend.

For 2009, Marlene and I had tentative plans for a couple of quilt related trips and plans to keep each other on track with a few of our quilt projects. I was looking forward to what this year would bring.

As quilters, we make quilts to share the joy of new unions, new arrivals, to show we care when those we love are ill and to help us heal when we loose those we treasure.

I organized this quilt to let Marlene know just how much she meant to all of her friends. I have no doubts she knew.
On January 12, I was able to show Marlene a picture of the completed quilt top. Her words … “It’s beautiful”.

And so I gift this quilt to Andrew. I know Marlene would want him to have it and to know just how much she was loved.

To many of us, Marlene was a quilter. But she was much more than that.

On her blog she described herself as:

“A 50 something emptynest quilter stitcher blogger crafter petsitter sister mother daughter grandmother supervisor friend ..... where ever life takes me”

She was indeed all that, but most of all to me she was a best friend.