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A Quilt of Blessings


marthaj

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I wanted to share this story about a special friendship, and how God has blessed this friendship through a very special gift.

My dear friend Judy in Michigan hand made a quilt for Catherine as a baby gift. I know a lot of new parents receive blankets and quilts for baby, but there is a special story behind this one.

Judy and I worked together in 1982-83, when I was a Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force at K. I. Sawyer AFB near Marquette, MI and she was a civilian secretary in my squadron. When I PCS'd to Germany in 1983, we began a written correspondence that has lasted over 20 years!! When I first wrote her about pursuing our dream to adopt, she signed up for a quilt making class (all in secret, of course!) She began a "reverse" quilt (the 2 sides are different patterns). She certainly had plenty of time to work on it, as we attended the September 1997 Abrazo Parents-in-Waiting Orientation, and Catherine wasn't born until 12 months later, on September 28, 1998!

Now, as the book of Ecclesiastes in the Holy Bible proclaims, there is a time and a purpose to everything under heaven, including "a time to be born" (Ecclesiastes 3:2). What makes this story so very, very special to me is that

CATHERINE WAS BORN ON JUDY'S BIRTHDAY!

Yes, there was most definitely a reason behind our year long wait. It's almost as if the Lord looked down and saw my friend's heart and said...this will be a most precious gift, not only for the baby but for the quilt maker herself!!

And Judy, being her most humble self, did not even share this with me until a couple years later...when she sent Catherine a birthday card and remarked that she will always remember Catherine's birthday because it is the same day as her own.

So now this day is twice blessed. I have the blessing of remembering the birthday of a forever friend as I also celebrate my daughter's birthday...all linked together through the gift of a quilt of blessings.

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  • 1 month later...

Happy, happy birthday to my dear friend Judy, and happy 6th birthday to Catherine! I am truly blessed, with a friendship lasting over 20 years, and a daughter to love forever.

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  • 11 months later...

Birthday greetings all around,

today is a day when blessings abound!!

Happy birthday to my dear friend and quilt-maker Judy!

Happy birthday to Catherine!

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  • 1 year later...
I wanted to share this story about a special friendship, and how God has blessed this friendship through a very special gift.

My dear friend Judy in Michigan hand made a quilt for Catherine as a baby gift. I know a lot of new parents receive blankets and quilts for baby, but there is a special story behind this one.

Judy and I worked together in 1982-83, when I was a Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force at K. I. Sawyer AFB near Marquette, MI and she was a civilian secretary in my squadron. When I PCS'd to Germany in 1983, we began a written correspondence that has lasted over 20 years!! When I first wrote her about pursuing our dream to adopt, she signed up for a quilt making class (all in secret, of course!) She began a "reverse" quilt (the 2 sides are different patterns). She certainly had plenty of time to work on it, as we attended the September 1997 Abrazo Parents-in-Waiting Orientation, and Catherine wasn't born until 12 months later, on September 28, 1998!

Now, as the book of Ecclesiastes in the Holy Bible proclaims, there is a time and a purpose to everything under heaven, including "a time to be born" (Ecclesiastes 3:2). What makes this story so very, very special to me is that

CATHERINE WAS BORN ON JUDY'S BIRTHDAY!

Yes, there was most definitely a reason behind our year long wait. It's almost as if the Lord looked down and saw my friend's heart and said...this will be a most precious gift, not only for the baby but for the quilt maker herself!!

And Judy, being her most humble self, did not even share this with me until a couple years later...when she sent Catherine a birthday card and remarked that she will always remember Catherine's birthday because it is the same day as her own.

So now this day is twice blessed. I have the blessing of remembering the birthday of a forever friend as I also celebrate my daughter's birthday...all linked together through the gift of a quilt of blessings.

Just wanted to remember my special friend Judy today, as I remember and celebrate 24 years of our friendship!

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  • 2 years later...

I just wanted to share another story of a quilt and a friendship, and a recently received gift that touched my heart.

I have another friend, Patti, who quilts. We met in 1980 when we were going thru Air Force Officer Training School (OTS) together. After OTS, we both went to technical training at Keesler AFB MS. After technical school we "went our separate ways," but have maintained a written correspondence that has spanned almost 30 years! The last time we saw each other was in 1988 when she was coming thru San Antonio between assignments.

One of Patti's hobbies is sewing. She often writes to me about her projects. Patti made a baby quilt for Catherine after she was born. It was just the right size to place on the floor for our "baby Catherine" to sit and play on. That quilt has now been cleaned and lovingly packed away as a keepsake.

Well, quite out of the blue a package arrived a couple of weeks ago from Patti, and it was a twin-bed sized quilt! She has a new quilting machine and was trying some different patterns. The amazing thing is, the quilt pieces have all the colors of Catherine's bedroom. The quilt is so pretty with the pink butterflies and purple floral patterns! Catherine loves it and has been wrapping herself up in it ever since it arrived!

In the thank you card I sent, I asked Patti for her e-mail address so I could e-mail her digital pictures of the quilt on Catherine's bed. When she wrote a letter back with her e-mail address...she told me she was sending it reluctantly. She so enjoys receiving letters...pouring herself a glass of wine and finding a cozy spot to read her correspondence and then compose her letters back. It too makes me sad to accept the reality that the fine art of letter writing may eventually disappear, as technology continues to make communication more instantaneous (with e-mail on portable laptops and "video chat" cell phones and "text message" and "twitter"), but Patti and I will continue to experience the joys of a written correspondence that has withstood the test of time!

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Martha,

What a wonderful story about you and your friend. How great it must have been to receive the quilt in the mail. I always love getting cards and letters in the mail. It just has more of a personal touch to it, I think. I can tell how special your friend is to you.

Thanks for sharing such a lovely story. It warms my heart.

Blessings,

Tracey

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  • 2 years later...

Martha,

What a beautiful story. Your friend is so thoughtful.

When I first moved to Scotland almost 10 years ago (Yikes!), I was quite home-sick. About 6 months after living there I received a special package in the mail from my Mom. Her, my sister, my Aunts and my cousins had been meeting on the weekends to sew a quilt for me out of my old baby clothes. It was one the best gifts I had ever received and one of the best surprises ever.

The quilt now hangs proudly in Alexander's room. Everytime, I look at it, I think about the love that went into making it.

Thanks for sharing.

Leah

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