Patience

How good are you at waiting? I am better than a two year old toddler but not near as good as my Grandma Ella was. I have been doing a lot of “waiting” the past few days. I waited several hours in an airport for the connecting flight–which I planned so I wouldn’t miss a flight–and I successfully made it to VA but I entertained myself by eating. Saturday I waited for a couple of long hours for my daughter to be finished with her appointment and again, it is on me. I forgot to take a book and the internet connection was so weak I couldn’t read off my phone. I waited this morning, never far from my phone, to hear that a family member’s surgery was a success. At six am this morning in 42 degrees with a strong wind, I was impatiently waiting for my grand-pups to do their business so we could go back home.

Amazon next day delivery has spoiled me; it is very difficult to wait for an order to arrive in regular mail. If I text a friend with a question, I have a tendency to expect an immediate response and quickly assume something is wrong if it takes a while! I have an habit of skipping to the end of a book to see how it ends. When I take a finished pieced top to the long arm quilters to “make it a quilt”, I can’t wait to get it back–even though it might have taken me months to make the top!

Some times my patience or lack of patience comes into play when I am selecting a quilt pattern. I know me well enough to know when to select something quick and easy and when I will enjoy a longer process.

Quilts that can be randomly pieced are quicker than ones that are fiddly.

I made many sets of placemats for our October Quilt Sale. Did you guess that most of them were “quick and easy”? I chose fabrics to attract your attention rather than complicated patterns. (These two sets are still available)

But sometimes I want time consuming–to help with the “waiting”. Hand appliqué is a slow process. But when I know I need to keep my hands busy for a long time, I will choose a pattern with an easy appliqué. The one on the left was started during the early weeks of COVID lockdown. The yellow and blue one helped keep me sane when my mother was in and out of the hospital towards the end of her life.

But sometimes I choose a pattern that I know will take a longer time than usual because of a special person or special event.

At my final retirement recognition, I was ask what my plans were. I answered that I wanted to win a ribbon in the Prairie Guild Quilt Show. This is it! I was willing to spend hours making tiny saw tooth star blocks for this quilt. And it received a red or second place ribbon! Marked that off my bucket list.

Some people are just more patient! Janis spends hours carefully machine appliquéing masterpieces. She says she doesn’t have the patience for hand appliqué. Remember this beauty?

So very glad we all have different strengths and differences! This treasure is still for sale.

This past week we were all ready for quick and easy…small projects that didn’t take much brain power.

This 14″ x 29″ table runner is perfect for this transitional time of the year. Machine quilted and hand bound, it is $30.

This table runner is slightly longer but the best part is that it is reversible! One side is a winter bird print and the other has holiday reindeer.

The scalloped edges is just the right touch. Machine quilted and hand bound. $40

Last week I finished another tea towel–I smiled when I realized I would include it is this post about being impatient.

I have been told all my life “good things come to those who wait”. Ok, –but I say, always have a book or a hand appliqué project in your bag…it helps with the waiting!