Meeting Grandma Verella

So in style of the title of this post sounding way super cheesy, I will try and explain myself a little, although I may get some of the story wrong. Stephen's Grandmother, Verella, passed away in the year 2000 from cancer. I met Stephen and we were married in the year 2003. Stephen's grandfather, Frans, remarried pretty quickly after his wife, Verella passed. Most say because he was lost. I can't imagine losing someone that you have spent most of your life with. All of a sudden they are gone. And as I believe, it was very sudden, within 6 months she was gone. We have the hot pads that she knit while driving to and from her treatments, they are a precious possession for Stephen and I framed them along with a picture of Verella. Above is my Mother-in-law, Ann's, wedding day. (It is actually her BIRTHDAY TODAY! So I figured that this post was appropriate) Her mother, Verella is in the yellow. I have a beautiful picture of her playing baseball with grandkids, but I can't find it. Anyways, I believe that everyone has one in their family, the Matriarch, the lady that everyone is always trying to be. Verella was this lady, and still is the one that everyone is trying to be and looks up to. Frans still speaks of her as if she were right there, "she always knew what was in the very bottom of both deep freezes." She made bread, breakfast was promptly at 9 am, she sewed, canned, gardened, you name it. Having only lived around here for 5 or so years every time I meet someone who has always been around here, they seem to know of Verella, and they get this look of admiration on their face when they ask me if I was "fortunate enough to have met her." Nope, I wasn't. Stephen talks about her rolls, why don't I make rolls like that? Well, I don't bake, honey. :) We have this family heirloom, not any old family heirloom, it's a giant bean bag. Verella found it on the side of the road and sewed a new cover for it and now the family seems to fight over it. Stephen was actually fortunate enough to end up with it, maybe he stole it from one of his brother's I am not sure, but We are trying to sell our house, so the bean bag has found it's way over to Tiffanni's house and I can guarantee that there will be a fight when it is time to get it back. She has these journals, like 10 or so, I swear, they recall birthdays of grandkids, canning operations; "today I canned all of the peaches from so and so's tree and took 10 quarts over to so and so's family and it is little Stacey's birthday today!" Things like that. I have only heard the stories, I was never fortunate enough to meet this beautiful lady, until recently......Ann found 2 shoe boxes of old scraps of her mother's and decided maybe I wanted them, and man, did I ever! Such a delight! I quickly got to work....

As I was laying out a quilt top that had already been put together by Verella and trying to figure out how to finish it, Paisley quickly claimed it as hers. and this is what I came up with and boy, does she love it.

As I was working with all of those hand cut little squares, late into the night, as usual, I begin to imagine this lady. This Verella that has all these grand daughters and great grand daughters named after her (Another one today!!! Stacy had her baby Samantha Verella this morning!) How did she find time to do all that she did and affect so many people in her life? There really was a big whole when she left. Her aching husband, her heart broken children and grand children and future daughter-in-laws, that could only wonder what it would have been like to learn from her. It is a grand gift to know that we will see her again, then I can ask her, did I even come close? Did I try hard enough? I know that I will never even come close to touching her legacy, and I don't want to, it is not a race to the end, I don't want to win (let's be honest, there is a part of me that wants my name whispered in awe after I am gone) :) But can I call myself a part of her and her family? Did I make the cut? Did she have failures like I have, did she ever get down? Or is the trick to just keep trucking on? Make the bread, remember the birthdays, fertilize the flowers, make sure breakfast is on the table. Keep the marriage strong. Yes, I have a lot to learn from this Verella character, but a part of me learned a little bit more as I worked with the material that she had cut with care and written on one shoe box "for baby quilts." Well, that baby blanket is done, Verella, I finished it for you and gave it to my baby because she wouldn't let it go. I think that a part of her knew how special it was too. Thank you Verella. Thank you for your kids that you raised, your husband that you made strong, and my husband that has an admiration for you that I will strive to earn. Thank you for teaching me a thing or two. :) Here is another that I am working on for my family, not quite done yet.... But I know that we will love it.

I also made my first ruffle. I added it to Paisley's blanket. Verella had started it and pressed it together and I looked at her first little bit and figured out how to do the rest. Here is a blanket I made for the Relay for Life to be auctioned off in July. This is the 2nd year that the family will have a booth in Verella'a name. (Stephen's father is a cancer survivor) Last year we slept in a tent at the track, so that we could walk all night. I thought the family would like that Verella and I had made it together, well, kind of. And if no one likes it, then Stephen knows that he has to bid on it, so that I won't feel bad. :)

So once again, thank you Verella, I only wished I had been around a few years earlier.....