As promised, here is the companion to the blanket I posted yesterday. (Read more about “Peace” here.) These blankets are Christmas gifts for a pair of sisters from a third sister, Maureen. Don’t tell! These were ordered and designed in remembrance of their mom.
So finally, here is “Butterflies for Momma” :
The assignment: two different blankets for two different sisters but each meaningful in its own right. I was put to the test again! But as always happens, the sweaters and the colors and the wool itself all guided me with their ever-surprising capability to inspire.
For this blanket, Maureen had told me that butterflies remind this particular sister of her mother’s presence. And then Maureen said, “You can make it colorful!” Was this the kind of colorful she had in mind? I’m not sure! But I do believe it’s full of color and light and tranquility too. Here the border hints of a trellis or an arbor, a pleasant place from which to watch these delightful flitting creatures.
My hope and prayer is that both of these blankets can bring wonderful thoughts of a wonderful woman to mind for two very special sisters.
Did you take General Psych in school? Do you remember Erikson’s psychosocial stages of development? As a sociology major and then an occupational therapist, I distinctly recall studying this several times. Now that I’m, um, older, I think I’ve found a weak spot in his thinking….
[Bear with me while I take a little license with Erikson’s model here — I know he had certain things in mind. But still, I believe my points are valid….]
Did Erikson take note of THESE milestones? — Figuring out how to live with the alien you promised your life to in marriage? Shakily acknowledging responsibility for your newborn when YOU DON”T KNOW WHAT THE HECK YOU ARE DOING? Learning from your mistakes? (Emblazoned on my memory is the time I went through the house slamming windows closed so the neighbors wouldn’t hear me scream at my 10-year-old.)
Or how about these — Discovering that raising kids to be independent is the right thing to do but hurts like the dickens? Realizing that you caused your own parents a boatload of pain and worry but they never let on? Seeing aging in a whole new light once age 50 or 60 hits? Wondering who will “go first,” you or your spouse?
And these are only the highlights. I personally think Mr. Erikson skimmed over way too much stuff.
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Erikson’s problematic schema aside, I am so thankful that we do change and learn and grow. Can you imagine how dull life might be otherwise?
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“If nothing ever changed, there’d be no butterflies.”
~Author Unknown
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Diane brought me a handful of wool sweaters from her dad’s closet not long after he passed away. Her parents had been married for 55 years and all too quickly he was suddenly gone. Talk about a new developmental stage! Diane said, “I’d love for you to make a blanket for my mom out of these sweaters of Dad’s.”
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A couple days later, Diane added: “And would you put butterflies on it?” Butterflies — to depict the unfolding days ahead for her mom, now no longer with her mate by her side, but with instead a whole realm of new possibilities.
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I used three of Diane’s dad’s sweaters:
In the photo above, 1) the brown patch that the pansies are on, and below, 2) the cream-colored stripe and 3) the “checkerboard” under the blue butterfly.
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His sweaters make a beautiful background for the new butterflies, just breaking forth now and finding their way.
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And back to Erikson — he lived until nearly age 92. Do you imagine that just MAYBE he had a couple more chapters brewing in his mind by then?
