Quilt Story :: My Feet Have Wings

August 25, 2021

Quilt Story :: My Feet Have Wings

There are stories we tell about ourselves that might be true for a time and for whatever reason, even when the story is no longer true, we cling to it. I am not a runner. I hate running. Except, this is no longer true. My new story - I am a runner. I love running.

When a call for quilts was made on the theme of hope, the idea for this mini quilt came immediately to me. It is an abstract representation of my favorite section of trail above our house. As the pandemic arrived, my budding running practice came to a grinding halt. Until one day, I just went and I went again. I found a new rhythm and let go of expectations. It gave me an escape that I needed desperately (having childcare evaporated, still working full-time will do that to a person). Finding this path filled me with hope. Especially this section that requires first a careful attention to the downslope and then a burst of energy as I run up. The ground is packed dark dirt and a one track boardwalk covered in mesh wire for traction. My lungs feel full and my legs heavy, my feet pounding. It is an instant of pure joy.

At 12"x12" finished, the piecing was tiny but allowed me to explore controlled improvisation combined with traditional piecing while working on color value play. The greens represent the trees, though maybe that's obvious. Purple flying geese are my feet on the path. They are inset into the path - requiring that I cut holes in this part of the quilt. Terrifying but thrilling because it worked. The path, made from a courthouse steps block, is both the path but also a nod to the social justice turmoil of the past year. The improv pieced blues turned quarter circles are the sky, the bay, hope, and light.

I was floored when my quilt was selected to be 1 of 50 quilts in the show at Festival of Quilts across the ocean from here. I sent it off to England with plenty of time, but it didn't arrive. It became a lesson in letting go. And just as I was getting my heart settled into the fact that the quilt might be lost forever, I got word that it arrived - too late for the show, but maybe it'll be shown yet. I've got half a mind to go collect it personally when it is time for the quilt to head home.