The Ties that Bind

“No distance of place or lapse of time can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each other’s worth.” – Robert Southey

I was fortunate to grow up in a small town where many families, like mine, had deep roots. Some of my classmates stayed in the area while some of us found ourselves hundreds or thousands of miles away as we pursued our dreams and put down our own roots. While the sense of connection we had as children may have waned, the advent of social media has sustained or reignited many relationships in spite of the passing years.

Such is the case with my childhood friend, Linda, who was always a star – music and drama, and just a life energy in general that emanates from her. We were best friends in 5th grade and shared an unusual interest, our love of Man from U.N.C.L.E. Our sisters were friends and our mothers had been childhood friends. We first reconnected on classmates.com then via Facebook. As time went by we caught up with each other through posts about family, careers, health, hobbies, and memories. Then came the post from her about incurring a fairly serious concussion. Even in this unfortunate incident her spirit shone through – her keen sense of humor and self-deprecation, her creative writing, and her ability to entertain.

At that same time I was just starting to make a quilt called Floating Stars. While working on the blocks it suddenly hit me that this was Linda’s quilt. It was in part the connection between the name of the quilt and her description of “seeing stars” when she described her accident, and also something about the dark background fabric with the modern yet old-fashioned looking flowers that reminded me of her. In keeping with the “theme” I quilted the finished top on my longarm using a design called Gravity in a light gray thread called Fog.

I had some covert help getting Linda’s address, with my sister contacting her sister. I packed up the quilt and sent it on its way, hoping that she’d enjoy receiving a surprise and that it might brighten her day. A few days later I received a message from her that leaves me teary eyed every time I read it. She was surprised, of course, but the way she was moved turned out to be a gift back to me.

When I checked in with Linda about writing this post, her one request was that I add her comments below:

The beautiful quilt my friend created means more to me than words can say. Not only is it a perfect representation of the rich history we share in friendship and family, but having fought a serious illness for almost 5 years it gives far more. When I got the concussion and “saw stars,” Denise did not know I’d hit an all-time low and felt like giving up. Receiving her beautiful gift of time and talent brought light and hope back into my life in a profound, tangible way. I sit with it every day, and every day it reminds me of friendship and urges me to never stop reaching for the stars.