Ramblings on Home

A home takes many shapes and sizes. I've called many places "home" over the years. I have felt "home" in many countries but it is always great to be able to come home to Calgary and my family. And yet I keep on looking for a place to feel home, a sense of restlessness is always there. One of the old saints has said: " our hearts are restless until they find rest in God". We may have a physical home and still feel not home.
Whenever I travel and stay at another place I have to make that place home by unpacking my suitcase and putting my PJ's on the bed.
Guess what, my favourite quilt block is the log cabin. It's a very versatile block and it changes with whatever colour and strip width or setting you choose. You can see some different quilts I've done with this simple block.

Home is where the heart is
When I loose my heart
I can't be home
I'm searching, wandering
No solid ground
Until I find my heart again.
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My heart, Immanuel
Who calls me to follow
And go where he calls me
Calling me home.
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Travelling away from home
Where do I go, where will I be
When we stay where we are
We won't have a home.

Blue Christmas



Yule logs

At home in the tulips

Log Wreath

The leaf doesn't fall far from the log

Tree log

Heart log

Letting go & discipline

Discipline is an act of the will but through perseverance it becomes an act of the heart and brings freedom.

Before I learned the rules of quilting I just cut and sewed as I thought I was supposed to. The result was a lot of "un-sewing" , re-sizing and waste of material. I was never sure if my blocks would match and what the end result would be.
Then I learned about 1/4" seems and how to properly iron and use the rotary cutter! These rules of quilting made the piecing and matching a breeze and quilting became my greatest joy. I could just sew and know that everything would fit perfectly together. It gave me the freedom to enjoy the process and know that the end result would be good.
In real life rules and laws are seen as a restriction of our free will and right to make our own choices.
I have found that in letting go of my free choice, by choosing to follow God's rule I have gained a greater freedom and enjoyment of life. And as in quilting, when I follow a few simple rules I know that the end result will be good. When we let go of the things that hold us, we are free to follow the path that we were meant to follow. And there is much beauty in the act of letting go! Just look at the trees and the colours of Fall.

Metaphors and symbols

The longer I live and learn the more I see the world in metaphors. I don't know if it's just my creative mind or if others have this experience as well. I've always been fascinated by symbols. I even created a card game with all the Christian/church symbols for one of my confirmation classes with teens. They say a picture says a thousand words and maybe I'm too much influenced by comics and studying symbols but my brain is always trying to interpret the things I see around me or the things that are happening in my life.
Maybe I've never grown out of the toddler stage of asking "Why?" or maybe God wants us to ask this question from Him? Maybe it's the curious eternal student in me that wants to know how things work or fit together.
Anyway when I design quilt patterns I often use symbols, as many of the old block designs were meant to be. Look at this little quilt I made some years ago

As you look at each block or strip, they are different symbols for my heritage. The red, white and blue are the colours of the Dutch flag, which you see in the bottom block as well. The maple leaf is a symbol for Canada, and the center block is a log cabin. My home is between two countries and I call them both home. The side borders are flying geese, a symbol again for Canada, but also for me moving around a lot and travelling around the world. The bottom border of little houses stands for having a home wherever I am, as well as the typical Dutch row houses with red roofs.



When I made a trip to Bolivia I used these ideas and adapted them to that country. You get the idea.

Scripture tells us in Genesis that we are the "imago Dei" or image of God. Everything in creation is a reflection of who God is and if we look around us we can find God in people, in nature, even in situations we don't understand. So maybe my search for understanding and interpreting symbols around me is at the deepest level a search for God? And my excitement to share what I've found and discovered is a reflection of His joy for us when we discover Him in the clues he has given us?

Labyrinth walk

      

Labyrinth

 

Walking the pathway

One step at a time

Father, God guide me

As I walk through this life

 

Hurry, hurry, get to the goal

Am I there yet?

Going, going everywhere

Too busy to stop and listen

 

Centered I pause and wonder "Why?"

be still and know.......

I created a path for you

Walk it, notice, learn

 

So I walk, pay attention

Coloured leaves falling gently

Feather, fur, flower, twig

The sun getting warmer

 

As I walk the pathway

One step at a time

Father God guiding me

I discover peace and joy.