Contentment

My mailman, God love him, brought me a special envelope the other day. Look what I got... Tamara sent me this fat quarter I won in her draw (the fabric in the background), and this cool pad of paper. The paper has a magnet on the back so I put it on the side of my file cabinet next to my desk...I can't wait to write a quilty note to someone! Look at the Quilt Diva.Love the slippers! I can see myself in there a little bit. Can you see yourself? Be honest! The card Tamara sent me brought tears to my eyes. Thank you for your wonderful words Tamara and for the beautiful fat quarter and paper!

So, here is what I have been up to....

One hoop at a time....

I just love the sense of peace that washes over you while hand stitching...not just quilting, as I am sure knitting, crocheting, embroidery...all of these bring such a feeling of contentment. Have you ever thought about contentment? People are always looking for happiness, but I would rather be content. It is not fleeting, and can not be stolen by a moment of drama or a run of "bad luck". Paul says "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content." Philippians 4:11. The verses before and after are definitely worth looking at too. We are also instructed in Hebrews 13:5 to "...be content with such things as ye have..." I am thinking contentment is a pretty wonderful thing to possess. I am not claiming to have it...though I can get the sense of it while hand quilting. I think it must be something everyone can acquire, not out of reach. The Word says Paul "learned" it, and it is an instruction, so it may be a choice. What do you think? My new goal...contentment.

But, happiness is important too, so to make you happy (wink) I am again working on this... Hmmmm...this could be part of learning contentment....I am content with my struggle to applique all these curvy, hard to handle, ridiculously tiny pieces of fabric, in order to create my Masterpiece!!! I assume the contentment Paul talks about, is a peace that even a tiny oak leaf made from fabric that does not want to needle turn, can't touch!