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by Ruth O’Neil
Quilting is one of my favorite Sunday activates. It’s relaxing to me. I grew up watching my mother sew. In fact, many times she sat me down at her other sewing machine and gave me a project of my own on which to work.
While sewing one day recently, I thought about all the quilts I had made for people over the years. Some I liked, some I didn’t, some I hated to give away when they were all done! I was making a quilt for someone one day, while the neighbor girls were at our house playing with my daughters. One sat and watched while I cut out the pieces I needed. She asked, with a rather disgusted look on her face, “Are you going to use that material?” I had to admit it was rather ugly, but I just told her to trust me.
So often when I am making scrap quilts, there are downright ugly fabrics I use. Somehow in the end, though, the finished product turns out being one of the nicest quilts I‘ve ever made.
Isn’t that the way it is with our lives? Sometimes there are so many bad things that happen to us and we wonder why. I am sure many of us ask questions like: Why did my parents die so young? Why was there abuse in my household as a child? Why can’t my marriage work? Why did I ever try drugs or smoking or alcohol? There are many more questions we can ask, but the answer is one and the same: to make us who we are.
The quilts of our lives are all different. No two are the same. That makes for a diverse world where there are people that only we can help. There are plenty of people I don’t feel like I can help much because of my lack of experience where they are. However, I have my own “scraps” from life that make me the perfect person to reach out to others.
If it weren’t for the ugly scraps of life, our “quilts” would not seem completed; it would look as if something were missing. Even those who appear to have perfect lives have ugliness they try to hide, but it does not change the past or who they have become.
I like those ugly fabrics in my quilts; they pull everything together. Next time you want to complain about all the bad things that have happened throughout your lifetime, just remember it is your scraps that could make someone else’s life beautiful.
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT).
About the Author:
Ruth O’Neil has been writing for over 20 years. She has published hundreds of articles in numerous publications. She loves to touch the emotions when she writes. “If I can make one person laugh or cry, I’ll consider myself successful.” Her first novel “Come Eat at My Table” has just come out in ebook form and can be purchased on her website. She homeschools her three children (well, one now, as two have graduated). She and her husband have been married for 20-plus years. In her spare time she enjoys quilting, crafting, and reading. You can visit her on her blog at ruths-real-life (dot)blogspot.com or her website at ruthoneil (dot)weebly.com
