Time for Gratitude: A Sewing Legacy

A couple weeks ago in my Big Girl Beds and Grandmas post I told you about a couple of the things that were passed down to my family from my Grandpa and Grandma’s house after my beloved Grandpa passed away in the Spring.

Well, today as I’m in the midst of preparing for the Holiday Shopping Extravaganza, I’m so thankful for something else that came from my Grandma…and not just from her house, but from her. Her love of creating things with a sewing machine.

I remember as a young girl sitting in her sewing room surrounded with sewing supplies, fabric, an ironing board, pins on the floor (we always were required to wear shoes in the sewing room to avoid the inevitable pin-in-the-foot), and her gently hovered over me and guiding my shaky and nervous hands as I learned to stitch together a quilt. It is a memory that is etched in my mind forever.

She instilled in me her love of creating and sewing things together. But it wasn’t just piecing the pieces together. It wasn’t just about sewing. It was about one generation passing on something of great value to another generation – it was creating a masterpiece with all the love and care that a grandma has for her granddaughter.

My grandma was tragically killed in a car accident in September of 2000. Yes, it was a devastating event for our family, but because of what she passed on to not only me, but to my sister and brothers and so many of my cousins (I have something like 35 on that side of the family), she did not die. Yes, her soul is in heaven and her body is no longer alive and living on this earth, but she lives on through each one of us.

With each new item I sew, I think of her. With any new stitch I learn (I am by no means an advanced sewer…I consider myself an “experienced beginner” – there is so much I still don’t know), and each time I begin something new or complete a project, I think of her. I can’t help but think she is looking down on me with a smile, and I am so excited when I see the interest my three year old shows in what I make at my sewing machine. I am SO excited to pass on my love of sewing that came from my grandma and my mom to her and her children. It’s a legacy that I will do my best to never let die.

By Evie DeWitt