What with going away for ten days, and Kevin's heart jumping all over the place and all the associated running around that went with getting him to doctors and having blood tests, it has occurred to me that I have neglected to post finished pics of my Road to St Louis quilt. Here is some of the border quilting....slightly wonky because I am not very experienced at free-motion work, but finished nevertheless. The pretty variegated Aurifil thread is a lovely aqua colour.
And here is the whole quilt, well most of it - either Kevin moved when he was holding it up while standing on a little stool (those are the stool's legs peeking out at the bottom, not Kevin's) - or, more likely, I moved the camera j-u-s-t as I snapped the photo. As you can see, I am fond of green; the bottom photo is truer to the colour, the close-up looks a bit washed out but really it's a soft pretty green.But it's finally finished. Yay for me. And it kept me warm on a couple of cold nights in Canberra.
Today Australia and New Zealand are celebrating, if that is the right word, ANZAC Day. It's the day when we remember the sacrifices of those who fought in wars for our country. My father was stationed in Papua New Guinea in WWII (as we found out a few years ago, he was in the War Graves unit) and never, never, ever spoke of his experiences - he was only 25YO when the war ended and it affected him profoundly. Consequently it affected all of us; my mother, my brothers and me. He was not a happy man, he was a distant, sometimes abusive, father who walked out one day and never contacted any of us ever again; we found out he had died many years after it happened. War doesn't only take people's lives....it takes away their souls too.
I don't celebrate much on Anzac Day.
Jennifer
Oh Jennifer, how very, very sad about your father. I did, however, love seeing your beautiful quilt. Do you mark your quilt before free-motion quilting, or do you just go for it?
ReplyDeleteYour quilt is lovely! How sad for you, but I had about the same experience with my Dad...he also was in New Guinea and the Phillipines. He was 28 when the war ended. He never talked to us about it at all...he stayed, but drank heavily and when he was 60 years old he took his own life. Cheers to you this fine weekend...God Bless.
ReplyDeleteOh Jennifer, when I read your words about your father I knew exactly how your father was. Same thing happened to mine, & my mother always felt she should never have married him before he went overseas. I was born after he had gone, & I never really knew him well. When he returned, he was a completely changed man, & though they had my brother, the marriage did not last. Nor did his second marriage. As you say, it stole their souls, & the lives of so many families too.
ReplyDeleteI just LOVE your quilt! It is beautiful.
Hugs, from a fellow survivor.
Your finished quilt is absolutely beatiful. I'm so sorry about your father and what war does to people whether they are fighting or not is awful. It affects us all one way or another and it's always sad I think. Take good care and I can't wait to see your next project.
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