A Story

My mother past away one week after her 96th birthday. She left behind a legacy of skills with needle and thread, garden shovel and green fingers. She also left behind a frightening collection of "stuff" that, one year later, I'm still trying to sort out. In the couple of years prior to her death, she had recurring illnesses that required bed rest, breathing machines, and visiting nurses. In her little room, the walls were lined with boxes of fabric and doll parts that she had been collecting forever. Her closet was totally unusable for all the "stuff" that filled it. I began talking her into letting some of the stuff go, because she wasn't going to use it anymore and the dust it held wasn't helping her to stay well. I can't describe the looks she gave me every time I took something away but if you have a teenager at home, chances are you have been given the same look when you tried to remove the toddler toys from his/her room. Eventually, the room was accessible without climbing over boxes; I know she never forgave me for that. Now, I am slowly sorting through things: old photos, seventy years of sewing notions, laces, fabric, doll parts galore, and for some unknown reason she kept jar after jar of old screws and nails ( I could build a house with what I've found so far!). This has been a daunting task; I don't want to throw her things away, so I try to find people who will make use of many of the items. It is especially difficult when I know, and can tell you, the stories about all the odds and ends in her collection. In this blog, I'm going to share some of her legacy with you through the things I find and the skills I have because of the passion she nurtured within me for creating. Who knows, you might find some inspiration here for yourself.