I had the fun of displaying one of my favorite quilts at the Winters Heritage House Museum's 10th Anniversary Quilt Exhibit this month.
(Can you spot my quilt on the program?!)
What made the exhibit even more special for me was the fact that the quilt inspired Casey Meier to write a poem for her Creative Writing class at Elizabethtown High School:
Search for a Stable Spin
by Casey Meier
A pinwheel twirls to a child's laughter.
Spinning, spinning
to the tune of joy
Dark vines riddle the ground below,
reaching toward the pearly pinwheel.
The spinning slows.
Barely clinging to life
it flutters off center,
wobbling in the fragile fingers that cling to it.
The child stares
deeply into the dark center,
wishing, hoping, believing
A gust of wind sparks life,
driving the pinwheel into a stable spin
as a smile spreads across the child's face
Even though this poem was sparked by an assignment given by teacher Chris Bradley, it's still a wonderful example of fact that quilts are meant to be seen, touched, experienced and to inspire. A quilt folded away on a shelf or tucked in a blanket chest doesn't impact or motivate anyone. There's something about this particular quilt that connects with people. The fabric isn't anything special, but when the light and dark fabrics are combined and arranged in the pinwheel pattern, suddenly it has a voice. It created the same response when I displayed it last fall at Fort Hunter Day; it received the most attention by far of any of my quilts on display. Why?? I don't know.... Perhaps it's because it took ten years to complete, and it represents a number of difficulties in not just my life, but the lives of others during that span of time. Or, perhaps because those buttons that draw you in came from a local thrift shop and represent who knows how many person's lives, full of joy and sorrow. Or perhaps, it's simply because it's common, yet most definitely not ordinary.
Anyway, thanks Casey, for sharing your poem with us!
Also, as part of the month-long quilt exhibit, a quilt appraiser was available to appraise antique quilts for a nominal fee. I was able to glean some more info on my family's antique quilts which will be helpful when I will again be displaying my ever growing collection at Fort Hunter Day in September.
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