Creating Memories

"The most beautiful things are not associated with money; they are memories and moments. If you don't celebrate those, they can pass you by."

Alek Wek, British designer

When I was in elementary school, I remember belonging to a group of girls called the "Bluebirds". The group was like Girl Scouts. My mom was part of the leadership, and my most distinct memories of what we did in that group involved creating things. I remember learning to stitch, creating memory boxes with construction paper cutouts and Modge Podge, and picking up pinecones and other natural materials and using them in crafts. I don't know if it was one of our mottos, but I do remember creating a wall hanging with the words, "To make beautiful things." In all those memories, my mom is a central character.

Fast forward about 30 years later to Christmastime and craft shows. Mom was always making angels, year-round, but at Christmas there were also other treasures to be made from fabric, buttons, sequins, bows, shells and anything else you could sew, glue or tie. And one year she and I made so many Christmas items we decided to get a table at the craft fair at our church.

Mom always had ideas of the next item to create. She would take notes on scrap paper when we were at crafts shows, the fabric store or on vacation about ideas and materials. She'd sketch her ideas to remember later how items could be put together.

As Parkinson's Disease stole her focus and dexterity, Mom could only do so much. Yet she continued to work on projects she could manage, and she never stopped gathering ideas. And, when she couldn't do that, she would go through her collections of ribbons, threads, fabric and notions, always planning for the next project. Mom had way more ideas and projects planned than she could have worked on in even two lifetimes. I am following in her footsteps and am honored.